Amazon’s more than 4,200 Luxembourg employees were expected to learn Monday that they can continue to work remotely for 20 days a year, despite an office-only work regime dictated by the U.S. headquarters, Amazon said. Luxembourg Times Dec persons with knowledge of the decision.
The company’s change of heart follows recognition that Luxembourg law requires companies with more than 150 employees to consult their employee representatives before changing their remote working policies. That wasn’t the case when Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said in September that the company’s white-collar workers, among its more than 1.5 million employees worldwide, were expected to work from office five days a week.
It is not certain whether the fifth largest employer in the Grand Duchy will be forced to make a local exception to this declaration before it comes into force in January.
Jorrit Van der Meulen, Amazon Vice President for European Stores, discussed the company’s performance in 2024 and its goals for 2025 during an all-staff meeting in Luxembourg on Thursday (November 14). © PHOTO: Anouk Antony
The company will follow “local requirements”
An Amazon Luxembourg spokesperson told Luxembourg Times Thursday that he was not aware of any variation from the global requirement, but that the company, whose European headquarters has been in the Grand Duchy for two decades, would follow local requirements.
Discussions about the 20-day allowance for remote work have fueled employee discussion groups on social media.
US data and retail giant Amazon said last week it spent 1 billion euros in Luxembourg last year on salaries, buildings and equipment.
The spending for 2023 came as Amazon cut its staff by around 300 people last year, according to data from national statistics agency Statec.
Teleworking remains popular
Teleworking remains popular in Luxembourg, despite a decline since it was imposed on everyone during the pandemic, according to a survey published in June by the Chamber of Employees, which lobbies the government on behalf of employees.
The CSL survey revealed that 29% of employees regularly practiced teleworking in 2023, compared to 40% in 2021 and 21% the first time the question was asked as part of the annual survey in 2017. They are even more want this flexibility: 57% of all employees said they want to work from home at least once a week and a third would prefer to telework from home most of the time, according to the survey.
A citizens’ petition included on the agenda of the Luxembourg Parliament and debated last year aimed to make two days of teleworking per week the legal norm for everyone, including for the country’s more than 200,000 cross-border workers. This did not happen.
This article was originally published on the website of Luxembourg Times.
Adaptation: Mélodie Mouzon