Audible is following Amazon’s strict new RTO policy, but belatedly

Audible now has a minimum RTO policy of 2 days per week.

“With this additional capacity in Newark and continued improvements in our hubs globally, Audible will be ready as of April 2, 2025 to welcome all employees globally back to their respective hubs in accordance with our pre-pandemic policy , in the office,” Carrigan wrote. in the email, a copy of which was obtained by Business Insider.

“While we mandate April 2^when for employees to return to the office 5 days a week, we will be able to accommodate employees who would like to begin returning to their centers at least 3 days a week beginning January 2, 2025, as we move ahead of the pandemic. ways of working and as we increase personal collaboration for our many critical initiatives,” added Carrigan.

An Amazon spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment. An Audible spokesperson had no comment.

The different RTO timelines show the difficulty of implementing a strict and uniform policy across Amazon’s sprawling business empire. The company has at least 1.5 million employees working in sectors as varied as retail, logistics, warehousing, cloud computing, satellites, video and music streaming.

One Medical, for example, starts full week RTO in October 2025, about 9 months after Amazon employees are due to start.

Amazon has been dealing with contentious labor issues for years. Its aggressive RTO policy is the latest flashpoint. For over a year, Amazon employees have expressed their frustration with the RTO. Last week’s announcement to require 5 days in the office starting in January had an internal Slack channel “on fire” with so many comments and reactions.

Amazon acquired Audible, which provides audiobooks and podcasts, for about $300 million in 2008. The company has largely operated as a separate entity, but Amazon has tightened control. In January, Audible laid off 5 percent of its employees, and Carrigan declined to say whether the job cuts were over, instead warning of “storms ahead,” such as Shopify’s new audiobook business.

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