They were testifying at a Seattle City Council meeting.
Five members of Amazon Employees for Climate Justice (AECJ) have already testified at Seattle City Council meetings about AI data centers. Now, three of them are apparently under investigation by the company. The AECJ filed a civil rights complaint against the company on behalf of the three engineers, according to CNBC And GeekWireaccusing Amazon of violating a Seattle law that prohibits companies from discriminating against employees based on political ideology, race, religion and age.
Engineers spoke out at Seattle City Council hearings on whether to pause construction of AI data centers. They reportedly urged the council to add renewable energy requirements and labor protections related to data centers to city regulations. Additionally, they called on the government to halt industry plans “to develop as much computing capacity as possible, as quickly as possible, before regulations catch up.” The Seattle City Council ultimately voted to adopt a one-year moratorium on AI data centers.
In their complaint, the engineers said Amazon called them separately for a meeting with HR after the hearings and were told they were being investigated because of concerns about their testimony. They were allegedly told the investigation could lead to disciplinary action or even dismissal.
GeekWire said Amazon denied telling engineers they risked being fired for speaking out at the hearings. Company spokesperson Margaret Callahan told the publications in a statement that after reviewing the engineers’ testimonies, “it became clear that they may be speaking in their capacity as Amazonians and not as ordinary citizens.” The company is investigating whether a violation actually occurred because Amazon does not allow its employees to speak as representatives without following certain procedures. “It is important to note that we do not tolerate any retaliatory behavior,” she added.
Amazon fired Emily Cunningham and Maren Costa, two of the AECJ’s original organizers, in 2020 for criticizing the company’s climate and labor practices. The former employees sued the company for illegal dismissal. Amazon settled with them in 2021 and was required to pay their back wages, as well as post a notice to all workers that it cannot fire them “for organizing and exercising their rights.”
