Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin: Essay claims ‘toxic’ workplace

Twenty-one current and former employees of Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin claim the space company is a “toxic” workplace, according to an essay posted Thursday.

Led by former Blue Origin head of employee communications Alexandra Abrams, the essay claims that the company pushes workers to sign strict nondisclosure agreements, stifles internal feedback, disregards safety concerns, and creates a sexist environment for women. It also gave examples of alleged sexual harassment.

“I’ve gotten far enough away from it that I’m not afraid enough to let them silence me anymore,” Abrams said in a CBS interview that aired Thursday.

The essay was published Thursday on the Lioness website. It was signed by Abrams and said it was endorsed by 20 other current and former employees whose names were not listed.

In a response to CNBC, Blue Origin vice president of communications Linda Mills said Abrams was “dismissed for cause” in 2019 “after repeated warnings for issues involving federal export control regulations.”

“Blue Origin has no tolerance for discrimination or harassment of any kind,” Mills added in her statement. “We provide numerous avenues for employees, including a 24/7 anonymous hotline, and will promptly investigate any new claims of misconduct.”

Abrams acknowledged in the CBS interview that she was fired by Blue Origin. She told “CBS Mornings” she was “shocked” when she was fired but was told by her manager that “Bob and I can’t trust you anymore,” referring to CEO Bob Smith. According to her LinkedIn account, she now works in employee communications for a large software company.

The essay said that “workforce gender gaps are common in the space industry” but claimed that “at Blue Origin they also manifest in a particular brand of sexism.”

It gave two examples from senior leadership. It alleged that a “senior executive in CEO Bob Smith’s loyal inner circle” was repeatedly reported to the company’s human resources team about sexual harassment claims. Despite the claims, the essay said, Smith made the executive a member of Blue Origin’s hiring committee when the company was filling a senior human resources role.

In the second example, a former executive allegedly was demeaning toward women, “calling them ‘baby girl,’ ‘baby doll,’ or ‘sweetheart’ and inquiring about their dating lives.” The essay claims Blue Origin would warn new female hires to stay away from the executive, who allegedly had a “close personal relationship with Bezos.”

“It took him physically groping a female subordinate for him to finally be let go,” the essay alleges.

Blue Origin also intensified the use of strict nondisclosure agreements, the essay says, pushing all employees to sign new contracts with a nondisparagement clause in 2019. The company’s work culture has “taken a toll on the mental health” of “many” people, the current and former employees claimed. The letter cited a senior…