Nearly two dozen Blue Origin employees accuse Jeff Bezos of ignoring safety, toxic workplace
Jeff Bezos accused of reaching for the stars at ANY cost: 21 Blue Origin employees accuse Amazon boss of IGNORING safety concerns and fostering ‘sexist and toxic’ workplace to win billionaire space race with Musk and Branson
Blue Origin is accused of fostering a toxic work environment and putting aside safety to win the space race for founder Jeff Bezos21 current and former employees say claimed that ‘making progress for Jeff’ took precedence over safety concerns that would have otherwise slowed progress They claimed that the most common question at high-level meetings was: ‘When will Elon or Branson fly?’ and safety concerns were ignored Ultimately, Branson flew to the edge of space first, on July 11 – nine days ahead of Bezos The employees said they felt ‘unease’ when Bezos blasted into space, with some unable to watch the event at all The workers also claimed that the Amazon boss fostered a ‘sexist and toxic’ workplace where women were referred to as ‘baby girl’ One former NASA astronaut and Blue Origin ‘senior leader’ told women he was working with they should ask his opinion ‘because I am a man’
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Nearly two dozen Blue Origin employees have accused Jeff Bezos of creating a ‘toxic’ work environment where the company sacrificed safety in order to win the billionaire space race.
In an essay, Alexandra Abrams, the former head of Blue Origin Employee Communications, along with 20 employees said the priority was to ‘make progress for Jeff’ as he competed with Elon Musk and Richard Branson to make it to space first.
They claimed that the most common question at high-level meetings was: ‘When will Elon or Branson fly?’ and safety concerns were ignored because they would have ‘slowed progress’.
‘Progress at Blue Origin was smooth and steady and slow, until Jeff started getting impatient that Elon and Branson were getting ahead, and then we started feeling this increasing pressure and impatience that would filter down from leadership,’ Abrams told CBS Mornings on Thursday.
Ultimately, Branson flew to the edge of space first, on July 11 – nine days ahead of Bezos. Musk, who leads SpaceX, has not flown into space himself, but his company sent four civilians into space on September 15, flying 360 miles above the Earth.
The employees said they felt ‘unease’ when Bezos blasted into space, with some unable to watch the event at all. Most said that with their concerns over safety, they would not fly in Blue Origin rockets at all.
Blue Origin has been accused by current and former employees of creating a toxic work environment and putting aside employee safety to win the space race for founder Jeff Bezos (pictured with CEO Bob Smith)
On July 20, Bezos, along with his brother, Mark, Dutch teenager Oliver Daemen and test pilot, Wally Funk, headed into space
The group further claimed that workforce gender gaps resulted in a ‘particular brand of sexism,’ where senior leaders, including one in CEO Bob Smith’s inner circle, were ‘consistently inappropriate with women.’
The senior leader was was reported to HR multiple times for sexual harassment, but Smith allegedly made this person a member of the hiring committee for filling a senior HR role in 2019, and no action was taken against him.
Another person called women ‘baby girl,’ ‘baby doll,’ or ‘sweetheart’ and asked about dating lives.
The essay also cites a former NASA astronaut and Blue Origin ‘senior leader’ who told women he was working with they should ask his opinion ‘because I am a man.’
‘We found many company leaders to be unapproachable and showing clear bias against women,’ the essay reads.
‘Concerns related to flying were consistently shut down, and women were demeaned for raising them.
‘When one man was let go for poor performance, he was allowed to leave with dignity, even a going-away party. Yet when a woman leader who had significantly improved her department’s performance was let go, she was ordered to leave immediately, with security hovering until she exited the building five minutes later.’
‘Making progress for Jeff [Bezos]’ took precedence over safety concerns that would have otherwise slowed progress on the schedule
The essay notes that the toxic culture has taken a toll on the mental health of many employees, including some who have ‘experienced periods of suicidal thoughts.’
‘Former and current employees have had experiences they could only describe as dehumanizing, and are terrified of the potential consequences for speaking out against the wealthiest man on the planet,’ the essay reads.
‘One senior program leader with decades in the aerospace and defense industry said working at Blue Origin was the worst experience of her life.’
DailyMail.com has reached out to Blue Origin with a request for comment.
Many of the essay’s authors wrote the company never considered environmental impacts of the company’s operations until the last minute, citing the company’s headquarters in Kent, Washington that was ‘built on wetlands that were drained for construction.’
‘All of us joined Blue Origin eager to innovate and to open access to space for the benefit of humanity,’ the essay reads. ‘We believe exploring the possibilities for human civilization beyond Earth is a necessity.
‘But if this company’s culture and work environment are a template for the future Jeff Bezos envisions, we are headed in a direction that reflects the worst of the world we live in now, and sorely needs to change.’
On July 20, Bezos, along with his brother, Mark, Dutch teenager Oliver Daemen and test pilot, Wally Funk, headed into space.
Funk became the oldest person to ever fly to space at 82 years old.
At 18 years old, Daemen became the youngest person, first teenager, and first person born in the 21st century to travel to space.
Earlier this week, Blue Origin announced its second space mission, scheduled for October 12.
Dr Chris Boshuizen, co-founder of Planet Labs and partner at venture capital firm DCVC and Medidata co-founder Glen de Vries into space on the New Shepard rocket.
In an email obtained by DailyMail.com, the company said the other two astronauts would be announced ‘in the coming days,’ though speculation rose last week when legendary Star Trek actor William Shatner was reported to join the crew.
