Microsoft workers push CEO to cancel police contracts, support defunding Seattle PD
Microsoft CEO reacts to letter, saying 'we have to act'
Hundreds of Microsoft employees sent a letter to executives on Monday calling for the tech company to cancel its police contracts and support defunding the Seattle Police Department.
The letter, obtained by Medium's tech publication OneZero and addressed to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Executive Vice President Kurt DelBene, also calls on the company to formally express support for a list of demands from the Black Lives Matter activist organization's Seattle branch.
The subject line of the letter, which initially came from about 20 Seattle-based Microsoft employees and has since gained traction among hundreds of other company workers, reads, "Our neighborhood has been turned into a warzone," according to OneZero.
Two people embrace Monday, June 8, 2020, in Seattle, near the site of a demonstration the night before at a Seattle police precinct where protests continued over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis.(AP Phot
The email's copy states that the employees CC'd on the email "are either first-hand witnesses or direct victims to the inhumane responses of SPD to peaceful protesting," and describes the ways in which violent protests in the wake of George Floyd's death are affecting employee health and wellbeing.
The authors then list a set of demands for Microsoft to meet in order to help employees cope with the fallout from both protests and the coronavirus pandemic.
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On top of canceling police contracts and meeting another list of BLM demands, the letter also includes requests for performance-review leniency amid the coronavirus pandemic and protests if worker productivity dips, and a four-day work week policy.
The group also wants formal condemnation of the use of tear gas, rubber bullets, and flashbangs; more employee donation matches; and the company's signature on a petition calling for the resignation of Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan.
Nadella reacted to the letter, telling FOX Business in a statement that the company needs to "do better."
"As a company, we need to look inside, examine our organization, and do better. I have heard from many employees over the past several days, expressing calls for action, calls for reflection, calls for change. My response is this: Yes. We have to act. And our actions must reflect the values of our company and be directly informed by the needs of the Black and African American community," Nadella said.
A worker moves new fencing into position on a street outside a Seattle police precinct Monday, June 8, 2020, in Seattle, where protests continued the night before over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis. (
He added that Microsoft executives "also have a responsibility to use our platform and resources intentionally to address systemic inequities in our communities and in society broadly."
The initial 20 workers CC'd on the email live in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood, where protests have become violent, OneZero reported. The author of the email has been injured with tear gas three times and a flashbang once; the author also claims that Seattle police put another employee in a chokehold and dragged him to the ground, OneZero reported.
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"Every passing day, we feel that our fellow coworkers, managers, and leaders who live miles away outside of Seattle are severely disconnected to the violent reality thousands of people have been facing every single day since last Saturday," the letter states.
The letter adds that employees have experienced "24/7 helicopter noise, teargassing, flashbanging, rubber bullet, gun shots, and vans/buses filled with armed law enforcement," and they need leaders like Nadella and DelBene "to help bridge this gap of disconnection, misinformation, and complacency."
Pedestrians walk past a mural painted on plywood covering a window Monday, June 8, 2020, in Seattle, near the site of a demonstration the night before at a Seattle police precinct where protests continued over the death of George Floyd, a black man w
Durkan banned the use of tear gas for a month in a June 5 announcement after receiving complaints from three civilian police watchdog groups who called on the city to ban CS gas in an effort to rebuild trust among civilians and law enforcement.
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Police in major cities across the U.S. demonstrated less force during largely peaceful protests that took place over the weekend.
Since 2014, Microsoft has supported the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Center's 21st Century Police Leadership program and worked has with the state's court system to create technology aimed at helping judges make fair decisions in legal financial obligations as part of the Microsoft Criminal Justice Reform Initiative, according to a March 3 blog post.