Former and current employees at Blue Origin, the rocket company
started by
Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon and one of the richest people in
the world, say the company is rife with sexism, intolerant of employees who
dare to contradict their bosses and lax on safety.
اضافة اعلان
The claims were put forward in an essay written by 21 employees and former
employees and published Thursday on the website Lioness. Only one former
employee identified herself. The essay also suggested that there were safety
concerns about New Shepard, the vehicle that flew Bezos and three other
passengers to the edge of space in July.
“In the opinion of an engineer who has signed on to this essay,
‘Blue Origin has been lucky that nothing has happened so far,’ ” the essay
writers said. “Many of this essay’s authors say they would not fly on a Blue
Origin vehicle.”
The next New Shepard flight is scheduled for October 12, and one of
its four paying passengers said his plans had not changed.
“I am confident in Blue Origin’s safety program, spacecraft, and
track record, and certainly wouldn’t be flying with them if I wasn’t,” Glen de
Vries, vice chair of life sciences and health care at the French software
company Dassault Systèmes, said in a message via Twitter. “I’ve been to the
launch site, met people at every level of the company, and everything I’ve seen
was indicative of a great team and culture.”
The other announced passenger, Chris Boshuizen, a co-founder of
Planet Labs, a satellite operator, did not respond to a request for comment.
Alexandra Abrams, the essay writer who spoke publicly, is a
former head of employee communications at Blue Origin. She was fired from the
company in 2019. She also appeared on “CBS Mornings” on Thursday.
“You cannot create a culture of safety and a culture of fear at
the same time,” Abrams told CBS. “They are incompatible.”
A statement from a Blue Origin spokesperson said Abrams had been
fired for cause in 2019 after repeated warnings for issues involving federal
export control regulations. Abrams said she had never received any warnings,
verbal or written.
The company also disputed the culture and safety allegations.
“Blue Origin has no tolerance for discrimination or harassment
of any kind,” the spokesperson said. “We provide numerous avenues for
employees, including a 24/7 anonymous hotline, and will promptly investigate
any new claims of misconduct. We stand by our safety record and believe that
New Shepard is the safest space vehicle ever designed or built.”
The Lioness essay describes a toxic, sexist culture at Blue
Origin. “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 says.
The essay also says that company officials are now pushing to
launch New Shepard at a breakneck rate of more than 40 flights per year and
that certain operations are understaffed, posing safety risks.
The Federal Aviation Administration, which regulates rocket
launches to ensure the safety of the public, released a statement saying that
it was reviewing the information in the essay, as it does with all safety
allegations.
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