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Microsoft fires 4 employees after on-campus protest
Protests over Microsoft's contract with the Israeli military escalated after 25 people were arrested in eight days, with seven demonstrators barricading themselves in the office of Microsoft President Brad Smith.
REDMOND, Wash. - Microsoft says it has fired two of its workers who were arrested during a sit-in protest in the company president's office.
The workers were among seven current and former Microsoft workers and community members arrested on Tuesday. A group occupied a Microsoft executive building, renaming it the "Mai Ubeid Building" after a Palestinian software engineer killed in Gaza.
via No Azure for Apartheid
Microsoft cited serious breaches of company policies as one of the reasons for the terminations. The group behind the protest, "No Azure for Apartheid," said the employees lost access to their Microsoft accounts before receiving voicemails notifying them that they had been fired.
What they're saying:
A Microsoft spokesperson sent the following statement regarding the employee terminations:
"Two employees were terminated today following serious breaches of company policies and our code of conduct. The first violated the Business Conduct Policy, participated in the unlawful break-in at the executive offices, and other demonstrations on campus, and was arrested by authorities on our premises on two occasions. The second was involved in the break-in at the executive offices and was subsequently arrested.
These incidents are inconsistent with the expectations we maintain for our employees. The company is continuing to investigate and is cooperating fully with law enforcement regarding these matters."
However, No Azure for Apartheid claimed the employees were not notified of the exact reason for termination, nor did Microsoft highlight a specific policy violation as the basis for the termination.
"We are here because Microsoft continues to provide Israel with the tools it needs to commit genocide while gaslighting and misdirecting its own workers about this reality. We are a few among thousands of workers who refuse to let their labor be used for the mass murder of Palestinians," said one of the fired employees.
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7 protesters arrested at Microsoft president's office
Seven people were arrested in Redmond after they forced their way inside Microsoft’s executive’s building in Redmond.
Dig deeper:
Tuesday's protest was the latest in a series of demonstrations organized by No Azure for Apartheid, which has been demanding for months that Microsoft sever its business ties with the Israeli military.
On Aug. 20, 18 people were arrested following a protest at the Redmond Microsoft campus. Demonstrators were seen setting up tents, blocking a pedestrian bridge and pouring red paint on the Microsoft sign.
Credit: Microsoft
Microsoft said one of the protesters in the large rally was a current employee, and three others were fired from the company previously for similar conduct.
"Microsoft has dragged its feet at every opportunity to hold the Israeli military accountable but has acted with incredible haste in repressing workers sentiment about the issue of Palestine," said Riki Fameli, one of the fired Microsoft workers at a press conference on Thursday. "I worked in Azure storage. It is untenable to me that I had worked so hard on building out the Azure storage space and that ultimately that labor was benefitting the mass surveillance and targeting of a people experiencing the extreme horrors of genocide and forced starvation."
Microsoft said it is reviewing allegations that the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have used its Azure cloud computing platform to store phone call data obtained through the mass surveillance of Palestinians.
The Source: Information in this story came from Microsoft, No Azure for Apartheid and FOX 13 Seattle reporting.
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