Nubank fires Employees Following Protest Over Return-to-Office Policy
Nubank terminated the โคemployment ofโ 12 individuals and issued warnings to othersโ this โคfriday, February 7th, following employee protestsโค against a โคnewโ return-to-office โฃpolicy, โaccording to sources โclose to the bank. The decision wasโ announced in an internal statement where Nubank โคmanagement statedโฃ they “welcome dissent,” but emphasizedโ boundaries. “We are ready for feedback and resistance. Thisโค is a tough decision.But we drawโ a โขline in the sand against lack of respect and aggression.”
In response to inquiries regarding the protests and dismissals, Nubank affirmed itsโ commitment to “preserve open channels and rituals for free debate among its employees, but does not tolerate disrespect and violations of conduct.” The โขcompany added, “Nubank does not comment on individualโข cases of โtermination.”
The controversy stems from CEO โคDavid Vรฉlez‘sโ push to reinstate some in-person work. Estadรฃo/Broadcast reports that human Resources cautioned Vรฉlezโ that thisโ change could provoke a negative reaction. Despite this warning, Vรฉlez reportedly expressed surprise at the intensity of the employee response during a presentation โขoutlining the new policy, with some participants stating they would seek employment elsewhere.
The announcement sparked widespread reaction, including hundreds of cryingโข emojis on LinkedIn. Nubank had offered to assist affected employees with relocation, including covering one โฃmonth’s rent,โข according โto a company source.
The timing of the announcement also drew โฃcriticism. โIt followed an incident on Wednesday, February 5th, where a man suspected of โขrobbery was โfatally shot by โขa military police officer near โNubank’s headquarters, and the officer wasโฃ afterward stabbed. Some employees cited โขthis event โฃas a โขcontributing factor to concerns โabout returning toโ in-person work.
Nubank’s internal statement on โขFebruary 7th addressedโค the previous day’sโ events, stating, “Regrettably, yesterdayโ [Thursday, February 6th] we witnessed unacceptable comments in our Zoom chat, whichโข is a corporate channel andโค requiresโ professional โคbehavior. โThese actions poison our โขhabitat and impact every employee whoโ is trying to respectfully engage.”
Vรฉlez, in announcing the policy change, acknowledged its difficulty but maintained โit was necessary, โproviding a lengthyโ adaptation period. Nubank is currently renovating offices โandโ planning new locations โin cities like Belo Horizonte โand rio โขdeโฃ Janeiro. The new policy will require โขtwo days ofโข in-office work per week startingโค in July โ2026,increasing to three days per week in January 2027. Currently,โค Nubank operates โฃprimarily with a remoteโ workforce.
Vรฉlez previously expressed concerns about the long-term effects of a primarily remote work environment, stating, โฃ”Over โขthe past few years, I have repeatedly mentioned that I worry โคabout our chosen primarily remote environment, as its benefits were very obvious, but โits costs were invisible.”
