Automattic offered employees another chance to quit over WordPress drama

Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg offered a 2nd buyout circular to employees who don’t hold with his actions, according to a study from 404 Media. In a connection to employees seen by the outlet, Mullenweg gave employees until October 17th to determine whether they would resign successful speech for 9 months of pay.

“New alignment offer: I conjecture immoderate radical were bittersweet they missed the past window. Some person been leaking to the property and ex-employees,” Mullenweg wrote successful the connection seen by 404 Media. “You person until 00:00 UTC Oct 17 (-4 hours) to DM maine the words, ‘I resign and would similar to instrumentality the 9-month buy-out offer’ You don’t person to accidental immoderate reason, oregon thing else. I volition reply ‘Thank you.’ Automattic volition judge your resignation.”

Earlier this month, Mullenweg offered Automattic employees the greater of $30,000 oregon six months of wage if they didn’t enactment his combat against WP Engine, a third-party WordPress hosting platform. Around 8.4 percent of the institution near arsenic a effect of the offer. In Mullenweg’s caller offer, helium reportedly told employees leaking accusation to the property to “exit gracefully, oregon beryllium fired time with nary severance.” You tin work Mullenweg’s connection successful afloat astatine the extremity of this post.

Additionally, 404 Media reports that successful July, Mullenweg redirected incoming emails from Blind, a tract wherever workers tin anonymously sermon their workplace, to his ain inbox. Employees signing up for oregon logging into the level utilizing their institution email (which the tract requires) reportedly had to inquire Mullenweg for the authentication codes.

The Verge reached retired to Automattic with a petition for remark but didn’t instantly perceive back.

Mullenweg ignited a quality past period aft calling WP Engine a “cancer” to the WordPress assemblage and accusing the institution of infringing connected WordPress trademarks. The CEO has since waged a nationalist run against WP Engine, starring the institution to file a suit that accuses Automattic and Mullenweg of “abuse of power, extortion, and greed.”

Automattic is the Mullenweg-owned institution that controls WordPress.com, the commercialized limb of the WordPress unfastened root project. Mullenweg is besides 1 of 3 committee members connected WordPress.org and said successful an interrogation with The Verge that the project “belongs to me.”

Here’s Mullenweg’s afloat connection to employees, arsenic archetypal reproduced by 404 Media: