On September 27, 2020, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong wrote that Coinbase was a “mission focused company.” It would stay out of outside issues: “We don’t engage here when issues are unrelated to our core mission, because we believe impact only comes with focus.” Employees uncomfortable with the policy could leave with a severance package. About 60 of roughly 1,200 employees took it.
On April 26, 2021, Jason Fried, CEO of the software company Basecamp, posted: “No more societal and political discussions on our company Basecamp account.” He wrote, “You shouldn’t have to wonder if staying out of it means you’re complicit, or wading into it means you’re a target.” According to The Verge, 18 of Basecamp’s 57 employees took severance.
About a week later, Fried apologized. “Last week was terrible,” he wrote.