Criticism is mounting against Salesforce CEO and co-founder Marc Benioff after a controversial joke he made regarding US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during an internal company conference in Las Vegas. The backlash intensified when employees voiced their outrage over Benioff’s comments, prompting leaders at Slack, a Salesforce subsidiary, to call for an apology.
During his keynote address, Benioff invited international employees to stand and then quipped that ICE agents were present to monitor them. This comment elicited boos from the audience, with multiple attendees recounting their disapproval to various media outlets, including Wired and 404Media. Following the incident, a recording of Benioff’s speech shared on an internal Salesforce platform was reportedly edited to remove the remarks concerning ICE.
As the fallout continues, hundreds of Salesforce employees are planning to pressure Benioff to publicly denounce ICE and to reconsider the company’s business dealings with the agency. This incident comes against a backdrop of shifting political views from Benioff, who has historically aligned himself with liberal causes but appeared to take a more conservative stance during Donald Trump’s presidency. In the past, he supported initiatives to tax large corporations to fund homeless services and publicly criticized wealth concentration among billionaires. However, he has since expressed support for Trump, including comments suggesting the president deploy National Guard troops to San Francisco, before later retracting those remarks.
The recent controversy has raised concerns among Salesforce employees, particularly those on work visas. Farone Rasheed, an employee, expressed alarm and frustration on LinkedIn, stating, “I am fearful for my friends and co-workers on my team who are here on international visas.” Rasheed described his emotional response to the leadership’s recent statements and admitted he was hesitant to speak out for fear of retaliation.
In an internal message, Rob Seaman, Slack’s general manager, echoed the sentiments of disgruntled employees. He admitted he could neither defend nor explain Benioff’s remarks and acknowledged that they did not align with his values, a sentiment shared by many others within the company.
Salesforce has yet to respond to inquiries regarding the situation, leaving employees and observers eager for a response from the leadership amid growing calls for accountability and change.
