Amazon has said that it will appeal the decision against its chief executive Andy Jassy after a judge found him in violation of federal labour law.

“The decision reflects poorly on the state of free speech rights today, and we remain optimistic that we will be able to continue to engage in a reasonable discussion on these issues where all perspectives have an opportunity to be heard,” company spokesperson Mary Kate Paradis said, according to CNBC.

National Labor Relations Board Judge Brian Gee ruled Wednesday that Jassy went against federal law in the comments made during live shows on media related to unionisation at his company.

The judge based on order based on the comments made in 2022 to CNBC’s “Squawk Box,” Bloomberg Television and at The New York Times’ DealBook conference, coinciding with employees’ efforts to form unions at the company’s warehouse and delivery operations.

In April 2022, he told CNBC that a union would mean less empowerment for staff, while things would become “much slower” and “more bureaucratic.”

In the Bloomberg interview, Jassy remarked, “if you see something on the line that you think could be better for your team or you or your customers, you can’t just go to your manager and say, ‘Let’s change it.'”