Google Extends Work From Home For 200,000 Employees Till This Date; Only Vaccinated Staff Allowed

Covid-19 pushed people all over the world into their homes. Especially the advent of technology extended the homestays of IT employees a bit longer as well. IT corporates benefited from this arrangement as well as they saved a lot in terms of operational expenses. And now as vaccines are rolled out throughout the world, the corporates are being conscious to reopen their offices. The same conscious steps are being taken by the IT behemoth Google.

Google postpones reopening of its offices till October 18

In a recent letter to its employees the CEO, Sundar Pichai said that the company is postponing the reopening of offices till October 18, 2021. He also said that the extension will allow flexibility to employees who need it as some communities are seeing a surge in Delta variant cases. He added vaccination rate is very high for the Google community in areas where vaccines are easily available and hence they feel comfortable allowing some employees to return early. “Getting vaccinated is one of the most important ways to keep ourselves and our communities healthy in the months ahead,” notified the CEO.

He also mentioned that the company is making it mandatory to get vaccinated if people are interested in getting back to the offices. At the same time he added, there will also be exception clauses for those who cannot be vaccinated for medical or other protected reasons.

Concerns regarding Delta Variant

“We recognize that many Googlers are seeing spikes in their communities caused by the Delta variant and are concerned about returning to the office. This extension will allow us time to ramp back into work while providing flexibility for those who need it. We’ll continue watching the data carefully and let you know at least 30 days in advance before transitioning into our full return to office plans,” Sundar Pichai said in the letter.

The CEO also added, “I hope these steps will give everyone greater peace of mind as offices reopen. Seeing Googlers together in the offices these past few weeks filled me with optimism, and I’m looking forward to brighter days ahead.”