New Delhi: Alphabet-owned Google has informed employees, through a memo, that they would lose their salaries and eventually be fired if they do not follow the company's COVID-19 vaccination policies amid a rising Omicron threat, media reports said. This comes at a time when other tech companies are postponing return to office whereas Google is on track to get back to work from the office.
According to a report by CNBC, a memo has been circulated among employees, which had given a deadline of December 3 to declare their vaccination status and upload a relevant document for proof, or to apply for an exemption due to medical or religious reasons. The company said after that date it would start contacting employees who hadn’t uploaded their status or were unvaccinated, as well as those whose exemption requests weren’t approved, the report added.
According to the memo, Google's staffers who fail to comply with the company's vaccination policies by the January 18 deadline will be placed on “paid administrative leave” for a month and later put them on “unpaid personal leave” for up to six months, which will be followed by termination from services.
In another news, tech giant Apple had earlier in November, decided to call back its employees under a new hybrid plan which will come into effect from February 2022. Apple CEO Tim Cook said company employees will be required to report to the office one to two days a week for the first month. Starting March, the tech giant will implement a hybrid work plan. However, an Apple Store in the US state of Texas had to be shut down after at least 22 of its employees tested positive for coronavirus last week, sparking speculations that the iPhone maker would delay its return to office plans.