Microsoft announced Monday a larger-scale reopening of its offices around the world with a "
hybrid
" system, a mix of telecommuting and face-to-face, a model that many companies are preparing to adopt after the pandemic.
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“
After a year in which most of Microsoft's employees worked remotely, several of our locations around the world have reached a level sufficient by government rules to accommodate more people,
” Kurt DelBene said in a statement, a vice president of the computer giant.
The American group, which employs some 160,000 people, thus becomes the first large technological company to present its new operation.
In Silicon Valley, Google and Facebook have extended their work-from-home policy for most employees to at least mid-2021.
Twitter has extended it indefinitely.
Spotify and Salesforce have said they want to give their employees the choice to return to the office or not (or partially).
Give more flexibility to employees
“
Microsoft sites in 21 countries are already able to accommodate additional on-site employees, or approximately 20% of our workforce worldwide.
On March 29, Microsoft will begin this transition at our headquarters in Redmond (western United States, editor's note) and on adjacent campuses
, ”said Kurt DelBene.
The hybrid model is supposed to give more flexibility to employees.
According to an internal study by the group, 54% of them are in favor of a “
soft
”
reopening
which gives them the opportunity to spend part of their working time in offices, if sanitary conditions are met.
“
At each of our sites, the hybrid workplace model helps achieve a balance, with limited additional services for those who choose to return, while supporting those who need to work remotely or feel more secure. feel at ease as well,
”said the vice-president.
Read also: To avoid wage employment, Uber offers a hybrid status to its drivers
Microsoft, which publishes office software and platforms like Outlook, Teams or LinkedIn, published a study on hybrid work on Tuesday, based on productivity data extracted from its digital services and a survey in around 30 countries.
"
The time spent in meetings has more than doubled worldwide, and 40 billion more emails were sent in February this year compared to last year
," said a statement.
According to this report, employees paradoxically feel more comfortable at work, and hide their emotions less: “
one in six employees cried with a colleague during the past year
”.
