Covid-19: Google and Facebook employees will have to be vaccinated to come to work

This Wednesday, Google and Facebook announce that they require all their employees who come to their premises to be vaccinated, after a wave of similar announcements from public bodies in the United States.

The obligation will be implemented at Google "in the coming weeks" in the United States, before being extended to other regions of the world "in the coming months," said Managing Director Sundar Pichai in a statement. communicated.

He specifies that this measure will not apply in countries where the vaccine is not yet easily accessible.

80% of Google employees will have to work on the premises

“Getting vaccinated is one of the most important ways for us and our local communities to stay healthy,” said Google CEO Sundar Pichai.

Google postponed the official return date in its offices to October 18 on Wednesday, after initially setting it for September 1.

As of that date, approximately 80% of employees will be required to physically work on company premises at least three days a week.

The group predicts that around 20% of employees will continue to stay at home.

Nevertheless, Google indicates that it will soon provide details on the exceptions to this obligation "for people who cannot be vaccinated for medical reasons or specific populations".

Asked by AFP about these possible exceptions, the Alphabet subsidiary did not respond immediately.

According to the US Federal Agency for Enforcement of Laws Against Discrimination in the Workplace (EEOC), employers can require their employees to show proof of Covid vaccination, with exceptions for medical reasons or religious objection.

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Towards a compulsory vaccination in business?

Likewise, Facebook officials "will ask that anyone visiting one of our campuses in the United States be vaccinated," Vice President Lori Goler said in a message to AFP. In June, the social network told its employees that those who wanted to continue teleworking full-time could request it, if their functions permitted. For the others, it is planned to facilitate teleworking, but it is advisable to work at least half of the time on the premises of the company. Facebook plans to reopen its offices at 50% gauge in September and go to full capacity in October.

Last month, the big American bank Morgan Stanley and the asset manager BlackRock had indicated that only vaccinated employees would have access to their premises, which amounted to requiring vaccination because these companies favor the return to the office. So far, few large groups have dared to set up an obligation, a few weeks before the start of the September school year, which will mark the return to the office for many employees. In contrast, more and more local communities and cultural organizations are requiring vaccination, and several US media indicate that US President Joe Biden could announce the obligation for federal employees to be vaccinated or to submit to a protocol. strict testing.