Google asks employees to get inoculated by Jan 18 to avoid facing consequences: Report

Amid growing concern over the spread of the newly detected Omicron variant of the Coronavirus, employees at Google have been asked to get vaccinated by January 18, 2022, to avoid escalating consequences, including pay reductions and the possibility of losing the jobs, according to an internal memo accessed by CNBC. The memo stated that employees who do not comply to the COVID-related norms by January 18 will be placed on "paid administrative leave" for 30 days, after which they will be placed on "unpaid personal leave" for up to six months. Employees will eventually face termination if they continue to resist the vaccine, it added.

According to the memo, the company will also contact employees who failed to disclose their vaccination status and did not submit proof of vaccination or filed for a medical or religious exemption by December 3. The memo stated that anyone entering a Google facility must be fully inoculated and also added that testing for COVID-19 on a regular basis will not be considered as a substitute to the vaccine. "Frequent testing is not a viable alternative to immunisation," CNBC reported citing the memo. 

Earlier, President Joe Biden-led administration had ordered all US enterprised with 100 or more employees to ensure their staff are fully vaccinated by January 18. However, a federal court imposed a stay on the order in November, effectively halting the administration's efforts. Regardless, Google has requested its over 150,000 employees to upload their vaccination status to its internal systems, stating that the company will go ahead with Biden's instruction. Since the middle of the year, Google and its parent company Alphabet have been fervent supporters of immunizations. 

Google postpones its return-to-work plan in January 

It is pertinent to mention here that Google has postponed its return-to-work plan in January amid growing concerns over the spread of the new variant and some opposition to company-mandated vaccines. Earlier in the month of August, Google had declared that, from January 10, all employees would be required to come to work three days a week, thereby ending the company's voluntary work-from-home policy. However, on December 2, the company informed its employees that the deadline would be rescheduled. Meanwhile, hundreds of employees have opposed the company's vaccination requirement for those working on government contracts in the United States, according to a report by CNBC.

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