Sundar Pichai, Google’s chief executive, said the company encourages its employees to continue to work from home if they can. AFP
Sundar Pichai, Google’s chief executive, said the company encourages its employees to continue to work from home if they can. AFP
Sundar Pichai, Google’s chief executive, said the company encourages its employees to continue to work from home if they can. AFP
Sundar Pichai, Google’s chief executive, said the company encourages its employees to continue to work from home if they can. AFP

Google to reopen offices on July 6 and allow gradual return to work


Alkesh Sharma
  • English
  • Arabic

Google will reopen its offices on July 6 for employees keen to return to the workplace, the company’s chief executive Sundar Pichai said, as tech companies eye staggered back-to-work strategies.

Depending on the “external conditions”, the Alphabet-owned firm is aiming for a gradual return of employees – starting with about 10 per cent office capacity before ramping it up to 30 per cent by September.

“Beginning July 6, assuming external conditions allow, we will start to open more buildings in more cities … this will give Googlers, who need to come back to the office, the opportunity to return on a limited, rotating basis,” Mr Pichai told employees in an internal email.

In all scenarios I expect us to need physical spaces to get people together, absolutely.

The company will approach the return to office mode with a “gradual, phased approach, taking both team and individual needs and preferences into account”, said Mr Pichai.

Google has a limited number of staff whose roles are needed back in the office this calendar year, he said, adding that returning to the workplace will be voluntary until the end of 2020 and the company still encourages its employees to continue to work from home if they can.

Google began shutting its offices in the first week of March to stem the spread of coronavirus. America has seen more than 30 million US jobs affected at least temporarily amid shutdowns due to the coronavirus pandemic, as US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell warns that a full economic recovery in the country may take until the end of 2021 and require the development of a coronavirus vaccine.

Google’s return to work strategy comes at a time when other tech giants are weighing various options to manage their physical offices during the coronavirus crisis. Facebook and Twitter have already told employees to work from home permanently, if they want to. Cupertino-based Apple, however, is bringing its staff back to stores in different phases after it shut down its retail operations amid the outbreak.

Google said it is open to employees working remotely that want to relocate, but Mr Pichai advised them to consult their managers and review guidelines around personal factors, such as tax filings and health coverage.

This trend could potentially affect the costly housing markets in California and New York, where most of the Google’s full-time employees in the US are based.

For those wanting to continue working from home, Mr Pichai said the company will be giving each employee an allowance of $1,000 (Dh3,670) to purchase necessary equipment and office furniture, such as standing desks and ergonomic chairs.

Workers wear hazmat suits during construction of a building at the Google campus in Mountain View. Bloomberg
Workers wear hazmat suits during construction of a building at the Google campus in Mountain View. Bloomberg

“We are also investing more in your work-from-home set-up to make sure you have what you need to be productive and comfortable," he said in the internal memo.

Google is currently investing heavily in its physical space expansions at various sites including San Jose, New York and at the company’s sprawling headquarters in Mountain View.

“Our campuses are designed to enable collaboration and community … in fact, some of our greatest innovations were the result of chance encounters in the office and it’s clear this is something many of us don’t want to lose,” Mr Pichai said.

He said the new emphasis on remote working will not impact those ongoing projects.

"In all scenarios I expect us to need physical spaces to get people together, absolutely," Mr Pichai told Wired, an American magazine, last week.

“We have a lot of growth planned ahead. So even if there is some course correction I don’t think our existing footprint is going to be the issue. I am positive we will put it to good use and I am anxious to see some of those projects get done.”

SPECS

Engine: Two-litre four-cylinder turbo
Power: 235hp
Torque: 350Nm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Price: From Dh167,500 ($45,000)
On sale: Now

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
EA Sports FC 25
Sour%20Grapes
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAuthor%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EZakaria%20Tamer%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESyracuse%20University%20Press%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPages%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E176%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

TV (UAE time);

OSN Sports: from 10am

UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions

UK-EU trade at a glance

EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years

Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products

Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries

Smoother border management with use of e-gates

Cutting red tape on import and export of food

Scores

Bournemouth 0-4 Liverpool
Arsenal 1-0 Huddersfield Town
Burnley 1-0 Brighton
Manchester United 4-1 Fulham
West Ham 3-2 Crystal Palace

Saturday fixtures:
Chelsea v Manchester City, 9.30pm (UAE)
Leicester City v Tottenham Hotspur, 11.45pm (UAE)

ELIO

Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett

Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina

Rating: 4/5

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
SHALASH%20THE%20IRAQI
%3Cp%3EAuthor%3A%20Shalash%3Cbr%3ETranslator%3A%20Luke%20Leafgren%3Cbr%3EPages%3A%20352%3Cbr%3EPublisher%3A%20And%20Other%20Stories%3C%2Fp%3E%0A