Until next year, Amazon employees can continue to work from home (WFH).
WFH Period Extended
The WFH period has been extended from Sept. 7 to Jan. 3, 2022. In its earlier announcement, it said it planned an “office-centric culture.”
Hybrid Model
The company then changed guidelines to require workers to come into offices three days a week in response to competition from startups and others with more flexible schedules.
According to the company, the health of its employees is its top priority, and it will continue to follow local government norms for “safe office returns.”
All staff except those who are fully vaccinated will be required to wear masks inside offices.
It was prompted by a spike in cases of the Delta variant, which has forced other companies to rethink their choices as well.
How Other Tech Giants Are Reacting
Presently, the US has the highest average daily number of cases across the globe, 94,819 per day.
Google, part of Alphabet Inc., extended its WFH policy through Oct. 18.
The company announced that it will require its US staff to be vaccinated.
The Twitter offices that it had reopened are closing down.
No Relief For Warehouse And Delivery Staff
Amazon’s latest mandate only applies to corporate employees and not warehouse and delivery operations staff, which makes up most of its workforce.
Globally, 1.2 million workers perform essential duties at Amazon warehouses, such as packing boxes, sorting merchandise, and loading and unloading trucks.