Meta Platforms will once again delay employees’ return to US offices until the end of March. Facebook’s parent company also requires proof of a vaccine booster to protect against the latest COVID variants.
The social network initially anticipated allowing work-from-home conditions to continue until July 2021, providing an additional $1,000 for folks to set up a home office. It later amended that strategy, instead aiming to open departments at half capacity in September, before inviting all staff back in October.
By August, though, rising cases of the Delta variant drove Meta (then still Facebook) to keep corporate doors closed until January 2022. Now, as the company monitors the Omicron situation, it remains hopeful for a March 28 reopening, Reuters reported.
Employees have until March 14 to decide whether they want to return to the office, or request to work remotely part- or full-time. Meta currently requires all in-office workers to be vaccinated, and anyone coming back in March must present proof of their booster jab.
“We’re focused on making sure our employees continue to have choices about where they work given the current COVID-19 landscape,” Janelle Gale, Meta’s vice president of human resources, said in a statement to CNBC. “We understand that the continued uncertainty makes this a difficult time to make decisions about where to work, so we’re giving more time to choose what works best for them.”
Those who are unvaccinated for medical or religious reasons can request remote work. “Employees who take no action can face disciplinary measures, including terminations,” a spokesperson told Reuters. “Obviously, this would be a last resort.”
Meta did not immediately respond to PCMag’s request for comment.
