Google to Maintain 20% Remote Work for Employees

Reflecting the Trend of the Remote Work Era

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] In line with the expansion of COVID-19 vaccinations in the United States, Google, which decided to reopen its office doors, will allow 20% of its full-time employees to work remotely. Emphasizing a culture of 'collaboration,' Google initially undertook a major office renovation to bring employees back to the campus (office), but has now decided to embrace the trend of remote work.

According to CNBC on the 5th (local time), Sundar Pichai, Google's CEO, stated in an email to employees that "20% of all employees can continue to work from home," and "another 20% can work remotely by commuting to an office in a different region than their department."

The remote work policy allowing employees to work from an office in a different region than their department was originally limited to two weeks per year but has been extended to four weeks. He added that the remaining 60% are expected to come to the office for work on certain days.

Earlier, in December last year, Google announced a policy requiring employees to work from the office three days a week. To facilitate this, they remodeled offices into individual rooms that allow for isolation and transformed tennis courts and lawns into outdoor offices for employee relaxation. To prevent COVID-19 infections, the free buffet service was changed to individually packaged meals, and massage rooms, fitness centers, and shuttle buses were suspended. It is considered unusual that Google, which had been making extensive preparations to bring employees back to the office, has now relaxed its office return guidelines.

Bloomberg reported, "Google has relaxed work rules to allow more employees to work remotely."

CNBC also reported, "Google, which owns extensive real estate in Silicon Valley, initially enforced strict office return policies, but seeing other employers offer greater flexibility, Google is also easing its approach."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.