US Companies Including Google Mandate COVID-19 Vaccinations... "Similar Measures Expected to Follow"

Google Delays Vaccine Mandate and Office Return

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] American companies such as Google and Apple are mandating COVID-19 vaccinations or mask-wearing. This measure is taken in anticipation of the spread of infections due to the Delta variant ahead of employees' return to the office.

On the 28th (local time), according to AP News and others, Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google, announced internal quarantine guidelines mandating employee vaccinations and postponing the office return date to mid-October due to the spread of the COVID-19 Delta variant.

In an email sent to more than 130,000 Google employees worldwide, CEO Pichai stated, "We are postponing the office return date from September 1 to October 18, and all employees must be vaccinated before the office reopens."

CEO Pichai added, "The decision to extend the office return is to provide employees with work flexibility," and "Vaccination is the most important way to keep ourselves and our communities healthy over the coming months."

Google will first apply these quarantine guidelines at its headquarters in Mountain View, California, and other offices in the United States, and plans to expand them to overseas offices in over 40 countries, considering local laws and conditions.

Lina Wen, a public health professor at George Washington University, said, "If not all employees are vaccinated, it will put the entire families of workers at risk," adding, "Children under 12 are currently not eligible for vaccination, so virus infections in the office could increase the risk of infection for their children."

AP News predicted that Google's vaccination mandate could prompt similar measures from other companies.

Earlier, Apple changed its office reopening date from September to October in early this month considering the spread of the Delta variant and strongly recommended mask-wearing for store employees.

Delta Air Lines and United Airlines have mandated vaccinations for new employees, and Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs require employees to disclose their vaccination status.

Market research firm Gartner stated that while other tech companies may take similar measures to Google, it is uncertain whether such moves will spread across all industries.

According to a recent Gartner survey, about 10% of employers responded that they would mandate vaccinations for all employees.