Google has asked some of its employees to return to office at least three days a week or risk losing their job, a new report has revealed.
According to the report by CNBC, the requirement marks a significant shift in Google’s policies that gave employees the option to work from home.
Google has reportedly told the employees that they might lose jobs as part of broder cost cutting efforts at the company.
Livemint could not independently verify the report. This article will be updated if Google officially comments on the topic.
Remote staffers across several units in Google have been told that their jobs might be put at risk if they do not start to go to their nearest office to keep up with a new hybrid work schedule, according to the CNBC report that claims to have viewed internal documents.
Some of these employees had been previously approved for remote work.
Google’s latest policy change comes at a time when big tech companies are trying to invest more money into artificial intelligence (AI), which requires a lot of money and talent, and slash costs at the same time.
Google has, since its widespread layoffs in early 2023, opted for targetted talent cut across specific teams, which emphasises the seriousness of its AI goals.
A Google spokesperson quoted by CNBC, Courtenay Mencini, said that the decisions around the company’s work from home policy are true for specific teams and are not a companywide policy.
“As we’ve said before, in-person collaboration is an important part of how we innovate and solve complex problems,” Mencini was quoted as saying by CNBC.
“To support this, some teams have asked remote employees that live near an office to return to in-person work three days a week.”
What does Google’s notice say?
As per the CNBC report, a notice from Google to its employees in the Technical Services team said that they were required to come to office at least thrice a week in a hybrid model or take a voluntary exit package.
The report highlighted that remote Google employees in the team are being offered a one-time package to move within 50 miles radius of an office.
Remote employees who work under Google’s People Operations, commonly called human resources, and live within 50 miles of an office have been asked to return within this month to follow a hybrid work schedule or their roles will be eliminated, as per the CNBC report quoting an internal memo.
Mencini however said they have to return by June.
Employees within this unit who have been approved for remote work and live more than 50 miles away from an office can opt to work from home but have to follow the hybrid work policy if they want new roles.
