Google and Facebook orders staff get vaccine while Covid outbreak sweeps Uber HQ and Twitter SHUTS San Fran & NY offices

SOCIAL media companies like Google and Facebook are ordering their employees to get the Covid jab while Twitter had to shut down both its San Francisco and New York offices thanks to a nationwide spike in cases, it emerged Wednesday.

The same phenomenon has taken over the rideshare platforms Uber and Lyft, with a coronavirus outbreak in Uber's headquarters and Lyft demanding mandatory vaccination among its employees.

"Anyone coming to work on our campuses will need to be vaccinated. We’re rolling this policy out in the U.S. in the coming weeks and will expand to other regions in the coming months," said Google CEO Sundar Pichai said in a memo.

He added that "getting vaccinated is one of the most important ways to keep ourselves and our communities healthy in the months ahead."

Pichai said the tech company will be extending its work from home policy until October 18.

JAB PLEA

Barely a few hours later, Facebook made a similar announcement urging its employees to get the jab.

"As our offices reopen, we will be requiring anyone coming to work at any of our US campuses to be vaccinated," said Facebook's vice president of people Lori Goler. "How we implement this policy will depend on local conditions and regulations."

"We will have a process for those who cannot be vaccinated for medical or other reasons and will be evaluating our approach in other regions as the situation evolves. We continue to work with experts to ensure our return to office plans prioritize everyone's health and safety."

OFFICES SHUTTERED

Both tech giants' warning comes after their counterpart Twitter announced the company's San Francisco and New York offices were closing due to the increase in coronavirus cases.

"After careful consideration of the CDC’s updated guidelines, and in light of current conditions, Twitter has made the decision to close our opened offices in New York and San Francisco as well as pause future office reopenings, effective immediately," a Twitter spokesperson said in a statement Wednesday.

The company had just opened its offices to employees, with the statement saying they will instead "prioritize the health and safety of our Tweeps."

The same happened at Uber, where an attendee of a meeting at the headquarters was found to have the coronavirus, forcing everyone into quarantine.

Lyft, which already made vaccinations mandatory for employees returning to the office, to postpone its office opening from September to February

"We anticipate the COVID situation will remain fluid for the upcoming months, making it difficult for us to land a clear return date without a possibility of moving it again," Lyft CEO Logan Green.

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