Google will fire employees who refuse vaccinations, report says

 According to reports, Google has informed employees that individuals who do not comply with the company's vaccination rules would be fired.

Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google, informed staff in July that they will be required to be vaccinated.

An internal message uncovered revealed that employees were required to provide documentation showing their vaccination status.

Those who did not comply would be placed on unpaid leave and eventually fired, according to the policy.

Google has been pressing for a return to the workplace, which has been continually postponed, and expects anyone attending to be vaccinated.

Google did not contest the truth of the US news channel's report on the leaked internal document when asked by the BBC.

"As we've previously mentioned, our vaccination requirements are one of the most critical ways we can keep our workers safe and our services functioning," a spokeswoman said.

"We're dedicated to doing everything we can to help our employees who can be vaccinated get immunized, and we stand steadfast behind our vaccination policy."

Sundar Pichai

According to the report, the letter, which was delivered earlier this year, instructed staff to email Google evidence of vaccination or seek for an exemption on medical or religious reasons by December 3rd.

Those who did not comply by 18 January next year would be placed on "paid administrative leave" for 30 days, followed by unpaid leave for up to six months, according to the message.

They would lose their employment after that time of "unpaid personal leave."

Mandatory vaccinations

The attitude to office working is diverse among the digital titans, and it is compounded by US legislation and a rapidly changing reality.

The US Occupational Safety and Health Administration has instructed all businesses with 100 or more employees to ensure that each of their employees gets either vaccinated or tested for Covid-19 once a week - a measure that Google has said will cover practically all functions at the corporation.

This was supposed to go into effect on January 4, but it was promptly challenged in court and has been stopped pending a judicial verdict.

Google, on the other hand, stated in July that anybody working in the workplace should be vaccinated, not only tested.

Those who have a 100% remote-working position or are able to locate one are not affected by the regulation.

However, it has also stated that it wants most employees to be in the office at least three days each week, rather than working from home. It has also stated that it will reduce compensation for US workers who continue to work from home.

Other technology companies have adopted a different strategy.

Twitter said in May that employees might work from home "forever," with limited restrictions on eligible jobs.

The following month, Facebook followed suit, stating that when the Covid regulations were repealed, workers might seek to continue working from home. In addition, Microsoft has made remote work a permanent option.

Apple, like Google, has stated that it wants employees to be in the workplace at least three days each week, which has sparked intense opposition from certain employees.