Apple advised all 12,000 employees at its Cupertino headquarters to work from home today amid heightened coronavirus concerns as the death toll in the US increased to 15 and the number of confirmed cases rose to more than 250.
In a memo issued to all staff at the Santa Clara Valley offices named Apple Park, employees were told that the precaution was being taken following recent guidance from public health officials.
Staff were advised that offices would remain open but that they were ‘encouraging team members’ to stay away despite only sending the email when many would already be traveling to work.
The company joined Facebook and Microsoft which also introduced new policies to stop the spread of the deadly coronavirus this week.
An estimated 83,000 workers are affected by the closures and work-from-home policies within these three companies alone.
‘As the COVID-19 response has developed, Apple’s dedicated team has focused intently on what’s best for the safety and well-being of our teams,’ said the memo, which was sent to employees around 8.30am Friday when many would already have been on their way to work.
‘On Friday, March 6, we are taking the additional precaution of encouraging team members in our SCV offices to work from home if you can do so.
‘While offices will be open, this change is driven by recent guidance from public health officials that recommends minimizing dense gatherings and reducing proximity where possible.’
It added that the situation would be monitored over the weekend and further updates about the office would be issued.
Facebook also told employees in its San Francisco Bay offices to stay at home on Friday and cancel all business trips due to the virus. The company is believed to have around 14,000 employees in the Bay Area.
The social network, which has thousands of offices in the region, is ‘strongly recommending’ all workers in the area to work from home on Friday, March 6, a company spokesman told CNBC.
However, employees critical to the site’s safety and security will still be required to work on-site, despite the city announcing its first two confirmed cases of the virus.
‘Based on guidance from Santa Clara County today, we are strongly recommending that all Bay area employees and contingent staff work from home starting tomorrow, Friday, March 6th,’ Facebook spokesperson Anthony Harrison Thursday evening said in a statement to CNBC.
‘This decision is based on our desire to minimise the risk of spreading COVID-19, the health and safety of our teams, their loved ones and our neighbours remain a top priority.’
The social network is also cancelling any events in the Bay Area.
Facebook already announced Wednesday night that it has closed its Seattle office after a contractor there was discovered to have contracted the virus. Between the San Francisco and Seattle closures, around 17,000 employee of the company are estimated to be working from home.
The office will be closed until at least Monday, March 9, and the company is encouraging its employees to work from home for the remainder of the month.
Meanwhile, Microsoft has already asked its employees in its San Francisco Bay and Seattle HQ offices to work from home if they can do so to restrict the spread of the virus.
The company has over 80,000 employees in the U.S., 54,000 of whom are based in the Washington state Redmond campus.
The company has committed to continue to pay its workers who are paid by the hour during the outbreak even if they can’t come to work.
With the new policy for hourly workers, Microsoft is providing a steady income to its workers who aren’t on a contract and need to be on site to do their work, including cleaners and kitchen staff.
‘We recognize the hardship that lost work can mean for hourly workers,’ Microsoft President Brad Smith wrote in a blog post on Thursday.
‘As a result, we’ve decided that Microsoft will continue to pay all our vendor hourly service providers their regular pay during this period of reduced service needs.
‘This is independent of whether their full services are needed.
‘We’re committed as a company to making public health our first priority and doing what we can to address the economic and societal impact of COVID-19.
‘We appreciate that what’s affordable for a large employer may not be affordable for a small business, but we believe that large employers who can afford to take this type of step should consider doing so.’
There are 4,500 hourly Microsoft employees at its Seattle headquarters alone.
Microsoft said it is exploring how best to introduce a similar policy to workers in other parts of the country and the world where coronavirus is having an impact.
Microsoft employees in both regions have been asked to work from home until March 25 if they can.
‘Taking these measures will ensure your safety and also make the workplace safer for those that need to be onsite,’ executive vice president Kurt DelBene told employees in a post this week.