Meta delays reopening of offices, imposes booster injections for returning workers

A new 3D printed Facebook brand logo, Meta, is placed on a laptop keyboard in this illustration taken on November 2, 2021. REUTERS / Dado Ruvic / Illustration / File Photo

Jan. 10 (Reuters) – Facebook’s parent company Meta Platforms (FB.O) delayed the date to reopen its US office and mandated COVID-19 booster injections for returning employees , joining the growing list of companies revamping their reopening plans as Omicron grows.

For employees who choose to work from their desks, the reopening date has been postponed to March 28 from the previous plan of January 31, the tech giant said on Monday. Read more

All workers returning to the office will be required to show proof of their booster injections, while the company is closely monitoring the Omicron variant situation, he said. Meta is currently requiring all of its U.S. employees coming to the office to be vaccinated against the coronavirus.

Employees have until March 14 to decide whether to return to the office, request to work remotely full-time, or request to work from home temporarily.

Employees who are not vaccinated for medical or religious reasons can request such work remotely, a spokesperson said. “Employees who do not take action face disciplinary action, including dismissal. Obviously, that would be a last resort,” the spokesperson said via email.

Corporate America has doubled vaccination mandates and delayed return-to-office plans as the Omicron variant spikes infections to record levels across the country. Read more

Last week, Citigroup (CN) said its U.S. staff who had not been vaccinated against COVID-19 as of January 14 would be placed on unpaid leave and fired at the end of the month. Read more

In December, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp offered an option to delay his return to power.

Reporting by Chavi Mehta and Elizabeth Culliford in New York in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika Syamnath and Aurora Ellis

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