Google Tells Employees To Get Vaccinated Or Get Fired

In a memo to Google staff obtained by CNBC, the internet services and technology company said that employees will receive less pay and eventually be fired if they do not follow the company's vaccination policy.

The original deadline of Dec. 3 required all employees to declare their vaccination status, supplying proof of vaccination or a medical or religious exemption. The company would contact those who did not give that information by Dec. 3. If the next deadline, Jan. 18, 2022, is not adhered to, the company would start placing people on paid administrative leave.

Subsequently, if the non-adherence continues, the company would place the employee in noncompliance with the vaccine mandate on unpaid personal leave for six months. After that, Google would formally fire any employee who refuses to comply at that point. The company added that testing is not an alternative to vaccination, no matter how frequently.

Google cites President Joe Biden’s executive order as the basis for its action, though many of the administration's mandates have been blocked by the Senate or the courts.

The memo to employees read, “we expect that almost all roles at Google in the US will fall within the scope of the executive order . . . Anyone entering a Google building must be fully vaccinated or have an approved accommodation that allows them to work or come onsite . . . frequent testing is not a valid alternative to vaccination.”

Earlier in December, the company delayed its plans to return to the office as Omicron cases began appearing in the U.S.

A company blog written by Google CEO Sundar Pichai in July demanded that “anyone coming to work on our campuses will need to be vaccinated . . . The implementation will vary according to local conditions and regulations, and will not apply until vaccines are widely available in your area.”