“Desperate times, call for desperate measures”
When the first case of Coronavirus was reported, nobody expected it to engulf the whole world in fear, causing a recession-like situation. The pandemic has so far has claimed more than 4,000 lives worldwide and infecting 100,000 people.
As we speak today, the virus has begun spreading in India and the Ministry of Health and Family Affairs have confirmed that there are more than 70 cases nationwide and one reported the death. The Government of India has banned all tourist visas to the country, imposing a self-quarantine. It has also requested people to avoid travel unless an emergency.
As the risk increases, employers are proactively jumping into action in order to ensure that their employees remain safe. Several corporations where any employee was tested positive have shut down their offices for sanitization and cleansing. Multiple firms have asked their employees to work-from-home and restrict their unnecessary travel. The virus has now led to the world’s largest work from home experiment to take place. It has now become crucial that talent leaders play their part in creating awareness and ensuring that employees follow stringent hygiene techniques and actively steer clear of panic.
Here is a list of what different companies in India are doing for safeguarding their employees’ health and trying to prevent the transmission of the virus.
An employee of Google India working at its Bengaluru office has recently been diagnosed with the infection. The company in a statement notified, “We can confirm that an employee from our Bengaluru office has been diagnosed with COVID-19. They were in one of our Bangalore offices for a few hours before developing any symptoms.” Google has asked colleagues he came in touch with to quarantine themselves. “The employee has been on quarantine since then, and we have asked colleagues who were in close contact with the employee to quarantine themselves and monitor their health,” the company said. Additionally, Google has also asked its employees in the Bengaluru office to work from home today.
Flipkart
Flipkart has issued a ban on all domestic and international business travel, urged employees to get tested immediately in case they experience flu-like symptoms, and advised teams to not source samples from foreign countries. When it comes to local commute, the company has advised employees to use their personal vehicles and avoid public transport. All events, training, campaign activities, etc have been put on hold. Flipkart has also offered its employees work from home option for three days. The offer is preferably made available to young employees whose children are studying up to fifth grade.
Zerodha
Stockbroking startup Zerodha has asked the entire team of 1,200 to work from home. “For smooth business continuity, the safety of our employees, and to reduce the chance of any virus spreading due to working in large groups at our offices, we’re executing mandatory work from home for our entire team of 1200. Will share details soon,” tweeted Nithin Kamath, Co-Founder of Zerodha.
Uber
Ride-hailing platform Uber has said that based on recommendations of local public health authorities, it may temporarily restrict driver’s and passenger’s access to the platform if they test positive for coronavirus. “Uber will act on the guidance and recommendations of the local public health authorities who may ask that a rider’s or driver’s access to the Uber app be restricted,”, the company said in a statement. The company is also supporting its drivers and delivery people who are either diagnosed with the condition or are placed in quarantine by the authorities. “Drivers and delivery associates in these situations will receive compensation for a period of up to 14 days. This has already begun in some markets and we are working to implement mechanisms to do this worldwide. We believe this is the right thing to do,” said Senior Vice President – Rides and Platform Andrew Macdonald.
Indeed
Job search platform Indeed has also mandated all its employees to work from home amid the rising concerns of the Coronavirus pandemic. In a statement, the company said, “Indeed’s top priority is the health and safety of our employees. As the COVID-19 coronavirus evolves into a global health concern, we have made the decision to ask all employees to work from home until further notice. Our goal is to minimize the risk to employees and help to lower the probability of the spread of the virus to you, your families and the communities where we operate.” Stating that no employee has been infected yet the company said the act is “out of an abundance of caution”. The company has also cut business travels and put a hold on events.
HrNxt.com Newsdesk has researchers and writers with an excellent domain knowledge about the talent ecosystem, and the business environment. The team keeps a tab on the latest happenings in the ecosystem to bring most relevant news and insights for our readers. You can connect with our newsdesk at newsdesk@hrnxt.com.