The novel coronavirus outbreak has hit the tech and manufacturing industry severely with many companies shutting down factories, closing operations or shifting work out by asking employees to work from home. The outbreak has led to the world’s largest work from home experiment to take place.
As the Washington State has emerged as one of the worst-hit areas due to the virus in the US, Microsoft has made an important decision in this situation.
The company has already asked its employees to opt for work from home until “highly urgent”. As a result of this, President of Microsoft Brad Smith explained through a company blog that the need for hourly workers has gone down.
“We have a reduced need in these regions for the on-site presence of many of the hourly workers who are vital to our daily operations, such as individuals who work for our vendors and staff our cafes, drive our shuttles, and support our on-site tech and audio-visual needs,” Smith said.
In a smart act of goodwill, Microsoft has announced that it will continue to pay its hourly workers at their full regular rates.
Smith explained that an initiative like this is easier for a large, profitable company like theirs and won’t be as easy for smaller businesses. But that Microsoft thought about this and implemented it speaks volumes.
The company blog read;
As the impact of COVID-19 spreads in the Puget Sound region and northern California, Microsoft has asked its employees who can work from home to do so. As a result, we have a reduced need in these regions for the on-site presence of many of the hourly workers who are vital to our daily operations, such as individuals who work for our vendors and staff our cafes, drive our shuttles and support our on-site tech and audio-visual needs.
We recognize the hardship that lost work can mean for hourly employees. 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. This will ensure that, in Puget Sound, for example, the 4,500 hourly employees who work in our facilities will continue to receive their regular wages even if their work hours are reduced.
While the work to protect public health needs to speed up, the economy can’t afford to slow down. 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.
We’re committed to taking additional constructive steps to support the public during this challenging time. While this announcement is focused on Puget Sound and northern California, we’re exploring how best to move forward in a similar way in other parts of the country and the world that are impacted by COVID-19.
We also recognize the vital role that our technology plays in supporting people and organizations each day, especially those working tirelessly to reduce the impact of COVID-19. We’re actively pursuing additional steps around the world to help healthcare teams stay connected with telehealth solutions, schools and universities stay connected with students through virtual classrooms and online learning, and governments stay connected with their citizens with the latest guidance and resources made available online. Across the global economy, we’re working to enable employees to work remotely without sacrificing collaboration, productivity, and security. In a time of fluid change and demanding challenges, we all have an important role to play.
Sandeep is a journalism and mass communication graduate with a keen interest in politics and business. He is a part of Research & Content team at HrNxt.com.