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If Twitter employees are in a role and situation that enables them to work from home ‘forever’, the company is giving them the option to do so.
Twitter was one of the first big tech businesses to allow staff to work remotely as the coronavirus pandemic hit Europe and the US, advising its 5,000 employees around the world to work from home at the beginning of March.
Now, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has sent out a company-wide email informing employees that they can work from home “forever”.
In a blogpost published on Tuesday (12 May), Twitter’s vice-president of people, Jennifer Christie, wrote: “We were uniquely positioned to respond quickly and allow folks to work from home given our emphasis on decentralisation and supporting a distributed workforce capable of working from anywhere.”
‘When we do decide to open offices, it won’t be a snap back to the way it was before’
– JENNIFER CHRISTIE
Christie said that the past three months have proven that the company can make large-scale remote working a viable option. As a result, Twitter has decided that if “employees are in a role and situation that enables them to work from home and they want to continue to do so forever”, the company is willing to make that happen.
“If not, our offices will be their warm and welcoming selves, with some additional precautions, when we feel it’s safe to return,” Christie added.
While staff are working from home, Twitter has given its employees allowances to buy home office supplies, such as desks and chairs.
Reopening offices
In the blogpost, Christie said that reopening Twitter’s offices will be the company’s choice, while employees can decide “when and if” they want to return.
“With very few exceptions, offices won’t open before September,” Christie added. “When we do decide to open offices, it also won’t be a snap back to the way it was before. It will be careful, intentional, office by office and gradual.”
The company confirmed that it will not partake in any business travel before September, with very few exceptions, and no in-person company events will take place for the rest of 2020. The company plans to assess 2021 events later this year.
“We’re proud of the early action we took to protect the health of our employees and our communities,” Christie said. “That will remain our top priority as we work through the unknowns of the coming months.”
Last week, Google and Facebook said they plan to get “critical” workers back on site in the coming weeks, but the majority of employees are expected to work remotely until the end of 2020.
