Google has reportedly reaffirmed its commitment to a hybrid work model, dismissing concerns that it might follow Amazon’s recent decision to mandate a full-time return to the office. According to a report in Business Insider, at a recent town hall meeting, Google’s to executives reassured employees that the company’s current three-day-a-week in-office policy would remain in place.
Question asked by the most number of employees
At Google’s all-hands meeting “TGIF” (Thank God It’s Friday), employees expressed concerns about the potential impact of Amazon’s decision on Google’s own work arrangements. One of the most popular questions submitted asked whether, in light of Amazon’s announcement, Google could reaffirm its commitment to hybrid work, according to two employees who watched the meeting.
What Google VP told employees
In response, John Casey, Google’s vice president of global compensation and benefits, reiterated the company’s commitment to hybrid work. He emphasised that while in-office presence is important, Google believes that the current policy strikes a good balance between flexibility and productivity.
Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai further reinforced this stance, stating that it’s essential for employees to maintain productivity when working from home to ensure the company can continue to offer a flexible work environment.
Google becomes stricter on work from home rules
Despite senior leadership’s comments, during the most recent all-hands, Pichai noted that some employees, such as some of Google’s hardware teams, are back four days a week. Also, Google has reportedly become stricter on sending nudges to employees who are not working three-days on an average from office. “The company has moved to hot-desking in some offices, and some locations have been piloting a new type of hot-desking workspace — which it calls “neighborhoods” — with moveable desks and modular meeting rooms,” as per the report.