Coronavirus is spreading rapidly across the world affecting several thousands of people. When it comes to the situation in Europe, already Italy is facing a complete lock-down as coronavirus has affected several thousands of people and killed nearly 500. In the UK, London is facing a threat as a few cases have witnessed the most cases of coronavirus than other regions.
More companies are urging their staff to work from home so that they are not exposed to potential infections during the virus outbreak. Already, the deadly virus has arrived at some offices and a few employees are quarantined to make sure it doesn’t spread. And, the offices that have detected traces of the virus have started cleaning their premises.
In addition to encouraging employees to work remotely, many tech companies are asking their staff not to travel for events, be it domestically or cross borders. Furthermore, interviews are being conducted via video conferences. In such a scenario, here is a list of tech companies that have closed their offices temporarily in the UK and Europe.
Amazon
Earlier this month, Amazon revealed that two employees in Europe who happened to have travelled to Milan were diagnosed to be infected with the coronavirus. And, one of the employees at the Seattle headquarters also tested positive for the same. While they have been quarantined, Amazon is also taking further measures to prevent the spread of the virus and have asked their employees globally to work from home.
Twitter told its employees to work from home in order to curb the spread of the deadly virus. This announcement came soon after the ban on non-essential travels and events related to work. It was also announced that Twitter will call off the Southwest media conference in Texas.
A few days back, Facebook said that it will be shutting its London office temporarily. And, all the employees are asked to work from home for a few more days. The London office will be closed until deep cleaning is done. Even employees working at the Italy office are asked to work from home.
Google has cancelled its major conferences in the US and encouraged its European headquarters in Dublin to work from home. It ordered most of its 8,000 staff to stay away from Silicon Docks in the Irish capital. Google is also restricting travel to Iran, Japan, Italy, and South Korea.
Cisco
Cisco, the networking giant is one of the latest companies to have asked its employees to work from home and stay safe from the coronavirus outbreak. It is also making plans to financially support gig and hourly workers whose jobs have faced an impact due to the virus outbreak.
Sony
Sony closed its offices in Poland, Paris, and London on account of the coronavirus pandemic. The closures will last or a few more days. This move came soon after an employee in London is suspected t have been infected. Though it is yet to be confirmed if it is a deadly virus, the company seems to not take any chances.
Deloitte
Staff at Deloitte’s UK offices were informed that the company was deep cleaning one of the floors of its London office. The accountant and advisory firm has quarantined the office after an employee was diagnosed to have coronavirus. However, the company has given work from home opportunities to those who wish to do so.
Microsoft
Microsoft has also joined the long list of companies that are asking employees to work from home to reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus outbreak. The company has closed its London office temporarily on account of the same.
Stock photo from Alexander Shelegov/Shutterstock
Stay tuned to Silicon Canals for more European technology news.
01
From telecom veteran to Dutch Startup Visa success: The Jignesh Dave story