Google has instructed its Dublin office to work from home on Tuesday as a “precautionary measure,” after one of its employees reported flu-like symptoms, a Google spokesperson told Business Insider.
The advertising giant isn’t the only tech company to test such a policy, as Silicon Valley begins to adapt its practices around the coronavirus outbreak.
So far, Twitter has recommended its 5,000 employees all begin working from home, while cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has asked that its employees who consider themselves susceptible to the flu also work from home.
Most of Google’s 8,000-strong office in Dublin, Ireland — the tech giant’s European headquarters — have been told to work from home on Tuesday after a member of its staff reported flu-like symptoms. Other tech companies like Twitter and Coinbase are also following suit.
Google stressed that the day-long measure was precautionary, and in accordance with the advice of medical experts.
“We continue to take precautionary measures to protect the health and safety of our workforce, in accordance with the advice of medical experts, and as part of that effort we have asked our Dublin teams to work from home tomorrow,” a Google spokesperson told Business Insider.
Google has been tightening up its policies after a Google employee tested positive for the coronavirus in Zurich last week. It has restricted its employee travel and cancelled Google Cloud’s biggest event of the year as concerns around the outbreak grow.