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Google mandates weekly Covid-19 tests for people entering US offices

Google employees would lose pay and eventually be fired if they do not follow its Covid vaccination rules.

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Alphabet Inc's Google is temporarily mandating weekly Covid-19 tests for any person entering Google offices or facilities in the United States, the tech giant said on Friday.

Anyone who comes into Google's US work sites will require a negative test and be required to wear surgical-grade masks while at the office, the company said.

"To help prevent the further spread of Covid-19 during this period of heightened risk, we’re implementing new temporary health and safety measures for anyone accessing our sites in the US," a Google spokesperson said.

Google provides free at-home and in-person testing options to its employees, their dependants and household members.

The temporary policy of weekly testing comes as cases of the highly contagious Omicron variant of the coronavirus surge in the country.

Last month, Google said it was delaying its return-to-office plan globally from January amid growing concerns over Omicron.

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• Covid-19: Google employees flouting vaccination rules to lose pay, will eventually be fired

Google, which was one of the first companies to ask its employees to work from home during the pandemic, had told its employees they would lose pay and eventually be fired if they do not follow its Covid-19 vaccination rules, according to a CNBC report in December.

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