Microsoft plans to fully reopen its offices in Washington state, where it is headquartered, on February 28th. The company’s reopening plans shifted many times in 2021 before being delayed indefinitely in September, but now Microsoft is committing to a firm date.
High vaccination rates in King County as well as declining hospitalizations and deaths in the state are “part of what enables us to move to this stage of our hybrid work journey,” Chris Capossela, a Microsoft executive vice president and its chief marketing officer, says in a blog post. However, Microsoft isn’t prescribing a blanket requirement for employees to return to the office. Instead, employees will have 30 days from February 28th to “make adjustments to their routines and adopt the working preferences they’ve agreed upon with their managers,” according to Capossela.
The company’s Bay Area offices in California will similarly be fully reopened on February 28th, “and we anticipate many of our other US locations will follow suit as conditions allow,” Capossela says.
In recent weeks, other tech companies have also adjusted their office plans. Meta is scheduled to reopen its offices on March 28th, and employees will need to have gotten a COVID-19 booster shot to return to the office. Apple employees will also need to submit proof of a COVID-19 booster or provide negative COVID-19 rapid antigen tests to enter the workplace. Google said in December that it will wait until sometime this year to make new return-to-office plans.
