Facebook Gives Employees Rs 74,000 Bonuses If They Work From Home

Dhir Acharya - Mar 18, 2020

On Tuesday, Facebook told its employees that they will be paid Rs 74,000 as a bonus if they work remotely during the COVID-19 outbreak.

The tech giant has over 44,900 workers around the globe and this action indicates how tech firms are helping to limit the impact of the pandemic. The move comes at a time when six counties in the US have ordered a near-lockdown starting today.

Many people working in tech have been asked to work from home, including those at Facebook, even before the announcement. According to the social giant, workers can spend the bonus money in whatever way they want.

The cash bonus was first reported by The Information, which said that Mark Zuckerberg told the company's employees about this early Tuesday in an internal notice of the firm. It’s not clear if contractors will receive the bonus too.

The coronavirus, now known as COVID-19, is believed to originate in Wuhan, China. The disease has since broken out quickly and spread to over 140 countries around the globe. Last month, Facebook said that it was canceling the F8 developer conference, supposed to take place in San Jose. The tech giant may instead host local events as well as broadcast live videos. In addition, the company said that COVID-19 would probably affect the production of the Oculus, its VR headsets.

Due to the pandemic, tech companies have been telling employees to work from home, closing their offices in certain areas where the coronavirus is spreading quickly. Microsoft even keeps paying hourly workers while letting them take leave from work due to COVID-19.