Beijing: In the wake of the coronavirus epidemic, giant Chinese corporates, including Alibaba Group Holding and Tencent Holdings Ltd, have asked their employees to work from home, even after the Lunar New Year holidays come to a close. Employees have been asked to work from home for one week in an attempt to control the spread of the new deadly virus.
As on Monday, the number of confirmed cases has crossed 2700 people. The disease has already claimed 81 lives, forcing the Chinese government to extend the week-long Lunar New Year break by three days (till February 2). However, corporate giants are going a step further by asking their employees to work from home for another week, i.e. till February 7 (Saturday) and return to office on February 10 (Monday).
According to a report by Reuter, the Shanghai government announced that companies in the city will not be allowed to start work before February 9. This will affect companies such as Tesla Inc, General Motors and Volkswagen as they either own factories or operate them in the city via ventures with local partners.
Alibaba, an employer of more than 100,000 people worldwide, most of whom are in China, said the measure applied across all its divisions, including to workers in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau and China.
E-commerce firm Pinduoduo, UBS Group AG and property developer Country Garden have also asked their employees returning from Wuhan or the Hubei province to work from home.
Bytedance, parent company of TikTok, has asked its employees, who travelled during the holidays, to work from home for 14 days. Those who did not travel could start working from the office from February 10, though that date could change, according to Reuters.
Popular hotpot restaurant chain operator Haidilao International Holding said it would shut stores across China from Sunday to Friday.
Starbucks Corp has closed shops in the Hubei province, while Walt Disney Co’s Shanghai Disney Resort said, last week, it will remain closed until further notice.
Hong Kong has banned residents of Hubei from entering the territory from Monday and Macau said it would bar anyone who has been in Hubei province within 14 days of arrival from entering their casinos.
