- Google’s Chelsea campus in New York had a bedbug infestation
- Employees told to work from home until cleared
- Infestation apparently cleared – for now
A bedbug infestation has forced workers at Google’s Chelsea campus in New York to work from home while the building is being cleared.
A report from Wired claims employees at the campus were told via email “credible evidence” of a possible bed bug infestation had been discovered in the building, and were told to remain at home so the location could be treated.
Exterminators were soon called in, and the campus was apparently cleaned and debugged before the start of the next working day.
Bugging out
The email, obtained by Wired and apparently sent to all employees in New York, claimed Google told employees to file a report if they had symptoms of bed bug bites or saw evidence of bed bugs on site.
Anyone finding bed bugs at their home was also told to contact professional exterminators.
The publication also claimed its sources said the infestation may have been caused by “a number of large stuffed animals” in the Google office – although it was unable to confirm this.
Google is also performing additional checks at its other offices in New York including its Hudson Square campus, “out of an abundance of caution,” the email added.
The news comes not long after Google confirmed it would be cutting back on allowing staff to work remotely, revealing new limits to its “work from anywhere” (WFA) policy.
The changes will mean Google employees won’t be able to work from a further destination, such as when travelling, as easily as before – as they had been permitted to work from their chosen destination up to four weeks per year, affording them more time to spend on vacation or to extend seasonal holiday visits.
Workers will also not be permitted to use WFA allowances to work from home or nearby, the company said, as the “legal and financial implications of cross border work” had also made working from abroad impermissible.
