Google workers challenge vax mandate

Hundreds of Google employees have signed and circulated a manifesto calling on the tech giant to retract its COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

Google has asked its more than 150,000 US employees to report their vaccination status to the company by Dec. 3 whether they plan to work in the office or not, CNBC reported, citing internal company documents.

And all Google employees who work either directly or indirectly with government contractors are required to be vaccinated, in line with the Biden administration’s federal mandate for contractors.

However, the manifesto opposing the mandate has been signed by at least 600 Google employees, or less than 0.5 percent of the company’s workforce, according to CNBC.

It asks executives to replace the current policy with a mandate “inclusive of all Googlers,” CNBC reported.

In the manifesto, the employees say any policy set by the $1.9 trillion company will have an outsized impact on decisions of other companies. The employees who signed it called on other workers to “oppose the mandate as a matter of principle” and said the policy should not affect any worker’s decision on whether or not to be vaccinated.

A spokesperson for Google confirmed the existence of the circulating manifesto to CNBC. “As we’ve stated to all our employees and the author of this document, our vaccination requirements are one of the most important ways we can keep our workforce safe and keep our services running,” the spokesperson said. “We firmly stand behind our vaccination policy.”

In July, CEO Sundar Pichai said the company would require vaccinations for those returning to offices, becoming one of the first major US firms to do so and paving the way for many others to follow.