Facebook Inc. said Monday it will require any employee working at its U.S. offices to wear a mask, regardless of vaccination status. The social-networking giant last week said that employees working at its U.S. office would need to be vaccinated.
The new masking policy takes effect Aug. 3 and will remain in place until further notice, the company said. The move reflects rising Covid-19 cases, “the newest data on Covid variants, and an increasing number of local requirements,” a Facebook spokesman said.
Many of Facebook’s U.S. employees remain at home. The company has previously said it plans to reopen its U.S. offices more broadly this fall.
Separately, Target Corp. said Monday it would require workers to wear masks regardless of vaccination status in counties deemed at high risk of Covid-19 transmission, mirroring policies implemented by other companies last week in the wake of new guidance on mask wearing from U.S. officials.
Many retailers are taking new steps to follow the shifting federal health guidelines as Covid-19 cases jump in the U.S. but stopping short of the moves last year when they imposed nationwide mask rules when vaccines were unavailable. Roughly half the U.S. population is fully vaccinated.