Google's new tool adjusts employee salary according to work-from-home location
Search giant Google rolled out a new tool called "Work Location Tool" for employees on Tuesday that would estimate how an employee's pay would change depending on their work location preferences. Amid multiple class-action lawsuits alleging pay disparity, Google's new tool is touted to help employees transition to a fully- or semi-remote work arrangement because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Here are more details.
In May this year, Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced that eventually, 20% of Google employees will work remotely while another 20% can work from a Google office other than the one they're assigned (if they prefer to). However, the remaining 60% of Google's workforce would have to report to their allocated offices a few days every week.
Now, this new Work Location Tool allows Google employees to request transfers to other work locations. The tool adjusts the employee's compensation to match the cost of living in the chosen work location. CNET reported that if an employee were to request a transfer out of a metropolis like New York or San Francisco, the Work Location Tool will reduce their salary accordingly.
In a statement, a Google spokesperson told CNET that with the company's new hybrid workplace, more employees are reconsidering where they live and how they work. So, the new tool will "better equip people with the information they need to explore their options." The spokesperson added that the tool will "allow all employees to request to move to a new location, or go remote."
Google will reportedly pay its employees at the top of the local market, and the equity options held by US employees won't decrease if they request a transfer. Meanwhile, all Google employees will continue to work remotely until September. Separately, organizations like Reddit have decided to not adjust employee pay if they move out of expensive cities like New York and San Francisco.
