Google will allow employees to work from home until July 2021, according to media reports.

The tech giant had announced the decision in light of the surge in Covid-19 cases across the globe.

Wall Street Journal which first reported the news said that the decision will impact around two lakh full-time and contract employees across Google and its parent company Alphabet Inc.

“To give employees the ability to plan ahead, we are extending our global voluntary work from home option through June 30, 2021 for roles that don’t need to be in the office,” wrote Google CEO Sundar Pichai in an email to employees as quoted by The Verge.

Google had previously allowed its employees who wished to work remotely to do so through 2020. It had also pushed back the reopening of its offices from July 6 to September.

Google has postponed its plan to reopen its offices in the United States to September due to a surge in the number of Covid-19 cases in the country and had said that it will not reopen its US offices at least till September 7, as per reports.

The decision to let employees work from home till next year also puts pressure on other tech firms that are planning to reopen global offices in the coming months. Twitter, meanwhile, had said that it will allow its employees who wished to opt for the option, to work from home indefinitely.