Two tech companies in Bengaluru have confirmed that they have a case of coronavirus each among their employees. Dell Technologies and Mindtree Limited have confirmed a case each – with the techies recently having traveled to other countries which had reported cases of COVID-19.
While the 46-year-old Dell employee had gone to Austin, Texas in the US and had come back to India via Dubai on March 1, the Mindtree employee had also returned from the US via London. The latter is 50 years old and has been placed under quarantine and medical supervision.
The Dell techie’s wife (47) and 13-year-old daughter also tested positive for coronavirus on Tuesday. The families of these people have been placed in isolation, with their health being monitored.
In the aftermath of this, Dell has asked its employees in one Bengaluru office to work from home as a precaution. The employees who have been asked to work from home worked on the same floor as the affected employee.
“We have confirmed that one of our Bangalore team members based in the 4th floor of Dell 4 builing, Annexe Wing, Inner Ring Road Domlur, has been tested positive for COVID-19… Out of the abundance of caution, all team members based on the fourth floor of Dell 4 building, annexe wing will work from home for the next 14 days i.e., until March 24,” an email from Dell to its employees read.
Further, the email also asked other employees to work from home if they could so as to reduce footfall in office. The fourth floor, where the affected person was working, is also being sanitized, the company said.
Mindtree meanwhile told The Hindu that their employee who tested positive for COVID-19 isolated himself when he returned from his overseas trip, and did not come to office or visit colleagues. “All measures are being taken to provide the best of medical care to him and his family,” Paneesh Rao, chief people officer at Mindtree, said.
The Dell employee had gone to work for two days before he was admitted to the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases, where he eventually tested positive for the virus. Upon contact tracing, Karnataka government officials said that he had come into primary and secondary contact with 2,666 people since he returned from his US trip.
Dell also released the following statement:
“Nothing is more important than the health and safety of our employees and communities where we operate. We can confirm two employees of Dell India were tested for the COVID-19 virus following their return home from the United States – including a visit to our headquarters in Round Rock, Texas. One employee tested negative; another tested positive and has since been placed in quarantine. We continue to take steps to protect Dell Technologies team members and communities by following the health and safety guidelines from the World Health Organization and Centers for Disease Control, and coordinating with local health officials.
The team members in Bangalore who may have come into contact with the affected employees are working remotely. Dell’s local environment, health and safety team is in contact with these team members to closely monitor their well-being. All the team members. who are set up for work from home are encouraged to do so as part of our Connected Workplace policy. This helps us reduce foot traffic and congregation in buildings for those whose jobs require them to be in a Dell facility. To help keep sites worldwide safe, we have increased the frequency of deep cleaning and sanitization of all our workspaces and conference rooms.”