Apple offering paid time off for employees to get vaccinated

Apple is offering paid time off for employees to get vaccinated for COVID-19, people with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg News.

Bloomberg also reported that Apple is offering paid sick leave for those who experience side effects from the vaccinations. However, the company has told staff that it does not have access to vaccines and is not itself providing vaccines to workers.

The Hill has reached out to Apple for comment.

The announcement comes as Apple plans to have more staff return to corporate offices as early as June. Apple CEO Tim Cook first disclosed the timeline to employees at the end of December, Bloomberg reported.

However, he told staff “we have also learned a great deal about how we can get our work done outside of the office without sacrificing productivity or results.”

CNBC reported earlier in March that the company reopened all 270 of its U.S. stores, one year after they were first closed due to the pandemic.

Apple last year offered employees unlimited paid leave if they developed coronavirus symptoms. The company also began offering coronavirus tests to its employees working at its headquarters.

Apple also updated Apple Maps to display COVID-19 vaccine providers throughout the U.S. Google added a similar feature to Google Maps in late January.

California, where Apple is headquartered, will begin vaccinating every resident age 50 and older starting April 1, and residents age 16 and up will be eligible starting April 15.