Google follows Amazon and Apple in pushing back full office return until 2022

CEO Sundar Pichai says individual locations will be able to decide when to end remote working policy after January

Google has pushed back the date for employees fully returning to offices until next year in response to the spread of COVID-19.

The tech giant's voluntary return to office policy has been extended until 10 January, CEO Sundar Pichai announced in a blog post, following similar announcements from Amazon and Apple.

Pichai also said that individual locations will be able to decide when to end the voluntary return to office policy after 10 January, with employees being given 30 days' notice before they are expected to return.

"The COVID-19 pandemic has been a humbling challenge for all of us and I continue to be impressed by the way our teams are navigating through it," Pichai said.

"In spite of these challenges, I'm happy to say that a large number of offices globally are already open for business, and we are welcoming back tens of thousands of Googlers on a voluntary basis.

"The road ahead may be a little longer and bumpier than we hoped, yet I remain optimistic that we will get through it together."

Google had previously pushed back the date for a mandatory return to the office from September until October and is also one of a number of big tech companies to issue a vaccine mandate for its employees in order to work at its offices.