Google has reportedly told its 140,000-member workforce that 20 per cent of them will be able to work from home permanently.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Google CEO Sundar Pichai told employees in an email that starting in mid-June, they will be able to apply for permission to work remotely going forward.

Even employees who work from offices will be able to work remotely up to two days per week, according to the report. In addition, all employees will be able to work remotely for four weeks per year, with manager approval.

In addition, Google is asking another 20 per cent of employees to change their primary office locations. Many companies have learned during the Covid-19 (coronavirus) pandemic that a large portion of their workforce can be productive outside of Class-A office space.

The move underlines an important workplace shift that is impacting service providers and network operators. Demand for in-building network densification and distributed antenna systems may never return to pre-pandemic levels. Meanwhile, demand for secure, distributed network access will continue to increase, which should lead to continued growth for SD-WAN, private networks, and wireless hotspots.