JPMorgan rolls back Covid precautions as U.S. cases drop

JPMorgan Chase on Monday told its U.S. employees that the bank was rolling back several coronavirus precautions as cases continue to drop.

Wearing a mask at corporate buildings will be “completely voluntary” for workers starting today, regardless of their vaccination status, the bank said in the memo. Next month, the bank will stop mandatory testing for unvaccinated workers and will open up hiring to the unvaccinated, it added.

Two years after sending employees home en masse in the early days of the pandemic, corporations are preparing for the return to office life. Coronavirus cases and hospitalizations across the U.S. have plummeted after reaching peaks during the winter, allowing governments to relax rules like requiring masks in public schools.

JPMorgan said New York City employees are still covered by the local vaccine mandate, and workers will need to continue logging responses into the bank’s vaccine program.

Here is the full memo:

Message from the Return to the Office Task Force

Dear colleagues, 

Across the U.S., as we continue to see cases decline, restrictions lifted and more flexibility with daily activities, we are learning to live with COVID as part of our new normal. The virus has shifted to cause less severe illness, there is now a high level of vaccine immunity and natural immunity from infection, and we are once again enjoying the benefits and energy that comes with being together in the office on a regular basis.

As we continue our journey to a sense of normalcy, we wanted to look ahead and let you know what to expect as it relates to our COVID health and safety guidelines. 

• Effective immediately, masking in our corporate office buildings will be completely voluntary for both vaccinated and unvaccinated colleagues. There will be employees who choose to wear masks — and that is completely fine. 
• On April 4, we will discontinue other measures such as mandatory testing for the unvaccinated, as well as asking employees to report COVID-19 infection and the associated contact tracing and notifications. These steps are in line with CDC guidance. 
• We will also discontinue hiring only vaccinated individuals as of April 4.

Maintaining a safe work environment and following local requirements will continue to be a priority. We will keep some of our practices and protocols in place along with our permanently improved air filtration and cleaning standards, namely:

• Our New York City employees must continue to meet vaccination requirements unless the City lifts the order.
• We will continue to offer voluntary testing through complimentary home testing kits. 
• We will continue to require responses be entered into the Vaccine Record Tool.
• Our current isolation / quarantine guidelines will remain in…