Coronavirus: Facebook is giving $1,000 to every employee to help amid pandemic

TRACKING_____Facebook is planning to give a $1,000 bonus to every employee to help them amid the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic, according to The Information. The move was reportedly announced by CEO Mark Zuckerberg in an internal company memo on Tuesday. It’s unclear when the bonuses will be distributed.

Each of the company’s nearly 45,000 employees will also get an “exceeds” rating for their first six-month review of 2020, which could lead to big bonuses that could be used to further help employees during the pandemic, as the median compensation for a Facebook employee is $228,651, reports The Information.

It’s not clear if Facebook will also give a bonus to contractors who are content moderators. However, the company has apparently had some full-time employees take over some of the work done by contractors so those contractors can stay home. Facebook is also still paying those contractors while they remain home, says The Information.

Facebook hasn’t returned a request for comment about the moves.

The company has already committed to paying its hourly workers even if they can’t work and have to be at home due to the novel coronavirus. In an effort to create social distancing, which can help prevent the spread of COVID-19, the illness caused by the virus, Facebook has also asked its Seattle and Bay Area employees to work from home if they are able and banned social visitors to its offices.

Zuckerberg is also funding an increase in coronavirus testing in the Bay Area through his philanthropic groups.