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As fast-moving wildfires have rampaged through greater Los Angeles in the past few days, over 30,000 acres have been burned to the ground.
Fires have destroyed over 10,000 structures in Eaton and the Pacific Palisades. Close to 180,000 people were placed under evacuation orders and millions were left without power. At least 10 have been killed, with the death toll expected to climb.
But while chaos unfolded over Wednesday and Thursday, TikTok staff who typically work from its Los Angeles office were told to use up personal leave or sick days if they could not work from home, TechCrunch has reported.
TikTok has refuted the claims, asserting that employee safety and wellbeing is its “highest priority.”
TikTok allegedly tells staff affected by wildfire chaos to use sick days
TikTok expects LA-based staff to work three days per week from its office in Culver City, which opened in 2020.
Although the office did not fall under an evacuation order, it remains temporarily closed after power outages caused by the high winds that formed a ‘perfect storm’ for the wildfires.
The video-sharing platform told employees to work from home where possible. But with a workforce spread across the greater Los Angeles Area, countless employees have experienced major disruption.
Citing employee sources at TikTok, TechCrunch stated that many workers are without power, Wi-Fi, or both. Others have likely been ordered to evacuate their homes, though TechCrunch was unable to directly confirm this.
TikTok has told employees who cannot work from home while the office remains closed from January 8 to January 12 to take personal or sick days to account for any time away from their desks, unless a team leader decides otherwise, TechCrunch claimed.
Employees at TikTok’s Culver City office have 10 paid sick or personal days ('PSSL') per year and a further 15 days of vacation leave (PTO).
While a small handful of teams have been given time off, TechCrunch said this is not the case for many impacted by the wildfires and that most must use PSSL if they cannot work from home, even though TikTok’s policy documents do not specify that PSSL can be used for natural disasters.
The PSSL policy does state that workers should use the time if the office is ordered to close by public officials over a public health emergency, including exposure to hazardous materials, but doesn’t explicitly mention wildfires or smoke.
Employees who don’t have enough PSSL remaining have reportedly been told to use up next year’s PSSL hours or to use up vacation leave.
Meanwhile, staff who can work from home have been told to visit TikTok’s ‘My RTO’ portal and change their status to ‘natural disaster’, to ensure any extra days spent at home are not taken away from their PSSL allocation.
Employee wellbeing on the line during wildfire chaos
Techcrunch viewed several messages from TikTok employees who shared fears including increasingly poor air quality. Others raised concerns about using limited battery or generator resources to work from home, with no clear idea of when their power will be restored.
Some criticized their colleagues for continuing ‘business-as-usual,’ with one team lead reportedly contacting an employee left without power for a status update on their work.
TikTok’s HR team has directed employees affected by the wildfires to the company’s mental wellbeing portal and told them to contact the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) or their designated HR representative.
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While some leaders have stressed that employees should prioritize their safety and wellbeing, staff have questioned whether the handling of the leave policy reflects this message.
TikTok has refuted the assertions made in the TechCrunch report, claiming that any communications informing staff to use personal leave if they cannot work from home due to wildfire disruption are a misunderstanding.
“The safety and well-being of our employees is our highest priority,” a spokesperson said. “In light of current circumstances, our offices have been closed since Tuesday and will remain so for as long as necessary.
“While employees who can work from home safely are encouraged to do so, we also recognize the unique challenges this situation may present and are committed to supporting our team with flexibility if they are unable to work remotely at this time.”
TechCrunch has questioned the validity of TikTok’s statement: “We should note that we’ve seen screenshots of TikTok HR’s communications to staff that contradict these claims.”
