WeWork Keeping Locations Open As It Tells Staff To Work From Home

NEW YORK, NY — Coworking company WeWork will keep its office spaces open amid the spread of coronavirus in New York City, even though the company is directing its own employees to work remotely, a company executive said in a statement posted to social media.

WeWork Chairman Marcelo Claure said in a statement that the outbreak of coronavirus has forced the company into an "incredibly unique position" arguing that the company is a service provider akin to banks, pharmacies and grocery stores.

"We too have members counting on us to remain open so they can run their companies to generate revenue, pay their people, and continue serving their customers," the WeWork executive said in a statement.

The office spaces that remain open may not be staffed by WeWork employees. The company instituted a work from home policy — giving employees the choice to come into work if they want to — effective Wednesday. WeWork will hire third-party workers to keep its offices open, Claure said in a statement.

In the beginning of March, when coronavirus cases first started to appear in New York City, a WeWork location at 575 Lexington Ave. and East 51st Street had to be temporarily closed and disinfected because a member's potential exposure to the virus.

An employee of a tenant at the same office space later tested positive for coronavirus, according to an email sent to tenants of the 575 Lexington Ave. office space on Wednesday. The last day the person who tested positive was in the office was March 9, according to the message. The WeWork email states that the building's 22nd floor space will be closed until further notice.

Twenty-two New York City residents have died and 3,615 tested positive for novel coronavirus as of Thursday, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced. The number of people hospitalized is 554 with 169 in the intensive care unit, according to the mayor.

WeWork operates dozens of locations throughout Midtown and Lower Manhattan, one in Harlem, five in Brooklyn and three in Queens, according to its website.