As coronavirus cases continue to climb amid a winter surge across Massachusetts, Boston officials on Saturday said some city employees will be required to work from home for two weeks, beginning Tuesday.
City employees received an e-mail on Saturday from Mayor Michelle Wu informing them that the city is “temporarily decreasing the number of employees in City buildings to ensure that it can protect the health of its workforce and the public we serve.”
The e-mail said schools will remain open, as will City Hall. Cabinet chiefs, department heads, and supervisors of front-line and public-facing staff will continue to report to work in person, as will their staffs, the e-mail said.
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“With COVID-19 cases spiking in Boston and across the Commonwealth, we are taking these temporary measures to reduce the risk of transmission and protect our workforce and our communities,” Wu said in a statement. “Our priority is to keep open the schools and city services that our residents count on every day.”
Department heads will meet with their employees Monday to determine which workers can perform their duties from home, the e-mail said.
Some workers may be asked to rotate between working from home and in their office “based on a schedule that will meet service needs while limiting the number of employees required in the building/workspace at a given time,” the e-mail said.
“By removing others from the workplace, we will be providing more space for employees who remain in City workplaces, which will increase their ability to stay safe,” the e-mail said.
The e-mail reminded city employees that all workers are required to show proof of one dose of a coronavirus vaccine by Jan. 15.
On Friday, the state Department of Public Health reported 21,397 new confirmed coronavirus cases, setting a new daily record. There have been more than 1 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Massachusetts since the onset of the pandemic.
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Nick Stoico can be reached at nick.stoico@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @NickStoico.