14 DAY TRIAL // January 1 is the date when thousands of Microsoft contractors, vendors, and other staff working with the Redmond-based software giant either individually or through third-party firms will take a 6-month break as part of a new policy introduced earlier this year.
As part of this new policy, which requires “external staff” to take a 6-month break after every 18 months on the job, is intensively criticized by those impacted by the change, who believe that such a decision could have implications for the local tech workforce.
Many workers might decide to look for temporary or even new permanent jobs in the tech field, they say, according to a report by GeekWire, but Microsoft is trying to prevent this with some tweaks to keep a number of them on board despite the policy.
Exemptions already being offered
“We’ve instituted this simplified policy to align with broader industry practices and strengthen protection around Microsoft’s confidential information,” a company spokesman is quoted as saying.
“The policy was announced and went into effect on July 1, 2014 and requires that external staff have a break in network and building access after 18 months of such access. We value the partnerships we have with our supplier companies and the external staff they employ and have worked closely with our suppliers since then to plan for these policy changes.”
Although it was first thought that such a policy would give internal Microsoft teams the chance to get more involved in the company's products, some are now afraid that letting some external staff take a 6-month break could affect their projects. The change does not forbid external staff to keep working after 18 months on the job, but it cuts their access to the company's own network and Redmond buildings.
Some exceptions are already being made, the aforementioned source notes, with either Microsoft giving exemptions to a number of firms working with the company or internal teams setting up remote connections for external staff that would thus be able to continue working on their projects.
Microsoft hasn't yet issued a public statement on the approaching kick-off date of the new policy, but we've contacted the company for a word on this and will update the article should an answer be offered.