Microsoft is allowing some employees in the Seattle area and San Francisco to work from home through March 9 in response to fears of a coronavirus outbreak, as long as it is not essential for them to be in the office to perform their duties, according to an email reviewed by Business Insider.

“Puget Sound and Bay Area regions: Through March 9th, you are free to work from home if it is not essential for you to be in the office to perform your job duties,” Microsoft told employees in an internal email. “Please coordinate this with your manager.”

The company also asked employees to work from home if they are feeling sick, have a compromised immune system, have had contact with someone who has the illness caused by coronavirus, or work in a non-Microsoft facility and are concerned about health practices there.

Microsoft has yet to respond to a request for more information, including for what percent of its workforce it is allowing to work remotely.

The Verge reported on Wednesday Microsoft was letting employees in Seattle and San Francisco work from home.

The news comes after Business Insider on Monday reported that some employees were concerned Microsoft's internal response to the outbreak was insufficient. Microsoft, according to an email reviewed by Business Insider, at the time had stopped short of pausing business travel but asked employees to discuss any travel concerns with management.

Two employees, who spoke with Business Insider on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak but whose identities are known to us, said the company's response was "disappointing" and didn't measure up to the steps taken by other companies. Salesforce, for example, has paused nonessential travel for its 50,000 employees.

Other Microsoft employees discussed on Twitter whether it's appropriate to leave the decision about whether employees should travel up to their bosses.

Microsoft has not said whether any employees have tested positive for COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus. Amazon confirmed on Tuesday an employee in its Seattle headquarters office, plus two employees in Milan, Italy, tested positive. There have been more than 100 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in more than a dozen states in the US, as well as nine deaths from the illness, all in Washington State, where Microsoft and Amazon are headquartered.

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