Airbnb embraces fully remote work policy, allows employees to work while travelling

Airbnb will allow its employees to live and work almost anywhere around the world, fully embracing a remote work policy to attract staff and ensure flexibility.

The San Francisco short-term-stay company said late Thursday that under the new policy, employees can work from the office, home or during their travels to 190 countries.

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Staff will still have to meet in person for regular team meetings and events, CEO Brian Chesky said in a message to employees. Salaries won't change if employees decide to move.

Employees who work temporarily in a different country will still need a permanent address for tax and payroll reasons, which involves a "mountain of complexities," but Chesky said the company is working on an open-source solution.

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The new policy will put the company in a better position to hire and retain the best people by not “limiting the talent pool to a commuting radius around our offices," Chesky said. Remote work and flexibility “will become the predominant way that we all work 10 years from now," he said.

Millions of people switched to working remotely during the pandemic to limit potential exposure to COVID-19. Companies are beginning to ask those workers to come back to the office, at least on a hybrid basis, including other tech companies such as Facebook parent Meta and Microsoft.