MERLIN Properties Annual Report 2020 / English

| 77 MERLIN has also rolled out other initiatives that strengthen its relationship with employees. As an example, MERLIN continued to offer temporary employment opportunities to employees’ sons and daughters who are of legal age, allowing them to work at the Group’s assets. COVID-19 and employees. Adapting working conditions to the current situation Because of the pandemic, the Company has started up a number of extraordinary actions to ensure its employees safety. 1. Organization of the work during the “State of Emergency” The health situation triggered by the start of the pandemic in Spain led to the roll-out of remote working for all MERLIN employees during the first period of the State of Emergency (March to June 2020). In light of these circumstances and in order to ensure that all employees were able to work from home, MERLIN distributed more than 100 new laptops to its employees. It is also worth noting that employees received surface laptops, which are lighter than a standard laptop and are therefore easier to carry. Following employees’ return to the office and given the exceptional situation, MERLIN increased flexibility in terms of working hours and offered their employees the option to work from home if family circumstances so require. 2. Adapting workstations to the new situation Within the context of the “new normal”, MERLIN has implemented the necessary measures to ensure that its professionals work in a safe workstation setup. As an example, it has installed partitions to separate workstations, intensified office cleaning and purchased products such as hydroalcoholic gels and face masks which have been made available to those employees who need them. 3. COVID -19 detection testing of all employees Since returning to the workplace, MERLIN has offered its employees the possibility of being regularly tested for COVID-19 (PCR, antigen and serological tests) free of charge. Tests are performed on a weekly basis at the Madrid headquarters and monthly at other locations, depending on the concentration of employees at each site. Employees’ direct family members can also arrange to have a PCR test at the same price as that agreed by the Company.