US Treasury Chief Steve Mnuchin says most of the US economy should be reopened later in the summer — but some CEOs reportedly disagree
- US Treasury Chief Steven Mnuchin said most, if not all, of the economy should reopen later in the summer.
- However, some CEOs may disagree with that timeline, according to CEO Daily.
- One CEO doesn't anticipate a return to the office until Christmas, while another thinks "true normalcy" won't resume until the second half of 2021.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
Treasury Chief Steven Mnuchin said on Wednesday that he expects most — if not all — of the US economy to reopen by the end of the summer.
But some CEOs may disagree with that timeline.
In CEO Daily, a newsletter by Fortune Magazine, Alan Murray reports that CEOs convened virtually for the magazine's CEO Initiative to discuss getting back to work. Many indicated that they would make their own decisions for the healthy and safety of their workforce, and will not necessarily follow government direction.
"We aren't going to return just because the government says it's okay," one CEO said.
A CEO of a global company, who Murray identifies as having "tens of thousands" employees worldwide, said that he anticipates his workforce will likely continue working remotely until Christmas. Another CEO said that the Christmas return was "pretty accurate," and her employees would return gradually.
Others were a bit more pessimistic. A CEO from the West Coast said that there won't be "true normalcy" until the second half of 2021.
"I don't think we will ever get back to normal," said another.
Business Insider's Rob Price reported that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the company's employees won't return to the office until at least the end of May. The company is also cancelling all real-world events it was planning on hosting through June 2021, and its summer internship program will be completely virtual.
"We will require the vast majority of our employees to work from home through at least the end of May in order to create a safer environment both for our employees doing critical jobs who must be in the office and for everyone else in our local communities," Zuckerberg wrote in a post.
Google has also made its summer internship virtual this year, Business Insider's Hugh Langley reported.