2 workers at Wells Fargo’s massive Charlotte campus test positive for COVID-19
Two people who work in Wells Fargo’s Customer Information Center in University City tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, the bank said Tuesday.
The bank learned of the positive tests on Sunday, spokesman Peter Gilchrist said in a statement. The employees had not been in the office since March 12 and 13, respectively. The workers are being monitored by public health authorities, Gilchrist said.
The north Charlotte campus houses many call center workers, but Wells did not state what jobs the two workers had.
One employee worked in the campus’s 3rd building on the fifth floor, and the other worked in the 1st building on the third floor.
“Some Wells Fargo employees who support critical operations, including contact centers, must be onsite in order to serve our customers,” Gilchrist said. “We are taking significant actions to ensure the safety of our team, including enhancing social distancing measures, staggering staff and shifts, performing enhanced cleaning, and implementing the CDC’s guidelines of six feet of space between individuals.”
Neither employee was experiencing COVID-19 symptoms before they stopped coming in, Gilchrist said. One of the employees was taking paid time off when they started feeling ill, and then didn’t come back in. The other worker wasn’t feeling well, stopped coming in to work, and then later started having symptoms of the virus.
The CIC, originally built for First Union in 1995, is one of the largest corporate campuses in the Charlotte area. Over 2 million square feet, the campus usually houses about 9,000 workers.
Wells was among the first companies to have a confirmed Charlotte case of the disease, which is now confirmed in 420 people in Mecklenburg County. The bank also had a case in a call center in Iowa, it learned on Sunday, as well as an earlier case in San Francisco.
Also on Tuesday, Lowe’s disclosed that two workers at its Ballantyne and Northlake stores in Charlotte tested positive for COVID-19.
Bank actions during pandemic
Last week, Wells Fargo announced a slate of measures to deal with both the public health and economic aspects of the new coronavirus.
The bank limited hours at its branches nationwide, closed some locations and switched others to drive-through only. It also said it would pay employees that it deemed “front line” — including many in the CIC — $200 more every other week, provided they made less than $100,000 a year.
Earlier this month, Wells pledged $175 million to help communities grapple with the pandemic. The San Francisco-based bank has about 27,000 employees in the Charlotte area, the most of any city it has a presence in.
This story was originally published March 31, 2020 at 4:10 PM.