Dear Getty Community,

Last night we received the order for all Los Angeles County residents to remain “Safer at Home,” an order that was then extended statewide by Gov. Newsom.  Effective at midnight last night, many businesses including museums were to close through at least April 19, and all residents were asked to remain at home and maintain social distancing.  Businesses essential to our daily lives, such as grocery stores, banks and health care, remain open.

Getty is already in compliance with the order. We had anticipated this notice and prepared for it beginning with our work-from-home status as of last Tuesday.  The order does allow essential employees to come to work, and those responsible for Getty facilities and security will continue to come on our sites to protect our property and collections. 

We suggest that you all familiarize yourself with the provisions of “Safer at Home,” which can be found here. 

As with the other public health actions over the past week, we know that the latest step will likely raise questions for you.  If you have questions about the order as they relate to your Getty employment, please contact Human Resources or email internalcommunication@getty.edu.  Most employees should by now be well established to work from home as needed, thanks to the extraordinary efforts of the Getty Digital team over the past days.

This order necessitates a few additional changes in our operations. For example, we will not be able to onboard new hires after those scheduled to begin work next week.  We thank you for your understanding that hiring will need to pause for the foreseeable future. It also means that we should avoid coming to our sites unless it is absolutely essential, and employees will need an exception to come to any Getty site for any reason, approved through your department or program administrator.

We want to thank you all for your dedication and for your flexibility in difficult, stressful and unforeseen circumstances.  As the local officials said last night, this is an historic and unprecedented time where we all need to come together for a greater good. These efforts are intended to minimize the coronavirus spread, help our health care systems, and protect our community and most vulnerable people.  Thank you for all you are doing both at home and at work to assist.  We are indeed all in this together.

With gratitude,

Steve Olsen
Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer