Apple Employee Tests Positive for Coronavirus in Ireland

Apple today confirmed that an employee has tested positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus at its campus in Cork, Ireland. In a statement issued to Independent.ie, Apple said the individual has gone into and remains in self-isolation.

cork campus ireland team members working on two floors 20171106 carousel

Apple employees working at its Cork campus in 2017

As a precaution, Apple has asked some of its employees to stay at home while it assesses the situation in accordance with guidance from health authorities:

One of our employees in Cork has been confirmed to have Covid-19.

We are closely coordinating with the local health authorities who feel the risk to others is low, and the individual remains in self-isolation.

As a precaution, we have asked some of our team members to stay at home while we work with the Health and Safety Executive to assess the situation. We are continuing to regularly deep clean all our offices and stores and will take all necessary precautions in accordance with guidance from health authorities.

To our best knowledge, this is the first confirmed case of an Apple employee testing positive for COVID-19 in any country.

Apple has reportedly encouraged its employees in Cupertino and many other locations to work from home this week if possible. Another report this week claimed that Apple has offered its retail employees and some other hourly workers unlimited sick leave if they experience COVID-19 symptoms, with no doctor's note required.

Apple like many companies is taking various other precautions in relation to the COVID-19 outbreak, including suspending "Today at Apple" sessions in the San Francisco Bay Area, Seattle, Italy, China, and select other locations. It is also looking like an inevitability that Apple will cancel WWDC 2020 as a physical event, with other large developer conferences like Google I/O and Facebook F8 having already been canceled.

Popular Stories

MacRumors x Bloomberg Banner Cool

Apple Reportedly Plans to Unveil at Least Five New Products Next Week

Sunday February 22, 2026 9:48 am PST by
In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said Apple will have a three-day stretch of product announcements from Monday, March 2 through Wednesday, March 4. In total, he expects Apple to introduce "at least five products." Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. A week ago, Apple invited selected journalists and content creators to an "Apple Experience" in...
maxresdefault

iPhone Fold: Launch, Pricing, and What to Expect From Apple's Foldable

Friday February 20, 2026 3:21 am PST by
Apple is expected to launch a new foldable iPhone this year, based on multiple rumors and credible sources. The long-awaited device has been rumored for years now, but signs increasingly suggest that Apple will release its first foldable device in 2026. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Below, we've collated an updated set of key details that have been leaked about ...
Apple Watch 15 Tips Every Owner Needs to Know Feature

Apple Watch: 15 Tips Every Owner Needs to Know

Thursday February 19, 2026 7:38 am PST by
Apple Watch is now eleven generations in, and packed with useful features that are easy to miss at first glance. To help you get more out of your new device, we've rounded up 15 practical tips you might not have discovered yet, including a few that long-time users often overlook. Bounce Between Two Apps On your Apple Watch, double-press the Digital Crown to see a deck of all currently...
iOS 26

iOS 26.3.1 Update for iPhones Coming Soon as 'Apple Experience' Nears

Sunday February 22, 2026 5:29 pm PST by
Apple's software engineers are testing iOS 26.3.1, according to the MacRumors visitor logs, which have been a reliable indicator of upcoming iOS versions. iOS 26.3.1 should be a minor update that fixes bugs and/or security vulnerabilities, and it will likely be released within the next two weeks. Last month, Apple released iOS 26.2.1 with bug fixes and support for the second-generation...
Low Cost A18 Pro MacBook Feature Pink

Three Upcoming Apple Products Seemingly Spotted in macOS 26.3 Code

Friday February 20, 2026 7:36 am PST by
macOS 26.3 hints at Apple's rumored lower-cost MacBook, and two new Studio Display models, according to Macworld's Filipe Espósito. Espósito found the following codenames within macOS 26.3's source code, and he revealed the upcoming products that they likely correspond with, based on previous reporting from Bloomberg's Mark Gurman and others. The codenames:J700: Lower-cost MacBook J427:...

Top Rated Comments

The Samurai Avatar
78 months ago
Hang on, I thought Apple employees were protected from viruses.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mw360 Avatar
78 months ago

The scariest part of this virus is that you can show no symptoms for 5 days, but still be contagious during that period. When you start having symptoms and treat it, it’s almost pointless to quarantine because you’ve exposed so many people already.
No, it isn't pointless. A person without symptoms is going to be less infectious, because there is less of the virus in their system, therefore less to spread to others, and without symptoms like coughing, they are les likely to spread what they do have into the air or cough it up into their hands.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
78 months ago
That office layout is a nightmare. Give me a door I can close.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dannyyankou Avatar
78 months ago
The scariest part of this virus is that you can show no symptoms for 5 days, but still be contagious during that period. When you start having symptoms and treat it, it’s almost pointless to quarantine because you’ve exposed so many people already.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
NBAasDOGG Avatar
78 months ago
Tell him to switch to Windows!
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WWPD Avatar
78 months ago
Some Jameson and Irish Spring should clear it up.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)