Thousands of Barclays staff are demanding concessions from the bank, including a one-off payment, after it said it wants employees to work from the office more often.
Staff who have been expected to work in the office for two days per week should be in the office for at least three days a week from next month, according to the company.
Unite, which represents about 36,000 Barclays staff, is calling for the bank to reverse its decision. The union is also pressing for exemptions to offset increased travel and childcare costs.
Barclays said many employees already work in the office for three or more days, depending on business need.
The bank sent a memo to staff in July outlining its expectations, which include that senior leaders work at least four days per week in the office.
As first reported in the Financial Times, external, the bank is facing a growing backlash against the proposed rules change.
Unite national officer Rick Coyle said thousands of employees have signed an open letter calling for Barclays to reverse the decision, and the number of signatories “continues to rise”.
He added that Barclays is “trying to fix a problem that doesn’t exist” in making its working-from-home rules less flexible.
The open letter, external says workers are delivering “strong financial results and improved customer services” with its current working from home policy.
It adds that thousands of workers have made suggestions, which the union has condensed into a series of demands.
These include:
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an exemption for commutes longer than 40 minutes or 35 miles
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exemptions during Christmas, summer, and school holidays
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a maximum one day in the office for carers
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flexibility for wrap-around childcare, and childcare vouchers and onsite creches to be explored
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a one-off payment to offset costs
Barclays said in a statement that it recognised “the benefits of balancing flexibility for colleagues with the importance of working together in our physical locations”.
“Our minimum time in office requirements vary by business area, reflecting the nature of the work and the needs of the business,” a spokesperson said.
The bank declined to say how many staff would be affected by the rules change. However, the BBC understands that there are different rules depending on teams, with, for example, investment bankers in the office for five days per week.
The coronavirus pandemic forced many businesses to allow working from home, depending on the nature of the business.
Since then, many organisations have been clawing workers back into the office, despite evidence that hybrid working may be the best fit.
Amazon, Boots and JP Morgan are some of the organisations that brought in policies requiring head office staff to be in every day after the pandemic.
This week, Ewan Venters, the executive chair of fashion brand Paul Smith, told the BBC’s Big Boss Interview podcast that working from home “just doesn’t work” for young people and urged the government to stay out of decisions over where employees work.
In June, digital bank Revolut said it was shifting away from its “remote-first” policy for new recruits in 2027, but for other employees that policy wouldn’t change.
