...AND WHAT SOME OF OUR BIGGEST FIRMS ARE SAYING
NATWEST GROUP
49,000 staff working from home, around 10,000 staff in branches and offices
Most not expected to return to the office until next year. A spokesman said: ‘We told colleagues they will continue to work from home until 2021 – because we’re prioritising customer and colleague health and wellbeing.’
HSBC
52,000 UK staff, 46,000 working from home
Bank has said it does not have any plans for a return to the office before September at the earliest. Even then, it expects offices to be ‘less than 20 per cent’ full.
VIRGIN MONEY
6,900 of 8,500 staff office-based
Staff told not to return to office until 2021. Proposals to let back-office employees work from home for most of the time and for offices in Glasgow and Newcastle to become ‘collaboration hubs’ for meetings.
METRO BANK 1,500 staff
One of two London offices to close permanently, staff to work from home until at least January. Afterwards, they will work from home for minimum of three days.
IG GROUP 750 UK staff
Main London office is to open from September 7. But chief operating officer Jon Noble said: ‘No one will be required to return to the office (if they don’t want to) for the rest of 2020.’
JP MORGAN 16,000 UK staff
Staff will swap between working from home and the office, according to the head of the investment bank, Daniel Pinto.
LLOYDS BANK
50,000 of 63,000 staff working from home
No plans for an imminent return to the office. From October, bank will test different types of flexible working to decide how often staff will visit the office. It is looking for ways to reduce the office space it uses.
UBS
Majority of 5,000 staff working from home
Gradual return to office expected in coming months, but staff are likely to work from home more often in future.
BARCLAYS
80,000 staff globally, 70,000 working at home
From October, the gradual return of more staff is set to begin. Boss Jes Staley has said he wants to get staff ‘back together’.
SANTANDER
18,000 UK office staff, more than 15,000 of whom are working from home.
This is expected to continue until at least the end of this month.
ERNST AND YOUNG
11,200 office staff
Firm said it had consulted staff and offices will re- open from September 7, but on a ‘reduced capacity basis’ and ‘increase steadily over time in line with the guidelines set by the UK’.
DELOITTE
20,000 office-based staff
Most still working from home. Small number of offices reopened in July, with more being considered.
KPMG
16,000 UK office staff
No more than 10 per cent of office staff have returned for ‘business-critical reasons’. Vast majority will work from home for most of the year. Anna Purchas of KPMG said: ‘We anticipate that the majority of our people will work from home for the majority of 2020.’
BT
40,000 of 52,000 office staff working at home Around 10,000 staff in ‘critical customer and network operations teams’ have continued to attend the office. Staff will begin ‘gradual’ return from September.
ASTRAZENECA
8,300 UK office staff
Pharmaceutical giant says 75 per cent of are still working from home. They will not start returning until September, when a ‘phased approach’ will begin.
GLAXOSMITHKLINE
15,000 UK staff
Only small numbers back in the office. No date announced for major return, although scientists have been working on site for most of crisis.
PWC
8,000 of 22,000 going in to the office.
About 50 per cent are expected to have returned by the end of September under current plans, but it’s ‘entirely voluntary’.
ROLLS-ROYCE
14,000 office staff
only a ‘very small percentage’ of its officebased staff have returned. Has not announced detailed plans for when they will go back.
A spokesman said: ‘depending on the nature of our employee’s role, flexible working arrangements have been expanded and made available.’
SCOTTISH AND SOUTHERN ENERGY
10,000 office staff
Majority expected to continue working from home until at least october. A spokesman said: ‘we conducted an in-depth survey of our employees’ experiences and opinions and are acting on their feedback. Work continues on a phased return plan.’
UNILEVER
2,000 office staff
The firm has said it believes working patterns will never return fully to normal. Boss Alan Jope said he foresees it being ‘many more months’ before staff begin returning to the office. He added: ‘We think we will never be back to 100 per cent of workers’ time being in the office.’
BP 6,500 office staff in UK
only a ‘small number’ are returning, and it may be months before things return to normal. it is reviewing its offices and could shift 50,000 staff globally to remote working.
chief executive Bernard Looney said: ‘Work patterns are changing. We expect to move to a more hybrid work style.’
VODAFONE
About 7,850 office staff
only a very small number of staff have returned to the office. Firm broadly expects ‘to stay as we are’ until the end of 2020. it expects to use a mixture of office based and remote working in future.
AVIVA 17,000 office workers
Vast majority will remain working from home ‘for the time being’. About 500 have returned to offices. The insurance giant has said it will start testing out how to combine home and office working when some of its staff begin returning to offices in september.
ADMIRAL 7,500 office staff
only 15 per cent of staff have returned to its offices in cardiff, swansea and newport. company has said it wants to combine ‘flexible workspaces with regular remote working options’ for staff in future.
LEGAL & GENERAL 6,400 UK staff
Under lockdown, 96 per cent of staff were working from home. only 1,200 are now back in the office. company has said it is taking a ‘measured, step-by-step’ approach. it said it intends 80 per cent of staff to spend ‘a day or two per fortnight’ in the office in future.
MICROSOFT 3,000 UK office workers
staff not be required to return to the office until at least november. A spokesman said: ‘We have a hybrid workplace strategy in place as worksites slowly start to open.’
NATIONAL GRID 4,000 office-based staff
no plans to return until september at the earliest. A spokesman said: ‘We expect a return to the office to be a gradual process.’
AIRBUS
3,000 office-based workers in Bristol only 20 per cent of office staff had returned in July. Phased return planned this month.
LINKLATERS
2,200 lawyers globally
Linklaters will be operating a flexible working scheme where lawyers can spend 20 to 50 per cent of their time working remotely.