Wells Fargo extends workfromhome again

“We believe most of us benefit by being physically together . ... We still believe this is the case.”

Wells Fargo CEO Charles Scharf and Chief Operating Officer Scott Powell

Wells Fargo, San Francisco’s secondlargest private employer, will keep 200,000 of its workers home through Sept. 6.

Plans are subject to change based on health guidelines, but Wells Fargo is encouraged by vaccination availability, according to a memo the bank shared with The Chronicle.

Banks are an essential business, and 60,000 Wells Fargo retail and office workers are currently working on site. The bank had previously extended remote work until May.

The delayed office return for a major San Francisco employer could prolong downtown’s economic weakness, particularly if other companies follow similar schedules. Wells Fargo had around 7,500 San Francisco workers before the pandemic, second only to Salesforce, which now has more than 10,000.

Google has also said workers can stay home until September, while Facebook plans to reopen Bay Area offices next month. Uber opened its new headquarters this week.

The bank may change its operating model “on a limited basis” before September, such as opening offices outside the U.S. where cases are low and bringing back some U.S. teams on a voluntary basis, according to the memo.

“We believe most of us benefit by being physically together. You may remember that before the pandemic began, we began redesigning many of our office locations to be more open, because we believed it would meaningfully help drive collaboration and innovation. We still believe this is the case,” CEO Charles Scharf and Chief Operating Officer Scott Powell wrote in the memo.

The Wall Street Journal first reported the return date.

The bank wants to reduce its real estate holdings by 15% to 20%, according to corporate filings. It is marketing sublease space at 45 Fremont St. in San Francisco, according to brokerage data.

Wells Fargo has also been cutting its staff, with 6,400 layoffs in the last three months of 2020, according to corporate fillings. Since October, the company notified California regulators of five layoff groups totaling 133 employees in San Francisco and 72 layoffs in Fremont.

The bank declined to identify its total Bay Area layoffs and said it was offering severance and career assistance to affected workers.

“We are at the beginning of a multiyear effort to build a stronger and more nimble, customerfocused company. We have identified a broad range of initiatives to simplify the company and increase efficiencies while continuing to invest in our businesses and improve the customer experience,” the bank said.