NIB PAYING STAFF $1200 TO WORK FROM HOME

It is really an acknowledgment that we are effectively renting people’s homes Mark Fitzgibbon

HEALTH insurer NIB will pay its employees $1200 a year in recognition that it is “renting space in people’s homes” as it becomes one of the first Australian companies to shift to a permanent remote working model.

While many chief executives – particularly NAB’s Ross McEwan – have been calling for workers to return to CBD offices, NIB’s Mark Fitzgibbon says those days are long gone.

He said Covid-19 had heralded the next phase in the evolution of offices and CBDs.

For NIB, this evolution is turning its offices in Newcastle, Sydney and Melbourne into hubs, which employees will use to complete collaborative work,

spending the rest of their time – at least four days a week – working from home.

This arrangement will save workers the equivalent of about five weeks a year in commuting time – or more than their annual leave. But it’s not a one-way perk, with Mr Fitzgibbon saying NIB would also benefit.

“We’re still learning. But workers have generally been supportive – if only for the fact that they are not having to commute as much as they were,” Mr Fitzgibbon said.

“And while most miss their work colleagues, for a lot of people it has made deeper, closer relationships with their family, kids and neighbours.”

As a result NIB has reduced its footprint, subletting about two-thirds of its office space, which has now been reconfigured into more meeting areas, lecture theatres and collaborative spaces. And the company is sharing the savings with its 1200 employees.

“An ongoing 12 monthly, $1200 payment is really an acknowledgment that we are effectively renting people’s homes,” Mr Fitzgibbon said.

A survey of NIB’s workforce revealed that 79 per cent of employees agreed that working from home enabled them to do their best work.