Consider your remote work days to be numbered because JP Morgan has announced its 5-day office mandate and it is likely that more business will follow in the company’s footsteps soon enough. The preparations for the full-time office rule were announced by JP Morgan on Friday, with a memo altering employees to the upcoming change in policy.
The company acknowledged that the change of regulation went against what employees wanted, but for the sake of the business, JP Morgan was choosing to move ahead with the full-time return to work policy. “We know that some of you prefer a hybrid schedule and respectfully understand that not everyone will agree with this decision,” the company explained in the memo that was seen by Bloomberg and Reuters. “We think it is the best way to run the company.”
Image: JP Morgan
JP Morgan’s 5-day Office Mandate Has Employees Frustrated
JP Morgan’s office policy does not come as a surprise. Despite previous statements from the CEO that suggested that working a few days from home would be okay, the company has already made it compulsory for more than half of its employees to work from its office full-time. With the latest shift in policy, the company’s approximately 316,000 workers could be required to be in the office all five days of the week.
While the memo suggested that full-time office rule at JP Morgan could be expected to go into effect in March, employees began expressing their frustration with the decision as soon as the notice was shared on the company’s intranet site, according to Reuters.
Sources that had viewed the memo and the resulting responses told the news portal that employees shared their concerns regarding childcare costs, commute times, mental health burdens, and the overall stress-inducing nature of such a move. After over 300 comments were posted to the platform within the hour, the company turned off commenting to limit the reactions on the page.
Why Is JP Morgan Ending Hybrid Work?
JP Morgan’s return-to-office update has been a long time coming, as top competitor Goldman Sachs made the switch away from remote work quite a while ago. In a conversation last year, the CEO of JP Morgan, Jamie Dimon, explained that “In general, there’s nothing like face-to-face.” Since then, the banking group has expanded its locations and grown its team steadily, and now likely wants to increase foot traffic at its various locations, as well as bring workers together.
Ever since the early days of remote work, employers have been critical of the system and the lack of supervision with this model of work. Different software and technological support systems have popped up to aid with monitoring the workforce, however, they haven’t been able to replace in-person surveillance.
Productivity is also believed to have suffered over the last few years, with interpersonal relationships between employees taking the biggest hit. As such, JP Morgan’s in-person 5-day office policy is not an outlier but the general direction that most employers will take in the coming year. Companies like Spotify have reiterated their commitment to allowing workers to enjoy their hybrid model, but others like Amazon, and even the DOL, have forced workers back into the office.
There has been talk of RTO models serving as a cost-cutting measure to encourage workers to leave the organization. This eliminates the need for the company to actively conduct layoffs and offer severance pay and support to outgoing employees. The reasoning has not been validated by any concrete data or statement from the employers themselves.
JP Morgan is Not In a Position to Bring All Workers Into the Office Immediately
Despite the plans to have workers return to the office full-time in the coming months, the company also admits that not all of its branches are equipped to have full teams in the office just yet. It stated that more details regarding the plan could be expected by the end of January.
JP Morgan assured employees that they will have at least 30 days to make the necessary changes before they have to return to full-time in-person work. Those who need more time will also be able to negotiate a deal with their managers. “What is not changing is our support for flexibility in the workplace, which we are committed to providing at every level in a fair way,” the company explained in its statement.
As JP Morgan’s 5-day office mandate materializes, we’ll have to wait to see how other businesses respond and approach the situation.
