BoE scraps requirement for staff to be in the office weekly from September
Reuters
Published Sep 07, 2021 01:59PM ET
Updated Sep 07, 2021 02:20PM ET
LONDON (Reuters) - The Bank of England on Tuesday said it would no longer require staff to come back to the office at least once a week from September, citing health concerns among of some of its employees.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has reopened England's economy, but decisions by employers over whether - and how quickly - to mandate the return of workers to offices could have a big impact on the pace of recovery from the COVID-19 slump.
Britain is reporting around 40,000 new cases each day, a figure that could rise as the return of pupils to school after the summer break contributes to the spread of coronavirus.
In July, the BoE's Chief Operating Officer Joanna Place said that every employee would be asked to work in the office at least one day per week from September.
But the Bank of England on Tuesday said that, while there was an "expectation" that staff would be "physically present in the workplace at least one day a week and generally more" from next week, it would now no longer be mandatory.
"What has changed is that we don't feel the moment is yet right for us to require our staff to return to the office where, for a number of reasons, some might in the current environment have genuine and valid health concerns about doing so," the Bank of England said in a statement.
"This will be kept under close review with a view to making the expectation a requirement as the situation evolves."
The BoE said a quarter of its London staff were in the office at least one day last week, while adding that offices in some other parts of the country were at pre-pandemic occupancy levels already.
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.