Goldman Orders Employees To Report Back To The Office In June

A week ago, we reported that JP Morgan had given its employees their final notice that working-from-home had finally come to an end, and that they should prepare to report back to the office later this month.

Not to be outdone, the top brass at Goldman Sachs, already well aware of CEO David Solomon's feelings about remote work, have reportedly just informed their employees that they should prepare to return to the office next month, with front-office staffers in the investment bank set to return by mid-June.

The investment bank is planning to tell staff that they should be prepared by mid-June to work from offices again, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The move follows a mandate last week from JPMorgan Chase & Co. chief Jamie Dimon, seeking to return his workforce in rotations from early July. Vanguard Group, with about 17,300 employees, said it’s planning a hybrid model for most of its staff.

Goldman Chief Executive Officer David Solomon joins Dimon in counting on an expanding vaccination drive to hasten the revival of pre-pandemic routines in an industry where legions have spent 14 months working remotely. The duo has been at the forefront in sketching out the most pressing timelines to refill towers, moves that are likely to put pressure on other firms in finance and beyond.

And Goldman likely won't be the last US investment bank or consulting firm to summon employees back to the office, according to a recent survey cited by Bloomberg.

An Accenture Plc survey of 400 North American financial-services executives found that almost 80% prefer that workers spend four to five days in the office when the pandemic is over. Such plans could face resistance from the ranks. Many employees want to hang on to flexible schedules after proving they could stay productive while working from home, according to Accenture.

Especially now that NYC plans to "fully reopen" by July 1, with the subway to return to 24/7 service in a few weeks.

In New York, home to the two banking giants, plans are under way to fully reopen in two weeks, marked by the return of arenas, gyms, stores, restaurants and hair salons, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said Monday at a briefing. Most capacity restrictions will also be lifted across New Jersey and Connecticut, while all-day subway service will resume in the city this month.

However, employees outside of London and NYC should wait to hear from their regional bosses, as the uneven pace of the pandemic will likely force the bank to wait longer before summoning staff in, say, India back to the downtown skyscrapers.