JPMorgan employees have united themselves on WhatsApp to share views on the proposed return to office (RTO) policy of the bank. A WhatsApp group has been formed by nearly 100 employees after the bank in January this year asked its employees working in a hybrid mode to resume a 5-days-in-office policy, according to American financial news website the Business Insider.
The policy reportedly started on March 3 and has made employees anxious on various grounds, including the consequences of not meeting performance-related standards and the attendance monitoring mechanism. Some in the unofficial WhatsApp support group have expressed concerns that their working hours and productivity might not be tracked correctly, facing a serious threat of losing jobs. Others are of the opinion that the RTO policy and attendance tracking system is too stringent.
“It’s impossible to put a number on productivity on a minute-by-minute basis. So much of what we do is about communication, learning, planning, and investing. The only quantifiable measures take weeks to materialise,” the Business Insider reported, citing a software engineer.
According to an earlier report by BI, JPMorgan already has an employee productivity and working hour tracking tool called Workplace Activity Data Utility (WADU) in place. But the uncertainty as to how the management will roll out the RTO policy has caused confusion amongst employees, especially as some have aired issues like certain offices lacked enough desks and parking or conference rooms.
CEO Jamie Dimon’s RTO Policy
The global financial institution’s RTO policy came after its CEO, Jamie Dimon, felt that some employees were inattentive during official meetings on Zoom, which impacted their efficiency and creativity. Taking this instance, the CEO noted that the return-to-office policy is required to fix the issue.
“Don’t waste time on it. I don’t care how many people sign that…petition (request hybrid work policy),” said the CEO in a staff meeting.
Following the announcement, in an interview with CNBC, Dimon said those unhappy with a 5-day RTO mandate can consider quitting.