Government encourages city firms to bring workers back to the office
The UK government is now recommending that workers get back to the office in a reversal policy that will confuse many. On 28th August, officials began a campaign to encourage places of work to reopen, even as some regions face the prospect of local lockdown.
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A spokesperson said the government designed the changes to get the economy up and running again. Figures released by the ONS suggest that only around 46 per cent of workers managed to do any of their usual tasks from home in April, with the number standing at 57 per cent in London, one of the UK’s most affected regions.
The announcement comes amidst reassurances by chancellor Rishi Sunak that the current furlough scheme will last until October. The policy extension reflects ongoing problems with the economy and the ramifications of forcing business closures during the peak of the crisis in the spring.
Demand issues in city centers
The Confederation of British Industry is warning that the public health policies put in place in the aftermath of the coronavirus response will likely lead to a significant fall in output and the loss of thousands of jobs across the economy. Traffic on the highstreet has plunged on the highstreet, the organization says, and many retailers may not return.
The sheer scale of the reduction in footfalls is remarkable. In some places, such as central London, the number of people frequenting local businesses is around 10 per cent of the pre-crisis level. Unless stores can move their operations online, it will be impossible for many of them to say in business.
The government, therefore, is keen to re-establish the circular economy between office workers and ancillary services in city centres up and down the country. The hope is that the private sector can avoid large scale wasting of commercial capital built up over the past several years.
The impact on mental health
Authorities are also concerned about the effect working from home could have on mental health. Data suggest that when workers confine themselves to home offices, they are more likely to experience depression and anxiety compared to their commuting counterparts.
Transport secretary Grant Shapps told the BBC that he thought there was a limit to remote working in “human terms.” For many people, he pointed out; it is critical to be able to go to a safe working space with other people and carry out work there. That’s one of the reasons he and the government decided to push forward with return-to-work plans: the costs of staying indoors may now be outweighing the benefits.
Many workers, however, are reluctant to return to the office due to the risk of contracting COVID-19 – particularly older workers who are most at risk. With the recent uptick in the number of cases, many will now be worrying about whether spending time with dozens of other people in a crowded room is a good idea.
Britain already has the highest confirmed death toll of any country in Europe, with more than 41,628 according to the most recent count. Now there is a concern that the return to the regular office will force the case rate higher, potentially leading to a second wave.
With millions of workers now at home, companies are reconsidering the central office paradigm and exploring new ideas, like having a virtual office address but keeping workers safe at home.
There’s also considerable debate as to whether the government’s assessment of the effect of working from home on health is accurate. The general secretary of the FDA – a union that represents civil servants – said that that government was living in the past when it came to its analysis of the mental health landscape across the UK workforce. In its view, most people are enjoying the new remote arrangements and don’t want to return to the traditional office setup. He points out that things are changing faster on the ground than the government realizes.
Evolving workspaces
Just like shops, restaurants, and hotels, firms are having to evolve to facilitate disease mitigation. According to Alison Rose, CEO of Natwest Group, the company is being careful and thoughtful about how to bring people back to work. According to her analysis, the office space is going to change considerably. Her goal is to operate a hybrid model where people are in the office a couple of days per week and then working from home the rest of the time. This arrangement, she says, is a trade-off between putting colleagues at risk and enabling them to work collaboratively on business projects.
Currently, Natwest says that more than 50,000 staff will continue working from home until 2021. The company says that it is dedicating its best talent to determine how the scheme will work.
Confusion from businesses
While the government has stated its intention to get people back to the office, both business groups and the Labour party have called on ministers to provide a more consistent message. Data from the ONS at the end of August shows that around 13 per cent of workers were still on furlough, with 40 per cent remote and 43 per cent back in the office.
Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak are worried about the effect that the lack of office working will have on city centres and would prefer to preserve them if possible. Unfortunately, there have not been clear and consistent messages about what businesses should do from central government, with many still fearful that it could result in losing members of staff for weeks on end and, perhaps, permanently.
Mr Shapps declined to provide further direction when questioned on LBC news. He said that he suspected that there would be more flexible working than in the past. But he encouraged employees themselves to find the right “balance,” instead of providing any guidelines that they might use.
Overall, London is likely to see the most considerable lasting legacy from the coronavirus. While other city centres have seen a rise in commuter football, with the average city down 43 per cent, London is still 72 per cent below its pre-crisis levels, with relatively little recovery since April.
