Business Maverick

Business Maverick

UBS to Let Two-Thirds of Employees Adopt Permanent Hybrid Work

A pedestrian wearing protective gloves walks past the entrance to the UBS Group AG headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland, on Friday, April 17, 2020. A UBS appeal of a record 4.5 billion-euro ($4.9 billion) French fine for helping clients stash undeclared funds in offshore accounts was postponed over concerns related to coronavirus pandemic, according to people familiar with the case. Photographer: Angel Garcia/Bloomberg

UBS Group AG will permanently allow as many as two-thirds of its employees to adopt a hybrid model of working from home and the office, according to a person familiar with the plans, in a bid to be more competitive in recruitment compared with many U.S. banks that have taken a more hardline approach.

The lender’s move is being led by Chief Executive Officer Ralph Hamers, the person said, asking not to be identified because the information isn’t public. The bank is also committed to offering staff the flexibility of a hybrid work arrangement based on roles and locations, the person said.

The bank’s internal analysis shows that two-thirds of its workforce were in positions suitable for hybrid working, while some roles, such as traders and branch staff, will have to work from site, the person said. No date for a return to the office has been set, the person said.

Key Speakers at Markets for Europe Conference
Ralph Hamers, chief executive officer of ING Groep NV, pauses during a panel discussion at the Markets for Europe conference in Berlin, Germany, on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2020. Euro-area economic confidence unexpectedly increased this month, indicating the bloc was gaining momentum before Italy took a blow from the spread of the coronavirus.

An official at UBS declined to comment. The Financial Times reported the plans earlier.

The move by UBS sets a stark contrast between the Swiss lender and many of its U.S. rivals. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has required almost all U.S. employees to report to their desks, JPMorgan Chase & Co. is asking most of its U.S. workers to start regular office schedules July 6, while Morgan Stanley Chief Executive Officer James Gorman fired off a warning shot: “If you can go to a restaurant in New York City, you can come into the office and we want you in the office.”

Citigroup Inc. has also told most workers that they can adopt a hybrid schedule between home and the office longer term.

Among European lenders, Deutsche Bank AG told U.S. investment bankers that it expects them back in the company’s offices by early September.

Dealing with a global workforce also poses the challenge of a more universal corporate policy with new waves of the outbreak prompting lockdowns and other restrictions across the world.

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