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JPMorgan Chase’s announcement that all employees will be required to work from the office five days a week starting in March has predictably sent many workers into a tailspin — and they’re reportedly devising ways to fight back.
The company officially told its some 300,000 employees on Friday that it was ending remote work. A little over half the workforce was already working full-time in the office, but for employees still on hybrid schedules, the news wasn’t particularly welcome.
According to the Wall Street Journal, JPMorgan Chase (JPM) had to disable comments on an intranet webpage after it was flooded with aggrieved comments about the new policy. Many employees said the new policy would put a strain on their finances, particularly around child care and commuting costs. Others said it would disrupt their work-life balance.
On LinkedIn (MSFT), one employee posted publicly about the decision. “I’ve always taken pride in how our firm leads the way in benefits and culture. Yet, I struggle to see how this move will strengthen our organization or positively impact our people,” the worker wrote, according to Barron’s. “While I have little confidence that me raising concerns will reverse the decision, as a senior leader with a decade of service to the firm, I feel responsible to voice my perspective and stand with others who share these views.”
In the memo announcing the policy, the company said, “We know that some of you prefer a hybrid schedule and respectfully understand that not everyone will agree with this decision.”
“We feel that now is the right time to solidify our full-time in-office approach. We think it is the best way to run the company,” it continued.
Some employees were so perturbed by the new policy that they are considering forming a union, like a small group of Well Fargo (WFC) employees did, Barron’s (NWSA) reported.
Barron’s reportsthat many staffers filled out a Google (GOOGL) Form expressing interest in forming a union, which would be a rare move for the financial sector where organized labor has a minuscule presence.