NatWest orders staff back to office two days per week

Summarised from 3 outlets · Updated 20 Oct, 18:08 · Archive

NatWest has ordered 13,000 staff to increase office attendance from two days per month to two days per week from February 2027.

NatWest has ordered 13,000 staff to increase their in-office days from two days per month to two days per week from February 2027. The banking group will require all of its nearly 40,000 UK staff to follow a strict two days per week office schedule, abolishing a remote-first policy for thousands of employees.

The affected staff include those in technology, security, data analytics and human resources roles, and account for some of NatWest's lowest-paid workers. Trade union Unite warned that the change would increase financial pressure on staff already struggling with rising living costs, and would undermine flexible arrangements for those with caring responsibilities or disabilities. Many employees had structured their lives around flexible working agreements that were expanded during the Covid pandemic.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said the decision was 'completely out of touch with the realities facing its workforce'. She noted that thousands of staff would face higher travel and childcare costs as a result, and criticised NatWest for imposing changes 'while reneging on existing agreements'.

How it is being reported

• Natwest facing backlash from union after ordering staff into office twice a weekNatwest is facing backlash from trade union Unite over a new plan to require workers to attend the office for a mandatory two days a week. On Tuesday, Unite the Union, a trade union which represents over 1 million workers across private, public, and voluntary sectors, including some Natwest employees, said the lender’s decision was [...]City AM · 20 Oct, 18:44
• NatWest orders 13,000 staff back to their desks two days a weekUnion furious as bank scraps remote-first policy for thousands of employees from February 2027 NatWest has ordered 13,000 staff to increase their in-office days from two days per month to two days per week, angering its staff union. The banking group, which serves customers under the Royal Bank of Scotland, NatWest, and Coutts brands, will require all of its nearly 40,000 UK staff to follow a strict two days per week office schedule from February 2027, abolishing a remote-first policy for thousands of employees. Continue reading...The Guardian · 20 Oct, 17:45
• Backlash as NatWest orders 30,000 staff to spend more time in the officeThe changes will apply to more than 30,000 UK staff and were described as a 'kick in the teeth' by trade union Unite.This is Money · 20 Oct, 16:43

In this story: NatWest · Royal Bank of Scotland · Coutts · Unite · Sharon Graham · UK

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