Open Letter to Barclays Leadership on Changes to Office Attendance Requirements

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Open Letter to Barclays Leadership on Changes to Office Attendance Requirements

Barclays Leadership Team

Add your name to the Open Letter to Barclays today.

By adding your name, you are standing with colleagues across Barclays and supporting Unite’s call for the Bank to reverse its decision to increase minimum office attendance requirements and, at a minimum, engage meaningfully with Unite to develop a fair, proportionate and sustainable approach that protects workers from the detrimental impacts of increased time in the office.

Barclays has been unable to provide Unite with an evidence-based rationale that justifies the scale or nature of these changes. While Unite recognises that face-to-face working can support collaboration, team development and relationship building, we do not accept that this requires a blanket, one-size-fits-all increase in mandatory office attendance. Workers have clearly expressed their views, with 94% of respondents to Unite’s latest survey saying they want implementation delayed until consultation with Unite has concluded. Their voices must be heard.

Click here to view the outlined proposals.

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Unite Action Network

To: Barclays Leadership Team
From: [Your Name]

Dear Barclays Leadership Team,

Unite acknowledges that Barclays has outlined the ‘test and learn’ approach to ways of working, over the past 6 years. We also note, that Barclays is not able to provide an evidence-based rationale for increasing minimum office attendance requirements across parts of the organisation.

Unite has considered the explanations provided, including the stated aims of enhancing collaboration, connectivity, leadership visibility, and faster decision making. After careful review, Unite does not agree that these reasons justify the scale or nature of the changes being introduced.

Workers across Barclays continue to deliver strong financial results, improved customer outcomes, successful digital transformation, and high operational performance. These achievements have been repeatedly recognised in recent internal communications from senior leaders. In this context, Unite does not believe that significantly increasing mandatory office attendance represents a proportionate or necessary response.

Unite therefore formally calls on Barclays to reverse this decision.

Barclays have refused Unite’s calls to cease changes or delay implementation until they have fully consulted with the union. Barclays claim delays would create uncertainty for workers, despite 94% of respondents in Unite’s most recent survey stating they want changes delayed until consultation with Unite has concluded.
Unite urges the Bank, as a minimum, to enter into constructive and meaningful discussions with the union to develop a balanced and sustainable approach that mitigates any impact on workers.

The proposed changes will create substantial challenges for many employees, including increased commuting time, higher travel costs, additional caring pressures, poorer work-life balance. These impacts are material and foreseeable, and it is essential that they are addressed through appropriate policy measures prior to any changes.

Unite has collated suggestions from thousands of workers, who have told the union what policies and support measures they would need, should changes go ahead, to support their wellbeing, financial position, productivity at work and to ensure fairness across the workforce. Unite has summarised the asks from workers including exemptions, adjustments, financial support, communication requirements, and measures to minimise the detrimental impacts of increase time in office.
These proposals are outlined above, where we set out the specific areas Unite wishes to bring forward for discussion.

Barclays’ continued success is the result of the commitment of its workers. Any changes to working arrangements must therefore be developed must consider the views of workers, acknowledges the diversity of their circumstances, and ensures that the Bank’s approach is fair, proportionate, and aligned with its stated values.

Unite is committed to engaging with Barclays and we invite workers who support this position to add their names to this letter, demonstrating collective endorsement of the call on Barclays to stop the implementation of increase minimum office attendance requirements and engage meaningfully with Unite the Union on any future approach.

Yours sincerely, Unite the Union

Thank you for supporting Unite the union's campaign. This petition will be shared with Barclays Bank Leadership team.
Names submitted in support of this campaign may also be used, where appropriate, as part of a collective grievance or other collective action in the future.’