Anyone who works for PriceWaterhouseCooper (PwC) will be able to work from home a couple of days per week and start as early or late as they wish.
The announcement follows in the pandemic response of the accountancy giant, offering its staff much more control over their working pattern into the future.
PwC chairman Kevin Ellis hopes this will make flexible working more of a norm, rather than the exception, and wants his people to feel empowered and trusted.
Goldman Sach’s chief executive made it clear he saw working from home during the pandemic as an “aberration”. He says young employees at the investment bank needed direct contact and mentorship, which you can only get in the office.
Many advantages to working from home have been highlighted by the pandemic, including the time and expense saved commuting, not having to wear tights or a tie, and a better work-life balance.
However, there is also the knock-on economic impact of office life too. City centres full of office workers help support the livelihoods of small businesses like sandwich sellers, retailers, cleaners and transport workers.
A recent survey carried out on behalf of the World Economic Forum points out that workplaces operating a ‘mixed mode’ will have to be aware of promotion impacts, with knock on implications for diversity, especially for women.
Mr Ellis said PwC wanted to retain a mix of working from home and the office as the future of work is changing at such a pace, leaving the company to continuously evolve on how they do things.
PwC staff are expected to want the best of both worlds, adopting a “blended working” approach, spending half of their working hours either in the office or at clients’ workplaces.
