Barclays Staff Push Back Against Tougher Return-to-Office Rules

By Benson Daniel

Thousands of Barclays employees are pushing back against plans by the British banking group to require more staff to work from its offices, with workers seeking compensation for additional commuting costs and exemptions for those facing long journeys.

Barclays plans to increase its minimum office requirement for affected full-time employees from two days a week to at least three days from October. Senior leaders are expected to spend at least four days a week in the office under the new approach.

The change has triggered a coordinated response from employees represented by Unite, one of the unions representing Barclays workers in the UK. The union says thousands of employees have signed an open letter opposing the tighter requirements, which has been circulated across the bank’s UK offices.

Unite is calling for staff whose commute exceeds 40 minutes or 35 miles each way to be exempted from the new requirement. It is also seeking a one-off payment to help workers meet the additional cost of travelling to work more frequently, along with greater flexibility for employees with caring responsibilities and those who need to travel during cheaper off-peak periods.

The union has also questioned the business case for increasing office attendance, arguing that Barclays has not provided what it considers sufficient evidence to justify the change. A Unite survey cited in its campaign found that 94% of respondents wanted implementation delayed while further discussions with the union take place.

Barclays has defended the policy, saying it is seeking to balance workplace flexibility with the benefits of employees working together in physical locations. The bank said minimum office requirements vary according to the business area and the nature of individual roles.

The lender has around 45,000 employees in the UK, while Unite represents nearly 80% of that workforce. The new policy is expected to affect a significant number of employees who are not already working from the office at least three days a week.

The dispute reflects a wider shift across the financial sector, where some major banks have tightened remote-working arrangements introduced or expanded during the Covid-19 pandemic. Employers have increasingly argued that face-to-face working supports collaboration, training, decision-making and career development, while employees have highlighted commuting costs, travel time and the flexibility provided by hybrid work.

For Barclays, the disagreement comes as businesses continue to reassess how much office space and in-person attendance they need after years of widespread hybrid working. Any increase in required attendance can also create additional costs for employees, particularly those travelling from outside major financial centres.

The union and Barclays are expected to continue discussions over the policy. For now, the bank’s plan remains scheduled to take effect in October, while employees and their representatives continue pressing for changes to the proposed arrangements.

The dispute highlights a broader challenge facing employers: finding a balance between the operational benefits of having workers together in the same workplace and employees’ expectations of flexibility after years in which remote and hybrid working became a normal part of working life.