TORONTO (Reuters) – Canadian banks and insurers have allowed office employees to work from home during the pandemic, but with almost 80% of the population double vaccinated, they are gradually bringing them back to offices, with most adopting hybrid work arrangements.
Below are the major banks’ and insurers’ plans for bringing staff back to work locations, with some setting return dates, while others’ intentions are more fluid:
Royal Bank of Canada: Most of the bank’s 61,000 employees are working from home, but many have begun returning to offices or will do so over the coming weeks and months. Many of those will adopt a hybrid work model, working some days from home and some days in the office.
Each business group and region is determining the best work arrangements for them, and employees will receive at least four weeks’ notice before they return to offices.
Toronto-Dominion Bank: Employees working from home are not expected to return to the bank’s locations before 2022, but it is “monitoring the evolving situation.” The bank is preparing for employees to return to TD premises when conditions allow.
Bank of Nova Scotia: Scotiabank plans to begin a phased return for head-office employees working remotely from Jan. 17. The return will be staggered for different groups and most head-office staff will follow a hybrid working model.
Bank of Montreal: Some employees who were working from home returned to BMO locations in June, and others started during the fall. The timetable for a full-fledged return will differ by groups, teams and geographies.
Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce: Most Canadian employees working from home will return to offices on a hybrid basis in early 2022.
Manulife Financial: Manulife expects employees in Canada and the United States to return to offices on Jan. 24, with many working three days a week – Mondays, Wednesdays and one flex day – in the office.
In addition, the banks and insurers have put in place mandatory vaccination policies that employees will need to follow to return to their premises.
(Reporting by Nichola Saminather; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Barbara Lewis)
