Some of the biggest sticklers in the return-to-office movement have been big banks and investment firms, including Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan, which have, in large measure, required employees to work from the office five days a week. But not this summer.
Bucking the trend, those companies are now allowing workers to stay home for one surprising reason—the World Cup. Here’s why.
Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase reportedly told employees they can request to work remotely on game days in busy host cities, like New York City, where commutes will likely be heavily impacted, according to internal memos seen by the Financial Times. Hundreds of thousands of fans are expected to flood the New York area for the soccer (i.e. “football”) games. According to the FT, this applies to all JPMorgan workers in all three countries in North America—the U.S., Canada, and Mexico—hosting the matches.
Goldman Sachs clarified to Fast Company it is encouraging employees to communicate with their managers about their commute during the World Cup.
Meanwhile, JPMorgan Chase told Fast Company its buildings are operating business as usual, but the company is notifying impacted workers that they should work with their manager if they need to make alternative work arrangements. Similarly, a person familiar with the matter said Citigroup is encouraging employees working hybrid schedules to talk to their managers if their commute will be disrupted, and said a majority of Citi employees work in hybrid roles.
Over the next three and a half weeks, through July 19, the mammoth soccer tournament is taking place in 16 host cities across North America, including 11 cities in the United States: Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York/New Jersey, Philadelphia, San Francisco Bay Area, and Seattle. In those weeks, 48 teams will play a total of 100 games.
An estimated 5 billion people around the world (averaging over 128 million viewers a day) are expected to tune into the soccer matches or attend in person—and a number are planning to call in “sick,” according to a new survey.
As Fast Company recently reported, that study from workforce management software company UKG (Ultimate Kronos Group) found that 27% of employees said they’ll probably miss work, either by coming in late, leaving early, or skipping work altogether; while 22% expect to show up to their job either tired or exhausted; 11% admit they’ll clock in hungover; and 14% plan to secretly stream matches while on the clock.
Altogether, this could cost companies up to $17 billion globally, including $11.7 billion in the U.S. alone. Giving employees the option to work from home could be one way for companies to cut down on those costs and boost lost productivity.