NAB’s move to force its workers to return to the office more regularly has been slammed as “completely unnecessary” and “regressive” by the Finance Sector Union.

In a note to employees of the big four bank last week, NAB senior executive Sarah White announced new rules mandating time in the office, with those currently working two days in the office to do three days in the office, and the company’s team managers to attend the workplace four days per week.

In the post on NAB’s internal messaging system, White said that “ways of working are evolving” and that NAB was planning to move to an “office-based working model” because this “supports collaboration, teamwork and problem-solving for customers”.

“We are taking an approach that ensures flexibility and supports all colleagues to respond to personal-life circumstances,” White said.

The post was met with quick confusion and anger, with NAB employees reacting to it with hundreds of shocked and angry emojis, broken hearts and some thumbs up, according to the Australian Financial Review.

‘Tone deaf and regressive’

More than 1,000 NAB workers met with the Finance Sector Union on Monday about the return-to-office edict, with the union issuing an open letter to the bank’s CEO, Andrew Irvine, “strongly opposing” the move.

The union said that NAB workers had described the move as “regressive”, “tone-deaf” and “out of touch with the real challenges workers face”.

“It disregards the realities of our lives and the efforts we have made to deliver results under hybrid arrangements,” the open letter said.

The union said forcing workers to attend the office more regularly will be deeply felt in terms of family and caring responsibilities, financial pressures, mental health and morale, and workplace culture.

“Many of us have structured our lives around the flexibility NAB previously encouraged,” the union said.

“Forcing more office time means disruption, stress and a clear signal that family commitments come second to corporate image.

“You risk driving down morale and engagement by imposing a one-size-fits-all mandate.

“The move will be seen as punitive and tone-deaf putting at risk our wellbeing.

“It sends a message: no matter how committed or productive you are, you’re not trusted unless you’re visible.”

A spokesperson for NAB said the bank would now be commencing a period of consultation on the planned changes before they come into effect later this week.

Flexibility above all else

NAB has now joined the likes of some large tech firms in trying to bring their workers back into the office following the rise in popularity of working from home that was brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Late last year, tech giant Amazon announced that its near-300,000 corporate employees would be forced to return to the office full-time from early this year, with an executive telling staff that if they don’t like it, they could leave.

These companies may risk a mass exodus though, with numerous studies and surveys finding that Australian workers prioritise flexibility above almost everything else.

A Robert Half survey last year found that 40 per cent of workers would leave if they were forced back to the office full-time, while separate research found that young workers are ready to find a new job if they are made to do so.

According to the Committee for Economic Development of Australia, more than a third of Australians are still working from home, up from just 5 per cent in 2016.

But a KPMG survey of more than 1,300 global chief executives late last year found that more than four in five expected a full return to office within the next three years.

Then-Opposition Leader Peter Dutton found out the hard way that Aussie workers want flexibility after he announced a policy to force public servants back into the office earlier this year and labelled it “common sense”.

Dutton was eventually forced to ditch this policy and admit it was a “mistake”.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has offered full support for workplace flexibility, and earlier this year released costings showing that working from home can save the average Australian up to $5,000 per year in commuting costs.