In an effort to ensure compliance with its hybrid working rules, Ernst & Young (EY) has reportedly started to monitor staff attendance for its UK employees.
The new process is said to involve monitoring entry to offices via badge swipes for certain senior-level positions, according to a report from the Financial Times.
It is believed that around half of some teams within the organization have been falling short of the company’s mandate, which stipulates that they should be in the office on at least two days of the week.
EY monitors employee attendance amid hybrid working challenges
Little information is known about the move so far, but EY certainly isn’t the first and won’t be the last to introduce tougher measures against remote working. Many of the world’s most influential companies have already asked workers to return to the office more permanently, and reports have circulated about the likes of Apple tracking employee attendance.
Ernst & Young has already laid off a number of its workers, including a recent round of redundancies in December 2023, which it put down to challenging economic conditions (via Wall Street Journal).
Companies are broadly returning to thinking that in-person working is more beneficial in terms of productivity, however the reality is that many workers have already had a taste of working from home and have found themselves to be not only more productive, but also to have greater flexibility.
On the whole, the future of hybrid working remains uncertain, but for EY employees, the ability to work remotely is looking less likely.
TechRadar Pro asked EY for more information regarding its enforcement of office-based working structures, but the company declined to comment.
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