There is much confusion on Wall Street as the big banks try to mobilize workforces back into the office. The source of the confusion is the Covid-19 Delta variant. Considered to be more contagious than its previous forms, experts now believe that the Delta variant is transmissible between vaccinated people.
Delays on Wall Street
According to Bloomberg Wealth (August 5, 2021), the Delta Variant is upending the return to work for Wall Street employees. The expectation, since the spring of 2021 has been that all employees who could return to working in a physical office, in September, would do so. Now, it looks as though Wall Street’s return-to-work plan for September 2021 will need to be restructured.
Morgan Stanley
Journalists have reported that two of Morgan Stanley’s vaccinated employees unwittingly contracted the Delta variant and returned to work in its downtown offices. In response, the contaminated space needed to be closed until it could be deep cleaned. While waiting for the deep cleaning process to complete, Morgan Stanley employees have been issued work-from-home orders until further notice.
An industry Divided
Wall Street’s banking sector is divided on its return-to-work planning. The biggest backers for having employees return to work are Goldman Sachs Group Inc and JPMorgan Chase & Co. By comparison, smaller, rival banks on Wall Street are delaying return to work dates and redrawing up employee safety plans.
Two Views
While some CEOs see an immediate need to get employees back into the office others are less in a hurry. During the pandemic, the banking industry was able to generate sizable profits from employees working from home. Yet, the high-end traders famous for making deals over lunch can’t seem to do their jobs remotely with the same level of success.
Elaine Allan, BA, MBA
Technology & Business Blogger
Vancouver, BC, Canada