23rd March 2022

WFH at the FCA

The FCA has frequently been hitting the headlines for non-regulatory issues over the last year.  

Classic highlights include the July 2021 shock horror that the FCA had ‘lost’ 323 laptops and other electronic instruments leading  November 2021’s confirmation that £5m was being spent on laptops for employees.

No mention of any data leaks that resulted from those losses. 

Unite, the union which represents staff at the regulator, said members voted by 87 per cent in favour of strike action in its non-binding ballot, which closed on January 31 this year. 

Then they have the guided sales, easier access to advice initiatives for low earners issues to confront.

The FCA is currently ‘consulting’ on changes its employment package. Extraordinarily, it would seem that in a time when the government is calling for pay restraint, most staff could expect to see a 5% increase at least and many getting quite a lot more.

With these issues in mind we thought it worth asking some questions about how regulation has managed to work during the Covid years. Are we getting good value, are we seeing staff being managed and monitored to an acceptable standard? 

The FOI we submitted asked the following questions

1. What percentage of staff have worked from home since 16^th March 2020?  

FCA reply: From March 2020, as per government guidelines, all colleagues were required to work from home except for those in roles which were not able to be carried out from home. Following the lifting of the government work from home guidelines, we provided a gradual return to the office for those colleagues who wished to return. From 28 February 2022, in the London office we commenced a trial of hybrid working; whereby all colleagues are required to spend a minimum of 40% of their working time (over a monthly period), within the office. This form of hybrid working will be trialled until the end of July 2022.  

Our Edinburgh offices are on a separate timeline and are not part of the trial. The Edinburgh office is open to colleagues since 21 February for those colleagues who wish to return. From 7 March, colleagues are required to spend a minimum of 20% of their working time (over a month period) within the office. 

Panacea comment: I note that employees are now referred to as colleagues, not doubt in pursuit of inclusivity and that a return to work is based on employees wishes ‘trialled until the end of July 2022’. And then what? What a mess, the government wants people back to work or more accurately those who work in sectors that are not counted as ‘key workers’. That category could simply include everyone who cannot work from home. The businesses that bring you stuff, do stuff for you, that kind of thing.

2. How do you monitor the productivity of those who are working from home? 

FCA reply: Line Managers monitor individual colleague performance and delivery. Our annual and mid-year performance management procedure has continued to operate as normal since March 2020. We are currently engaging in a hybrid and fully dispersed working trial, and productivity/delivery will be one of the factors taken into account in the trial evaluation.  

Panacea comment: What is a “fully dispersed working trial”? Collins dictionary defines ‘fully dispersed’ as a verb and a noun  “When a group of people disperses or when someone disperses them, the group splits up and the people leave in different directions. An example “Police fired shots and used teargas to disperse the demonstrators”. I think what this actually means is that the FCA are struggling to get people back to their desks to do the job they are being paid to do, protecting consumers from bad actors. In fact when considering the verb and noun combination I think it would be fair to think that fully dispersed means we have no idea whre they are or what they are doing during their working hours. 

3. How do you measure the success and productivity of those who are working from home?

FCA reply: Please see our response to Q2.

Panacea comment: well, if you cannot find them as they have simply scattered with a salaried wind behind them it seems reasonable to assume they cannot and do not.

4. Based on that metric, can you confirm if working from home was more productive than working from the office? 

FCA reply: We do not currently hold this information. As noted in question 2, as part of the evaluation of the hybrid working trial, we will take into account productivity measures.

Panacea comment: Well of course not, why would you bother. The words stable, door, horse and bolted spring to mind

5. If not, what steps were taken to correct that?

FCA reply: Please see our response to Q4.

Panacea comment: Please see my response to Q4

6. When do you intend to get all staff working from the office they were contractually employed to work from now Government restrictions are to be removed? 

FCA reply: As noted above, from 28 February all colleagues in the London office are required to spend a minimum of 40% of their working time and Edinburgh colleagues 20% of their time (over a monthly period), within the office. This will continue on a trial basis until the end of July 2022. 

Panacea comment: With strike action looking likely I think it reasonable to assume they may need to add a year, ie 28 February 2023

7. Want percentage of staff working from home are in receipt of London Weighting?

FCA reply: We do not operate a London weighting allowance.

Panacea comment:

But they will, their new pay offer states that in 2023  “We will narrow the difference between London and rest of the UK pay ranges to a maximum of 10%. This will be less if data suggests greater similarity between pay in the London and rest of the UK for certain roles. At consultation the difference was 16-20%”. It is now not London Weighting, it called ‘Narrow the difference’ (NTD)

8. Will you remove London Weighting if staff do not return to the office? 

FCA reply: Please see our response to Q7.

Panacea comment: Please see our response to Q7.

9. What actions will you take if employees refuse to come back to the office?

We are committed to supporting colleagues and we expect individuals and line managers to have open and honest conversations regarding exceptional personal circumstances that may impact on the return to the office. Where possible we try to accommodate individual flexibility within the hybrid working model. Where there are no exceptional circumstances, then the Disciplinary Policy may apply. 

Panacea comment: In my experience of unionised workforces, open and honest conversations will lead to industrial action. Any employee that used to be office based pre Covid WFH should at least replicate that working week  and practices that existed at that time

10. Do you obtain proof of positive Covid test results for staff self-isolating due to having Covid?

FCA reply: We do not ask colleagues for proof of a positive Covid test result.

Panacea comment: I asked this because I was aware that after so many government changes to Covid testing many employers were starting to look at those many days on end of isolation as a ‘Skivers Charter’ and had in late 2021 started to ask for proof from a testing centre print out and not accepting a ‘self cert’ get out of jail free card.

I would suspect that the main reason for not asking was to not upset Unison.

Is working from home working for those regulated firms who pay that Unison controlled workforce?

I think we know the answer!

Just a thought.

 

Panacea Comment