For Some JPMorgan Staff, Remote Work Could Become More Permanent

(Bloomberg) -- Most of JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s quarter-million employees have been working from home for more than a month. Some could be asked to keep doing so even after the coronavirus pandemic is over.

A portion of the biggest U.S. bank's staff could work from home on a rotational basis more permanently, according to one vision of the future of work sketched out by Co-President Daniel Pinto in a private meeting with Citigroup Inc. research analysts. That would reduce demand for office space, supporting sustainability efforts and saving money.

The comments provide a glimpse into how the outbreak could permanently change the way Americans work. Despite stereotypes that working from home results in slacking, some firms are finding that they can operate just as well virtually and might not need as much office space as they did before.

Read more: The office you left isn't the one you're returning to

JPMorgan's traders were able to handle as much as three times the normal trading volume in the first quarter, even as 90% of the corporate and investment bank's staff worked from home, according to a note to Citigroup clients Wednesday detailing Pinto's comments. A JPMorgan spokesman declined to comment.

“This experience could change how they do business,” Citigroup analyst Keith Horowitz wrote in the note. Rotational remote work is just one of various options being considered by JPMorgan. In such a scenario, the bank would need better tools to measure productivity, Horowitz said.

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