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John Lewis is asking head office staff to spend at least three days a week in the office or out on the road in the latest shift away from working from home.
The department store group said members of its commercial teams – which include those working in buying and merchandising – should work no more than two days a week from home from July. Previously they were allowed to work up to three days a week at home.
The change at the employee-owned group, which is renowned for its good treatment of workers, including access to holiday homes and a generous pension scheme, comes amid a broader shift among businesses ranging from the retailer Boots to Amazon and JP Morgan, which have told staff they must return five days a week.
Last month, HSBC told staff in its UK high street banks that it may cut their bonuses if they did not work in the office at least 60% of the time. The business has also discussed a group-wide policy of working in the office three days a week, according to the Financial Times.
John Lewis’s parent group also owns Waitrose supermarkets but the change in working practice applies only to those working for its department store’s commercial teams.
In the wider group, flexible working is encouraged as agreed with a manager.
John Lewis said the changes for its commercial team were partly to enable training and development after it recruited 50 new members of staff and to aid collaboration as it worked on a turnaround plan to increase profits.
However, some workers have reacted angrily to the change, saying there is not enough space in the group’s new head office in Pimlico, central London, according to the trade journal Retail Week, which first reported the change in working patterns.
The group is in the middle of a tough turnaround plan, which was started by the former chair Sharon White and continued under her successor, Jason Tarry. That has involved closing about 16 department stores and at least 20 Waitrose outlets and cutting thousands of head office jobs.
Group sales rose 3% to £12.8bn in the 12 months to 25 January 2025, as underlying profit rose from £42m to £126m and sales growth picked up through December and January.
A John Lewis spokesperson said: “Flexible working is an important part of our offer; everyone in our business can request to work flexibly, and most central office partners have hybrid working arrangements in place.
“A collaborative culture is critical to help create the best product ranges and store environment for our customers and we’re taking steps to encourage team members to spend time together in our offices, our stores, meeting brands and suppliers and balancing this with working remotely.”
