Citigroup banned internal Zoom calls on Friday in an effort to prevent staff from coping while working from home.
Jane Fraser, the new CEO of the megabank, announced the “Zoom-Free Friday” policy in a note from the company, along with other measures aimed at addressing “the cessation of the pandemic working day”.
“We are a global company that operates in multiple time zones, but when our work flows regularly at night, early morning and on weekends, it can prevent us from fully recharging, and this is not good for you and, Finally, for Citi, ”Fraser wrote in Monday’s note, which Citi provided for The Post.
Fraser – the first woman to run a major Wall Street bank – said she initially resisted cutting video calls, but came after hearing colleagues around the world complaining of “zoom fatigue.”
While Friday’s calls at Citi will be audio-only, Fraser said staff will still need to meet with regulators and customers via video.
She also asked employees to avoid scheduling calls outside of their traditional pre-pandemic working hours and to use their holidays. Fraser leads by example – he said he would take a few days off at the end of this month, “knowing I’ll be back with a fresher brain.”
The bank will offer all employees a day off on May 28, which Fraser has declared a company holiday called “Read Reset Day.”
Citi isn’t the only one trying to combat the exhaustion that plagues Wall Street bankers after a year of remote work.
Goldman Sachs chief David Solomon has pledged to ensure that employees receive leave on Saturday after a group of junior analysts complained about 100-hour work weeks, affecting their physical and mental health.
But Solomon also stressed the importance of working long hours, telling subjects on Sunday that walking “an extra mile” for customers “can really make a difference in our performance.”
Citi intends to eventually reduce the distance work that apparently left staff without steam, according to Fraser’s note, which was first reported by Financial News.
Most of the bank’s jobs will be “hybrid” roles with staff vaccination, which means people in those positions will enter the office at least three days a week and work from home up to two days a week, Fraser said. .
Some jobs will be completely removed after the pandemic, but others such as those in bank branches or data centers cannot be done outside the headquarters, she said.
“Although the pandemic has shown us how versatile our colleagues can be, for many of our roles, we strongly believe that there are more material benefits to being physically together,” Fraser wrote.