Is Workplace Trust Dead? A 'Big Four' Firm Will Soon Use Location Data to Track Employees Partners and staff at PwC are expected to be in the office or with clients 60% of their workweek starting in January.
By Erin Davis
Key Takeaways
- PwC is modifying its work policies to ensure employees spend at least three days per week in the office starting January 1.
- But it's how they plan to enforce the rule that has some experts concerned about privacy.
In a press release published online last week, the "Big Four" accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) said it is upping its in-office requirements for partners and staff from "two to three days" in the office or with clients to now 60% of their time, or three days a week.
And in a different memo seen by CNN, and sent to the company's 26,000 UK employees, PwC shared how they would be monitoring the new rule — through location data.
Related: Remote Walmart Employees Question Return-to-Office Policy, Some Opt to Quit Instead of Relocating
"We will start sharing your individual working location data with you on a monthly basis from January as we do with other data such as chargeable hours," the memo reads, per CNN. "This will help to ensure that the new policy is being fairly and consistently applied across our business."
The new policy takes effect January 1, 2025.
"Face-to-face working is hugely important to a people business like ours, and the new policy tips the balance of our working week into being located alongside clients and colleagues," said Laura Hinton, managing partner at PwC UK, in a statement. "This feels right for our business and right for our people, given our focus on client service, coaching, and learning and development. At the same time, we continue to offer flexibility through hybrid working."
Some experts, though, wonder if the move could bring down morale and make workers wary of their employers.
Kelly Tucker, the founder of HR Star, a consultant firm, told HR magazine that maintaining trust is the key to making this policy work.
"Employers should regularly review the necessity of tracking, and ensure it doesn't erode trust," Tucker told the outlet.
Still, PwC is hardly the first company to track employees' return (or not returning) to the office. Amazon made the term "coffee badging" mainstream earlier this summer when it was reported the company is tracking how often employees swipe and how long they stay in the office. Salesforce is also reportedly tracking swipes.
Meanwhile, at Dell, and Amazon, remote employees are no longer eligible for promotions.
While PwC did not add more specifics on enforcement, a spokeswoman for PWC told CNN: "If the monthly data shows someone is consistently breaching the policy, we'd first want to understand the reasons why."
