Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser told the team that she is banning internal video calls on Fridays, encouraging the team to set limits for a healthier work-life balance and instituting a company-wide holiday called Citi Reset Day , as pandemic fatigue affects employees.
Fraser, who took over from predecessor Mike Corbat this month, told the team about the changes to a memo sent Monday afternoon to its 210,000 employees worldwide, according to a person familiar with the matter.
“The blurring of the lines between home and work and the relentless pandemic workday affected our well-being, “Fraser said in the memo.” It is simply not sustainable. Since the return to any new type of normality is still a few months away for many of us, we need to redefine some of our work practices. “
The Citigroup memo was sent a day after Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon was forced to speak to his team after an internal survey of first-year analysts, reported by CNBC last week, went viral. The survey detailed the brutal working conditions at the main investment bank, including concerns about employee health about working more than 100 hours a week, as well as more mundane issues like junior bankers being ignored at meetings.
Fraser said that while Zoom’s meetings with customers and regulators still take place on Fridays, employees will conduct telephone meetings to give workers a break from uninterrupted video conferencing.
Jane Fraser, Executive Director for Latin America at Citigroup Inc., smiles during the Milken Institute Global Conference in Beverly Hills, California, USA, on Monday, April 29, 2019. The conference brings together leaders in business, government, technology and philanthropy, academia and the media to discuss actionable and collaborative solutions to some of the most important issues of our time. Photographer: Kyle Grillot / Bloomberg via Getty Images
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She also designated Friday, May 28, as a company-wide holiday, called Citi Reset Day, and encouraged employees to schedule calls only during what would be considered traditional work hours. Parts of the memo were previously reported by Financial News.
“When our work regularly spills over into the evenings, very early in the morning and on the weekends, it can prevent us from fully recharging and that is not good for you or, ultimately, for Citi,” said Fraser.
It also established the framework for how work will be done at Citigroup, the United States’ third largest bank in assets, once more employees return to the offices. Like other bank leaders, including Solomon, Fraser affirmed the value of having employees, especially younger ones, working together in an office environment.
Most employees will be designated as hybrid workers who spend at least three days a week in an office, while connecting from home up to two days a week, she said. Branch employees will continue to remain on Citigroup’s premises and some functions will remain remote, although Fraser called these positions “somewhat rare”.
The pandemic “opened doors to new ways of working and showed that we are able to adapt and even flourish in the face of adversity,” said Fraser. “Nothing should stop us from building a bank that wins, a bank that defends excellence and a bank with a soul.”