t was the company announcement many moms and dads dread. Back in November 2018, staffers at Bank of New York Mellon Corp. learned that their remote-working days would soon come to an end. According to Bloomberg, some U.K. and Belgian employees were asked to return to the office by June, despite some having contracts stipulating their flexible arrangements.
Working parents were especially outraged. “It’s causing huge amounts of personal problems and stress in terms of managing work-life balance,” an unnamed source told Financial News. One mother told the Evening Standard she would “effectively be forced to resign and seek work with a more flexible company when the policy comes into force.” The Evening Standard also reported that workers had obtained counsel in preparation for a "landmark legal challenge."
But that all changed on March 6, 2019. CEO Charlie Scharf emailed the 50,000-plus employees to say he had “hit pause on implementing any changes to remote working arrangements,” claiming the firm didn't accurately assess how devastating the change would be.
HOW?!
Working from home allows parents to bring their kids to school or get them on and off the bus. At the very least, it expands childcare options to those that wouldn't be available to commuting parents who leave the office late or have long trips home. Plus, it gives parents more time with their kids before and after each workday. Then there's the flexibility to sign off for a bit, perhaps to run to a school event or take care of household tasks that otherwise would dominate precious weekend family time.
As of now, staff can continue to work from home, though BNY Mellon will spend the coming months reevaluating flexible arrangements.
It's not the only company where parents are demanding change. More than 1,800 “Momazonians,” a.k.a. moms at Amazon, are seeking backup childcare benefits, something many of the Working Mother 100 Best Companies offer their parent employees. Their argument: All the time off moms have to take when their kids get sick or school is closed hurts their chances of being promoted. However, it's an uncommon perk, with only 9% of companies with 1,000 employees or more offering back-up childcare as a benefit, according to the Associated Press.
We're rooting on the Momazonians. If the parents of BNY Mellon can effect change, so can they.