Thousands of bankers have returned to their offices across some of Asia’s biggest financial hubs, stepping gingerly into a new normal of face masks, desk shields and closed canteens.
In Hong Kong,
The office changes are a potential harbinger of things to come in London and New York, where many firms are waiting for infection rates to fall further before opening their office towers to non-essential staff. Some bankers in Asia have expressed relief at returning to the office after weeks at home, even if back to work hardly means back to normal.
“Coming back into the office yesterday, there were a lot more personal interactions -- within respectful distance,” said
China First
China, as the original epicenter of the virus and the first to shut down, has boosted office staffing for several weeks, with few signs that the safety precautions will be removed anytime soon.
In Hong Kong, some of the world’s biggest banks are slowly welcoming employees back after the city eased many restrictions. That’s in contrast with Singapore, the Southeast Asian financial hub that continues to report hundreds of cases a day, keeping most bankers at home.
By contrast,
“Banks in Hong Kong and China are very well prepared for their staff to return to work, given that Covid-19 seems to be largely under control relative to the West,” said
As more bankers flood back to their desks in Asia, here are some of the changes they’re noticing:
Health Checks:
Get used to these. Most office buildings are taking temperature checks as employees arrive. Staff at Bank of Communications in Shanghai wear masks all day, and pass through an infrared temperature screen to enter the office. In China, staff are generally required to show a health code on their phones, which tracks where they’ve been, says a banker in Beijing at CSC Financial Co. For many, travel to Hubei, where the virus started in the city of Wuhan, is off limits, the banker said.
Meetings:
Say good-bye to those packed gatherings, with all the seats taken and many people standing. Barclays is limiting meetings to about half the room’s seating capacity. At a JPMorgan meeting room in Hong Kong, three of five seats were labeled “unavailable.” Video conferences remain the norm at most banks, even for those in the office. Face-to-face meetings with outside guests should be minimized, says Barclays, which plans to increase its Hong Kong staffing to 80% by the end of May, depending on the situation.
Desks:
Space is key. Staff are separated to ensure social-distancing. Workers at Citigroup can’t move around to different desks and are told to avoid venturing to other floors. In areas like trading desks where staff are bunched together, plastic partitions will likely be set up, according to a Citigroup spokesman.
Cleaning:
Hand sanitizer, wipes and face masks are ubiquitous. Citigroup is considering adding a robotic floor cleaner at its Kwun Tong office in Hong Kong as more staff return. In Beijing and Shanghai, office towers are still not using centralized air conditioning, concerned about air quality. It was 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit) in Shanghai Tuesday.
Food:
Long lunches with colleagues, if they ever happened, are discouraged now. Many kitchens are closed and staff are asked to eat alone or with no more than a few people. No outside catering for visitors, several banks say.
At HSBC, which employs 22,000 in Hong Kong excluding a local subsidiary, staff are being asked to vary their start and lunch times to reduce the number of people using building entrances while temperature screening is in place, according to a bank memo. Staff are encouraged to avoid moving to different bank locations.
Elevators:
Mind the numbers. As in many offices across the region, Bank of China in Beijing limits the number of people in elevators to five -- about half the capacity -- to ensure safe distancing.
Morgan Stanley has worked with its landlord at the International Commerce Centre in Hong Kong to adjust the algorithm of the six elevators used exclusively by the New York-based bank. That ensures fewer people in each lift and shorter ride times as it reduces the number of stops.
--With assistance from
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David Scanlan, Michael Patterson
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