London (AFP)
Deserted streets, idle vigils, closed sandwich shops: far from the usual frenzy, the business districts of the British capital remain abandoned by workers worried about the pandemic and in no hurry to return to the office.
Usually surveyed by busy executives, the City, the historic center of British finance, remains desperately empty at the beginning of August, barely animated by the few tourists who stroll around Saint Paul's Cathedral.
Same impression in Canary Wharf, a district in the east of London, known for its skyscrapers housing the headquarters of major banks and other audit firms.
However, since August 1, the government has again encouraged the English to resume public transport and return to their workplace. It is now up to companies to take their responsibility and for many of them, the choice has already been made.
"Many of our clients, especially in finance and insurance, will not be returning until next year," said Pablo Shah of the CEBR economic research center, calling London a "ghost town".
During the lockdown imposed to curb the novel coronavirus epidemic, companies have resorted to teleworking with success. Employees have become familiar with videoconferencing meetings and are happy to do without the long and arduous daily commutes to work.
According to London First, an association which defends the interests of the city of London, public transport and childcare remain the main obstacles to a return to the office which should however intensify in September.
Only 34% of executives in the UK, 31% for London, have returned to work, according to a study by US bank Morgan Stanley published this week.
The country, which has the highest number of deaths in Europe from the novel coronavirus, lags far behind other European countries, where a majority of white-collar workers are back in offices.
Several human resources professionals were even recently worried about tensions within companies.
Katie Jacobs, from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), writes in The Telegraph daily about a "fractured" work environment and even "resentment" towards those who stay at home.
- Change of tone -
Some are starting to worry about the situation. "Now that we have our meals, let's get back to work!" Exclaimed in one this week the Daily Mail, referring to the government taking over part of the bill in restaurants.
A certain return to normal in London's business centers is no longer expected until 2021.
Large companies like Natwest Bank have recommended that the majority of their employees continue to work remotely until next year. Google, whose construction of the monumental headquarters has resumed next to King's Cross station, is even encouraging teleworking until July 2021.
A change of tone is however noticeable in the image of James Staley, the boss of the Barclays bank.
Visibly saddened that "60,000 people are working on their kitchen tables", he now wants people to be back, even explaining that he has "a responsibility towards places like Canary Wharf, Manchester, Glasgow".
Audit giant PwC chairman of the board Kevin Ellis hopes half of his staff will be back by next month. But he tells the Sunday Times that "presenteeism is forever over," believing that three or four days in the office will be better.
For the government, returning to work is above all helping the economic machine to revive. "People need to have confidence to come back to work," Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Thursday.
The damage is already enormous for businesses. The fast food chain Prêt A Manger, very present in the City, has already announced the closure of many sites, with 1,000 jobs threatened.
The CEBR estimated the shortfall at 178 million pounds per month for the capital.
According to Mr. Shah, it is even the attractiveness of London, known to attract young talents from around the world, which is at stake.
"If businesses are afraid, if workers don't come back, if people don't see London as a place to live and attract new businesses, the economic effect could be multiplied," he warns.
© 2020 AFP