Sir Jim Ratcliffe, co-owner of Manchester United, is banning remote work for the club’s staff.
Manchester United has had a flexible work-from-home policy since Covid. However, Ratcliffe decided to end it during an all-staff meeting held in person and via video call last week.
Email traffic statistics were cited by Manchester United staff as the basis for a ban on working from home.
He informed the club’s 1,000 employees that email traffic dropped by 20% when one of his companies experimented with work-from-home Fridays. Consequently, he decided to ban remote work.
The billionaire told employees to seek “alternative employment” if they were not willing to come to the club’s premises.
Ratcliffe believes having all staff on site will allow greater productivity and strengthen unity and collaboration.
Staff are also under fire after Ratcliffe called out the untidiness of the club’s premises last week.
He told staff the state of the club’s IT department was a “disgrace,” and other areas of the training ground weren’t much better
Some staff members bemusedly received the news, thinking Ratcliffe’s explanation for changing their working practices shortsighted.
Additionally, the main issue is that there is not enough space in Manchester and the club’s London premises to accommodate all staff.
Other challenges to be addressed include dealing with employees who live far from Manchester and London. Plus, some staff are on flexible contracts and do not have to work from club offices under their terms.
Ratcliffe, the 103rd richest person on earth, bought a 27.7% stake in the soccer club in February.
His company, Ineos, took over the management of football operations. A working group has been set up to implement Ratcliffe’s policy.
