National Australia Bank (NAB) Group Executive for People and Culture Sarah White informed almost 39,000 staff members late last week the bank was heading towards an "office-based working model".

The changes would mean staff working in-office two days a week would have that increased to three days, while NAB’s people leaders will be required in-office four days a week. 

“We are taking an approach that ensures flexibility and supports all colleagues to respond to personal-life circumstances,” Ms White said. 

She further added staff could apply for flexible working arrangements under relevant legislation, but noted office attendance “supports collaboration, teamwork and problem-solving for customers”.

The Australian Financial Review reported the announcement was met with mixed reactions from the company as hundreds of staff sent shocked and angry emojis as well as a broken heart. Those optimistic about the news reacted with a thumbs up.

Finance Sector Union national president Wendy Streets criticised the working model and labelled it "completely unnecessary".

“People are not prepared to turn back the hands of time. They’ve found a new, fairer, more efficient way of working, they’re not going to be dragged back to the past," she said.

“We don’t believe there is any business case for staff to return to the office more.

“A lot of members are telling us they will walk and they will leave."

On the NAB website, the esteemed bank boasts work-life balance for its staff and an embrace of "hybrid-working", but in her email Ms White claimed the current "ways of working are evolving". 

The latest change by the company aims to boost the number of hours staff work in the office since the pandemic lockdowns. 

Remote working has come under the microscope in recent months with an increasing number of Australian companies such as Amazon, Dell, Luxury Escapes and the Reach Foundation, demanding staff back into the office five days a week 

A report by recruitment firm Robert Half says employers are influenced by other businesses when it comes to return-to-office mandates, creating a domino effect in the corporate world. 

"Queensland employers are most likely to be influenced by the trends among other businesses (87 per cent) followed closely by those in New South Wales and Western Australia (both 86 per cent)," the report wrote. 

"Significantly less inclined to follow suit are Victorian employers, and while the majority (75 per cent) are influenced by what others are mandating, one in four employers (25 per cent) report that the policies implemented at other businesses do not affect their decisions."