Sun, sea… and spreadsheets: Millions to ‘work from beach’ this summer as they take advantage of lax remote policies – but risk angering UK-based colleagues with missed deadlines and casual Zoom attire

Millions of Britons are planning to ‘work from the beach’ this summer as they take advantage of policies that allow them to do their jobs while out of the office.

It is thought that more than six million plan to use the flexibility to do their jobs while on holiday, with some using it as a chance to spend more time abroad than they would have otherwise.

However, people grasping the opportunity with both hands to travel abroad and do their job at the same time could find themselves in hot water with their colleagues who are still working in the office.

A study has found that one in five staff get frustrated when they find out some of their co-workers are logging on to virtual meetings from the beach or beside the pool.

Meanwhile nearly a quarter of staff have voiced their concerns that those who are abroad are not being as productive as workers who are still in the office. 

The research, which was commissioned by price comparison website MoneySuperMarket, also found that a quarter of office-based workers said their colleagues abroad missed deadlines because of time-zone differences. 

The rise of remote work policies skyrocketed during the Covid pandemic as lockdowns and self-isolation policies forced employers to allow people to do their jobs from home. 

Since then many firms have kept these in place for fear of staff deciding to leave if they are forced back into the office, and now a third of the UK workforce is now employed by companies that allow them to do their jobs from home.

The study work-from-anywhere policies made staff more likely to stay with their employer, while a third said they thought it increased productivity, in contrast to the quarter of staff who though it caused a hit to productivity.

The boss of one marketing company said that far from just working from home, she encourages her staff to work abroad for at least one month a year.

Natasha Hatherall Shawe, whose firm TishTash has offices in Dubai, Saudi Arabia and Britain, told The Times she valued giving her employees ‘freedom to work from anywhere’. 

She told the publication: ‘If you don’t trust them to be productive regardless of location, then you shouldn’t have hired them in the first place. 

‘Businesses also need to adapt to evolving work habits. I’ve found our Gen Z team members in particular value the flexibility to work abroad, prioritising work-life balance and the chance to travel.’

The study found that nearly a fifth of workers get frustrated when logging on to virtual meetings to find colleagues working from abroad. Pictured: An annoyed woman puting her hands up while looking at a laptop in an office

Debbie Crosbie – who was appointed CEO of Nationwide at the end of 2021 – dramatically axed the building society’s work from anywhere policy last year

Despite the apparent popularity of remote working, many employers have been reluctant to embrace it, with fears it could lead to poor communication and lack of teamwork.

A top figure at MONY Group, which owns MoneySuperMarket, said that despite these worries it also offered staff the ability to work from abroad if they wish.

Lisa Townsend, chief people officer, said: ‘We allow our team to work from a different location once or twice a year. 

‘We know some people use the time to experience new cultures or to visit loved ones, while it allows others to better balance work and home life.’ 

However, some firms have decided to push back against the apparent march towards remote working policies.

Last year Nationwide Building Society scrapped its work from anywhere policy and ordered staff back to the office two days a week.

Its new CEO Debbie Crosbiesaid she wanted staff to work 40 per cent of their full-time shifts from the office, a departure from the policy of her predecessor which was put in place due to Covid.

In a staff magazine before Christmas, the company said: ‘Requirement to work from Nationwide premises has always been a contractual obligation.

‘The Society will be monitoring data on access to offices to understand site utilisation and identify non-compliance with the minimum requirement.

‘However, the society has given us an assurance that such data will only be used to inform discussions, and not as an absolute measure of compliance.’