When will Britain’s workers return to the office? - BBC Newsnight

As the British summer holiday draws to a close, next week students return to school in England but when will workers be back to the office? Subscribe to our channel here

Government efforts are being made on the return to school, but British office workers are showing a reluctance to get back to commuting life.

Only one third of white collar workers had gone back by August in the UK, compared to 70% in Germany and 80% in France.

But as the months tick by, some businesses are sounding the alarm - the head of the CBI Carolyn Fairbairn warned that commercial centres risk becoming 'ghost towns' if offices don't reopen soon.

Fifty of the biggest UK employers questioned by the BBC have said they have no plans to return all staff to the office full-time in the near future, with 24 firms said that they did not have any plans in place to return workers to the office.

So how can the Chancellor get people back to work?

Or should the government be more flexible as the economy changes?

Business Editor Helen Thomas reports. Mark Urban is joined by Susan Michie, Director of the Centre for Behaviour Change at UCL, John Caudwell, founder of mobile retailer Phones4U and Tony Wilson, Director of the Institute for Employment Studies.

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