Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Hybrid workingOfficesCivil ServiceLatest NewsIndustrial action / strikes

ONS staff balloted for strike over office return

by Ashleigh Webber 15 Mar 2024
by Ashleigh Webber 15 Mar 2024 The Office for National Statistics' headquarters in Newport, South Wales
Image: SJ-3009 / Shutterstock.com
The Office for National Statistics' headquarters in Newport, South Wales
Image: SJ-3009 / Shutterstock.com

Staff at the Office for National Statistics (ONS) are being balloted for strike action and action short of a strike over plans to require more office attendance.

Members of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS) at the ONS are being balloted over a requirement for employees to work in the office for at least 40% of the working week.

Until January there had been no requirement for staff to spend a specific amount of time in the office and the PCS claimed there had been regular reassurances that remote and hybrid working arrangements would remain.

Office return mandates

EY monitoring office entry data in hybrid working crackdown

Civil servants told to spend 60% of week in office

Three days in office is optimal hybrid working arrangement

However, in late 2023 they were told they would need to spend 20% of their week in the office from January, increasing to 40% in April.

The PCS claims that many members have built their lives around hybrid and remote working arrangements enacted during the Covid-19 pandemic and that no evidence-based business case has been made for disrupting these arrangements.

Although the planned 40% minimum attendance requirement is lower than the 60% soon to be required by many other civil service employers, the sudden change has caused anger among staff who say they now need to make changes to their childcare and other arrangements, it said.

PCS, which last week announced a separate ballot across the civil service over pay, pensions and job protections, has 1,200 members at ONS offices in Newport, Titchfield, London, Darlington, Manchester and Edinburgh.

The ONS strike ballot will close on 2 April.

Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance

Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday

OptOut
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

A spokesperson for the ONS said: “The ONS has had a hybrid working model for some years now, in line with the wider civil service. Face-to-face interaction supports collaboration and fosters learning and innovation, while some tasks can be done as effectively or even more effectively at home. We are applying this flexibly to help balance business and personal needs, and have offered all colleagues extensive support.”

Employee relations opportunities on Personnel Today


Browse more Employee Relations jobs

Ashleigh Webber

Ashleigh is a former editor of OHW+ and former HR and wellbeing editor at Personnel Today. Ashleigh's areas of interest include employee health and wellbeing, equality and inclusion and skills development. She has hosted many webinars for Personnel Today, on topics including employee retention, financial wellbeing and menopause support.

previous post
Skills shortfall a barrier to AI adoption in government
next post
Unions criticise reduction in secondary teacher training target

You may also like

Minister defends Employment Rights Bill at Acas conference

16 May 2025

Nurses threaten strikes if pay demands not met

12 May 2025

Resident doctors to ballot for strike action

2 May 2025

Ofgem workers ballot for strike action

2 May 2025

University of East Anglia set for nine days...

2 May 2025

Unite announces further Gatwick airport strikes

2 May 2025

Acas hosts talks to end Birmingham bin strike

1 May 2025

Scottish Water workers strike in dispute over pay

22 Apr 2025

Teachers could strike if pay award not improved

16 Apr 2025

Birmingham bin strike to continue as ‘totally inadequate’...

15 Apr 2025

  • 2025 Employee Communications Report PROMOTED | HR and leadership...Read more
  • The Majority of Employees Have Their Eyes on Their Next Move PROMOTED | A staggering 65%...Read more
  • Prioritising performance management: Strategies for success (webinar) WEBINAR | In today’s fast-paced...Read more
  • Self-Leadership: The Key to Successful Organisations PROMOTED | Eletive is helping businesses...Read more
  • Retaining Female Talent: Four Ways to Reduce Workplace Drop Out PROMOTED | International Women’s Day...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2025

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2025 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+