American Express employees that are able to work from home should continue to do so for the rest of the year, chief executive Steve Squeri said in a video message on LinkedIn as he spoke about a return-to-office plan.
"We still don't know exactly when we'll start coming back. We expect it will take several months in most locations. The key here is that returning to location will not happen all at once," he said in an almost five-minute long video.
Mr Squeri said the company would open buildings on a "location by location, floor by floor and colleague by colleague basis", with the work environment expected to be "completely different" from what it was before the outbreak.
"If you can work from home effectively, you should plan on doing this for the rest of the year," he said, adding that Amex's offices in the near term will mostly serve as an alternative workspace.
Amex employees that need to work from office will return in phases, starting with 10 per cent occupancy, and no likelihood of it reaching close to 50 per cent this year.
Mr Squeri said employees returning to offices would not be allowed to hold meetings in conference rooms. Rules would also bar visitors and access to cafeterias, in addition to other social distancing measures and temperature screening.
As the virus outbreak hit business volumes, Amex moved from a largely brick-and-mortar operation to having more than 60,000 employees equipped to work from home and two-thirds of its customer-care professionals working remotely by March end.
The credit card issuer has already said it would avoid job cuts in 2020 as it "rides out the storm" brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic.
What is Reform?
Reform is a right-wing, populist party led by Nigel Farage, a former MEP who won a seat in the House of Commons last year at his eighth attempt and a prominent figure in the campaign for the UK to leave the European Union.
It was founded in 2018 and originally called the Brexit Party.
Many of its members previously belonged to UKIP or the mainstream Conservatives.
After Brexit took place, the party focused on the reformation of British democracy.
Former Tory deputy chairman Lee Anderson became its first MP after defecting in March 2024.
The party gained support from Elon Musk, and had hoped the tech billionaire would make a £100m donation. However, Mr Musk changed his mind and called for Mr Farage to step down as leader in a row involving the US tycoon's support for far-right figurehead Tommy Robinson who is in prison for contempt of court.
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Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
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5. Zakat
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The Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index
The Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index
Mazen Abukhater, principal and actuary at global consultancy Mercer, Middle East, says the company’s Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index - which benchmarks 34 pension schemes across the globe to assess their adequacy, sustainability and integrity - included Saudi Arabia for the first time this year to offer a glimpse into the region.
The index highlighted fundamental issues for all 34 countries, such as a rapid ageing population and a low growth / low interest environment putting pressure on expected returns. It also highlighted the increasing popularity around the world of defined contribution schemes.
“Average life expectancy has been increasing by about three years every 10 years. Someone born in 1947 is expected to live until 85 whereas someone born in 2007 is expected to live to 103,” Mr Abukhater told the Mena Pensions Conference.
“Are our systems equipped to handle these kind of life expectancies in the future? If so many people retire at 60, they are going to be in retirement for 43 years – so we need to adapt our retirement age to our changing life expectancy.”
Saudi Arabia came in the middle of Mercer’s ranking with a score of 58.9. The report said the country's index could be raised by improving the minimum level of support for the poorest aged individuals and increasing the labour force participation rate at older ages as life expectancies rise.
Mr Abukhater said the challenges of an ageing population, increased life expectancy and some individuals relying solely on their government for financial support in their retirement years will put the system under strain.
“To relieve that pressure, governments need to consider whether it is time to switch to a defined contribution scheme so that individuals can supplement their own future with the help of government support,” he said.
