Major uptown employers to start bringing workers back to offices over next few months

CHARLOTTE — It is almost time to head back to work in-person for many people. Some of uptown’s top companies are planning to bring workers back into the office in a few months.

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Quiet streets in uptown during the pandemic are slowly coming back to life where an estimated 120,000 people work.

Bank of America:

Bank of America’s CEO said on Bloomberg recently he expects the bank will operate fairly normal after Labor Day.

“The view is after Labor Day, we will be able to operate fairly normal and then start to make provisions for the other teammates through the fall,” CEO Brian Moynihan said.

Wells Fargo:

Wells Fargo is also targeting a Labor Day return for many employees.

“Our target for returning to a more normal operating model is September 2021, soon after the Labor Day holiday,” Wells Fargo spokesperson Josh Dunn said. “We will follow the science in our decision-making, paying close attention to COVID-19 case rates and vaccination rates, and we will return to a more normal model globally only when we believe it is safe to do so.”

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Truist:

Truist started a phased transition to flexible onsite work on June 1 and believes the vast majority of employees will return to the office by October.

Statement from Kyle Tarrance, Director of Media Relations for Truist:

“Throughout the pandemic, just over half of Truist teammates have worked remotely (primarily those not in frontline, essential roles serving our clients in branches, contact centers and certain offices). On June 1, we began a phased transition to flexible, onsite work and plan to have the vast majority of our teammates return to the office by Oct. 1 with a blend of office and remote work, depending on their roles. Our return to the office will follow CDC guidance as well as all state laws and local ordinances. Our decisions have been, and will continue to be, guided by health experts and data trends to help ensure we don’t put any teammates, clients or visitors at risk.

“Regarding business travel, we have resumed a limited amount of company travel, depending on the business need and the comfort level of our teammates. During domestic or international business trips, teammates follow all CDC recommendations based on their individual vaccination status.

“Also, note that locally, we have approximately 2,800 teammates in the Greater Charlotte area.”

Honeywell:

Honeywell is nearing completion of its new tower near Bank of America Stadium. A spokesperson said they plan to move people in by the end of August

“We plan on moving people into the new building at the end of August,” spokeswoman Nina Krause said. “Also, we have seen a gradual return of business travel among our employees and expect it to continue to increase as conditions improve.”

Duke Energy:

Honeywell’s neighbor Duke Energy said 90% of office employees in the Charlotte area are remote but the goal is to transition a majority of them back in phases starting in September to align with the school year.

Statement from Neil Nissan, spokesperson for Duke Energy:

“In the Charlotte-area, we have about 6,000 employees. About 90% of those office employees are currently working remotely. In June, we brought back a small group of office employees (less than 100) to a couple of our facilities in uptown. Our goal remains to transition a majority of our office workers back to the office in phases starting in September to coincide with the school year. We’re adopting a new workplace model that provides teammates with more flexibility and hybrid work options. A majority of office employees will have a hybrid schedule where they will split time between working in the office and working remotely. We’ve also resumed essential business travel already.”

As workers return, so will some of their pre-pandemic duties, such as business travel. Duke Energy, Truist and Honeywell have started to resume it.

In an interview with Channel 9, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said she thinks workers will return to the sky around Labor Day.

“I have spent a great deal of time in the past couple of weeks talking to business leaders and airline executives,” she said. “We really need to get folks traveling again safely. And we’re working hard to make that happen as quickly as is safely possible.”

The head of Center City Partners said weekends in uptown aren’t too bad right now. Tourists are returning to the Queen City. Weekdays are slow but he expects things to be better when business travel resumes.

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