Lord Alan Sugar has become the latest business veteran to criticise remote working and claimed that many young people ‘just want to sit at home’
Lord Alan Sugar has delivered a scathing take on the remote working trend, declaring that many young workers seem keen to “just want to sit at home” rather than return to the office.
In a BBC interview, the 77-year-old tycoon urged a return to traditional work settings, insisting: “They’ve got to get their bums back into the office.” Lord Sugar owns an extensive portfolio of central London office spaces under his Amsprop brand.
The surge in hybrid working have made leasing office properties more challenging and potentially less profitable. Firm in his convictions, Lord Sugar affirmed: “I’m a great advocate of getting them back to work, because the only way an apprentice is going to learn is from his colleagues.”
He emphasized the value of in-person mentorship, sharing: “It’s small things, like interaction with your more mature colleagues, that will tell you how to do this, how to do that.”
He decried the absence of hands-on learning opportunities due to what he calls the “work-from-home, zoom culture.” The businessman said he could make an exception for software writers who “get up at three o’clock in the morning with some kind of brainstorm” and for people who are disabled.
The sweeping changes in workplace norms were widely adopted during the Covid-19 pandemic, chiefly affecting office workers. Recent statistics indicate that 28% of the UK workforce engages in some form of hybrid work, dividing their time between the office and home.
Meanwhile, 44% make their way to the workplace every day, with a further 13% exclusively working remotely, based on data from an October survey by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Survey respondents indicated that they dedicate more time to rest, exercise and wellbeing when they have the opportunity to work from home. The Labour Government is altering legislation to grant workers the right to more flexible working arrangements.
The forthcoming Employment Rights Bill aims to make hybrid working a viable option for all, unless employers can demonstrate its impracticality. However, several major corporations, including Amazon and JP Morgan, have recently summoned their employees back to the office full-time.
Company leaders argue that in-person interaction is crucial for collaboration and believe that having staff in the office boosts productivity.
Lord Sugar echoes the sentiments of former Asda and Marks & Spencer boss Lord Stuart Rose in criticising remote working policies. Earlier in January, Lord Rose dismissed remote work as not being “proper work”.
He asserted: “We have regressed in this country in terms of working practices, productivity and in terms of the country’s wellbeing, I think, by 20 years in the last four.”
A biography of the ex-Asda chief on the supermarket’s website reveals his singular focus on work, stating he “appears to have no hobbies apart from work”.