The John Lewis Partnership, which owns John Lewis and Waitrose, has introduced a flexible working policy for all its head office staff.

The news comes after Asda announced last week that staff will be able to work from the “location best suited to their job.”

John Lewis said the decision was based on feedback from its staff; the majority of John Lewis employees said they are more productive at home but that they still wanted to come together in the office when working on big projects in a poll conducted last summer.

The retailer said 72 meeting rooms at its head offices in London and Bracknell now have audio and video capabilities installed, as part of plans to enrich the office working experience.

“If restrictions are lifted on July 19, we won’t tell our head office partners where to work,” said Andrew Murphy executive operations director at John Lewis Partnership. “The pandemic has forced us all to rethink the norm of five days in an office.”

“We will continue to support and enable our partners as they figure out how and where they work best for the type of work they do.”

He added: “I don’t believe anyone can make confident assertions about how this will play out in future years.”

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