Quick-to-read HR news & insights
From recruiting and retention to company culture and the latest in HR tech, HR Brew delivers up-to-date industry news and tips to help HR pros stay nimble in today’s fast-changing business environment.
Stepping out of the office to grab coffee (and gossip) with colleagues is a time-honored work tradition—one that Chris Ellison, managing director of Mineral Resources, wants to eliminate at his Australian mining firm.
Where in the world? Ellison believes that when his workers aren’t in the office, they’re costing his company money. With that in mind, Mineral Resources opened new offices in 2022 with amenities meant to keep workers close to their desks, including a daycare, restaurant, and gym, Bloomberg reported.
“I want to hold them captive all day long,” Ellison said during a presentation about the company’s financial situation. “I don’t want them leaving the building…I don’t want them walking down the road for a cup of coffee. We kind of figured out a few years ago how much that costs.”
Ellison previously criticized competitors that allow employees to work remotely and believes such work arrangements are bad for business. He banned his company’s 5,600 employees from working remotely in 2023.
His sentiment is in stark contrast to Australia’s recent efforts encouraging work-life balance. In February, the country’s Senate enacted a right to disconnect law that allows workers to ignore non-urgent work communications outside business hours without fear of retaliation, HR Brew previously reported. And in 2022, the country guaranteed certain workers the right to flexible work arrangements. Some companies have even tested a four-day workweek.
Satellite view. While his words may have been gauche, Ellison’s strategy of ensuring employees have everything they need at work isn’t unheard of.
Companies have invested in on-site gyms for years, and now some are upping the ante with spa-like amenities, all to keep workers at the office, the New York Times reported. Walmart’s new Bentonville, AR headquarters, for example, aims to have everything employees could need, including daycare, coffee vendors, bike paths, a rec center, and multiple restaurants.
“The new facilities will help accelerate change, accommodate a more digitally native workforce, and encourage more collaboration and speed,” Walmart claims.