Dive Brief:

• JPMorgan Chase is banning travel and in-person meetings for its employees who are unvaccinated or have not reported their vaccination status, according to an internal memo seen by Bloomberg on Monday.
• Unvaccinated JPMorgan staff must be tested for COVID-19 twice a week, and they will receive heftier payroll deductions to cover the cost of testing beginning next year, according to the memo.  
• New hires in certain positions, including client-facing roles, must be vaccinated before joining the company. However, JPMorgan does not require vaccinations outright for many of its employees. By comparison, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Citi have required employees to be vaccinated before they return to the office. Wells Fargo has not but has delayed its office-return timeline several times.  

Dive Insight:

JPMorgan's new, more stringent vaccination policies will help CEO Jamie Dimon maintain his hard line on remote work, despite the challenges posed by the highly infectious delta variant.

The bank is prohibiting business travel and face-to-face meetings for unvaccinated employees, along with those who have not yet disclosed their vaccination status. To meet with clients in person, JPMorgan employees must first show proof of vaccination.

"Clients are increasingly asking us to ensure meetings are restricted to vaccinated employees," the bank wrote in the memo, according to Bloomberg. "We agree with medical authorities that being vaccinated is the best way to protect yourself, loved ones, colleagues and communities from the virus."

JPMorgan launched an at-home rapid testing program for its employees, American Banker reported.

The new regulations do not apply to branch workers, according to Bloomberg.

JPMorgan opened its U.S. offices to employees in May, adherent to a 50% occupancy cap.

"We want people back to work, and my view is that sometime in September, October it will look just like it did before," Dimon said at that time.

A critic of long-term remote work, Dimon has said working exclusively from home "doesn't work for young people." 

"It doesn't work for those who want to hustle. It doesn't work for spontaneous idea generation. It doesn't work for culture," he said.

The delta variant has posed a significant headwind for Wall Street banks looking to shepherd employees back into their towers. Stricter policies like the changes JPMorgan instituted Monday may allow the bank to reduce COVID-19 cases without mandating vaccinations for all employees.