The Bank of England fears worker power, but most are taking a real-terms pay cut

Royal Mail has said workers need to accept more unsociable hours in return for a pay rise. Photograph: Steve Parsons/PA

Goldman Sachs has bowed to demands for a less stressful workplace by offering a “flexible vacation” scheme that allows senior bankers to take a holiday whenever they feel like a break.

Generosity further down the investment bank’s global chain of command is more limited: it has told traders and admin staff – who are notorious for taking breaks lasting just a day – that they should disappear for at least one solid week out of the minimum of 15 days.