I continue to believe that #returnToOffice is primarily based on these factors:

1. Executives (not managers—they don’t care) wanting more control over workers’ days. They want to imprison underlings in buildings so they have no choice but to attend to their commands. It strokes their ego and makes them look important. Bonus points if the executive works remotely most of the time.

2. Preserving commercial real estate values. Companies that have huge campuses and other investments in CRE are most eager to have people return to buildings. A famous fruit company would look like a fool for spending $5B on a space donut if it weren’t filled with people.

3. Municipalities are renegotiating tax breaks they offered based on employment targets. No foot traffic downtown = no tax incentives for companies.

4. It’s a hidden layoff. RTO is meant to be a hardship, so people quit. It doesn’t matter that the people who quit first are the most wealthy and in-demand workers. Numbers are numbers.

• #opinion
• #remoteWork
• #returnToOffice