Remote Workers Get Bad News

There’s bad news for some remote workers who have gotten comfortable with their work from home arrangements: The end might be near.
More than two-thirds of professional companies in America said their new job ads will no longer have the option of fully remote work this year, according to a survey of 700 companies by international recruitment consultancy Robert Walters.
Many companies are looking to get their staff back into the office, with just under half, or 44 percent, of hiring managers saying they would be “willing to wait” for the right applicant who is willing to commute to the office, the survey said.
“When it comes to employees, it’s all about the return on investment, and some companies are finding the return on their employees opting for remote work to not be as great as once thought,” Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor at the University of Tennessee at Martin, told Newsweek.
There’s also been a push by employers to increase the number of required office days for employees. Over the past year, 25 percent of U.S. companies said they increased this requirement, and a fifth of business leaders said they would not be against linking pay and promotions to workplace attendance.
LinkedIn’s job postings have reflected this new reality as well, as only 10 percent of job ads last December were for fully remote positions. That’s compared with 18 percent in 2022.
In a statement, Gerrit Bouckaert, the CEO of Robert Walters’ recruitment arm, said: “Looking back to the jobs market a few years ago and employers were desperate for talent as they tried to navigate the post-pandemic bounce back. Companies were forced to meet applicants’ demands—which included accommodating remote work.”
Bouckaert continued: “Fast forward to 2024, and the power dynamic has shifted back in favor of employers—who have introduced a range of changes including true flexibility in hours, hybrid working, office refurbs, enhanced digital infrastructure, as well as endless soft perks such as free lunches. With that, employers want some give and take—and it seems the ‘take’ is fully remote working.”
Already, top companies like Tesla and SpaceX have mandated 40 hours in the office weekly, and investment company BlackRock and Disney require a minimum of four days in the office.
Still, Bouckaert cautioned companies to not return too soon to a back-to-the-office requirement, citing recruiting reasons.
“What has been interesting to observe is the U-turn from big tech firms—such as Meta—who have typically led the way on workplace trends including being early adopters of remote working,” Bouckaert said.
“Given it is too early to tell whether this method will result in increased productivity, other organizations should be mindful of jumping on the ‘bandwagon’ of a full return-to-office, without considering the impact this will have to your ability to attract and retain employees,” he said.
In the past several years, many businesses offered remote jobs because they felt they had to, based on the demands of the job market and competition from similar roles at comparable companies, Beene said. But the tide is now turning.
“With an ever-increasing number of businesses saying a return to the office is required, we’re seeing fewer advertisements list it as a perk,” he said. “The question is will that limit the pool of talent to choose from and thus make their eventual selection not as good as what they could have received had they opened up the position remotely. Not all consequences to making potential hires return to the office are beneficial.”
Bouckaert said there’s no ‘one size fits all’ approach to bringing employees back to the office, and many managers could even resist decisions by company executives if they cut into their flexibility as working parents.
“Managers who are working parents get to reap the benefits of increased time with family whilst continuing to do their job effectively,” Bouckaert said. “Forcing them back into the office could be a significant disruption to their family life—both personally and financially if you consider child care.”
Bryan Driscoll, an HR consultant, said for many companies the real motivation in getting employees back in the office is control.
“Businesses want to feel like they have a tighter grip on their workforce, and, for some reason, they think bringing people back into the office will achieve that goal,” Driscoll told Newsweek. He added that the data tells a different story.
“Remote work has been proven to be effective time and time again, with studies showing increased productivity, improved employee satisfaction and broader access to talent,” he said.
Because of this, eliminating the remote work option will hurt companies in the long run,” Driscoll said.
“Employees desire the flexibility and work-life balance remote work offers, and they’re not willing to give that up. Businesses that refuse to adapt will lose out on top talent. They’ll see higher turnover, fewer qualified candidates and ultimately a more disgruntled and less loyal workforce,” he said.