Hello, Quartz at Work readers! Are you currently reading this article from your office? Well, according to data, it’s more likely that you are today compared to a week ago. Employers are making a strong push to bring teams back into the office as summer comes to an end. In the US, Labor Day has become a popular holiday for companies to implement their return-to-office (RTO) mandates. Recent research from real estate firm Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) suggests that one million American employees will be subject to these new mandates starting this month.
Although the choice of Labor Day may seem arbitrary, organizations might have calculated this timing strategically. Sue Cantrell, Vice President of Products and Workforce Strategies at Deloitte Consulting, explains that it aligns with the return of students to public schools and the end of vacations and Summer Fridays. This provides caregivers with more availability to commute back to the office.
Some leaders are taking a firm stance on RTO. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy recently informed employees that those who refuse to comply with the company’s RTO orders may not find it feasible to continue working for the company. However, workers are looking for data that justifies the necessity of returning to the office, even with flexible policies. The evidence supporting the benefits of in-person work remains mixed.
In-office face time has been associated with career advancement and better feedback due to proximity bias, which is our natural tendency to favor those closer to us. Rather than mandating a return to commuting, efforts could be better focused on training managers to eliminate biases. However, the impact on productivity is not clear-cut. While some new research suggests that fully remote work reduces productivity by up to 20%, critics argue that the data is based on specific metrics that may not accurately represent overall workplace performance. This lack of clarity may reinforce the perception that company policies are driven by real estate investments or control rather than employee well-being.
Despite the absence of clear answers, some companies are implementing alternative approaches that give employees a voice in their return to the office. For example, Deloitte Consulting invited employees to participate in all-staff debate sessions to shape their RTO plans. Smucker allows employees to focus their in-office time in concentrated blocks rather than specifying certain days of the week. They provide 22 “core” weeks each year where employees work in-person, allowing them to live away from the company’s main campus. ZipRecruiter organizes Collaboration Weeks, where teams gather for dedicated face-to-face work at a central office.
GOODBYE TO THE GREAT RESIGNATION
The US economy added 187,000 jobs in August, indicating that the red-hot labor market is cooling down. In fact, August’s employment numbers are starting to resemble pre-pandemic statistics. The percentage of Americans who have a job or are actively looking for one reached a high not seen since February 2020, and fewer employees are resigning. This has led some to question whether the Great Resignation is officially over.
However, Quartz’s Nate DiCamillo argues that the Great Resignation actually ended in the spring when the national quits rate returned to pre-pandemic levels. The reports from this summer indicate that the American job market and the economy as a whole are gradually returning to pre-covid norms. The remaining question is whether American workers will retain some of the leverage that allowed them to resign in the first place.
YOUR WEEKLY WORK HACK
While many companies conduct exit interviews, great managers conduct “stay” interviews. Instead of waiting until employees leave to gather feedback, these interviews provide an opportunity to understand how employees feel about their roles and proactively address any concerns. Quartz has compiled a list of questions that managers can use to conduct these stay interviews and retain great employees.
QUARTZ AT WORK’S TOP STORIES
– Creating a learning culture: Five steps to make your talent thrive.
– Structuring goals: Achieve your new objective by treating it like a syllabus.
– Job interview fit: Four essential questions to ask during an interview.
– The vanishing culture officer: The decline of the chief culture officer role in companies.
– Grandparent leave: Companies are introducing new family leave policies for grandparents.
YOU GOT THE MEMO
If you have any questions, comments, or even your own resignations to share, please reach out to us at [email protected]. This edition of The Memo was written by Gabriela Riccardi.
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