#wfh

As of 8/26/25, Exelixis began laying off more employees, across departments, but seeming to zero in on remote employees. Exact number not yet known.

Be honest, HBAs want to silence voices questioning the current policy because the status quo because it benefits them. They don’t want the firm to revisit its current policy of allowing HBA roles based solely on geographic location because it might mean a change that disrupts their ability to work with little to no accountability wherever and largely whenever they choose without incurring the costs of commuting. They don’t want ANY disruptions to their sweetheart deal and will shout down anyone that even tries to advocate for a change.

HBAs shouldn’t point the finger at the firm while selfishly praising and protecting both explicitly and implicitly a two-tiered, unfair system that unilaterally benefits only them. If HBAs actually cared about the negative impacts of RTO on hybrid associates they would push the firm for a policy that treats all associates fairly. Instead, to preserve their own interests in keeping the current policy in place they push narratives of “isolation” and raise fears of lack of career progression (as if there is any for hybrid workers) to the forefront so the firm focuses on those manufactured concerns instead of crafting an equitable solution for everyone.

To me and many others, HBAs’ silence, fake concerns, and hostility to change the real problem are as much to blame for the firm’s stance as the c-suite.

If they truly cared, HBAs would push for a policy that is equal for all workers even if that means hybrid are paid more to offset commuting costs or barring that embrace accountability metrics like the badge swiping and other surveillance hybrid associates have to endure. I’ve seen none of that.

Especially those who simply can’t commute. I’ve been hearing all kinds of rumors, but nothing that sounds completely credible.

https://www.fastcompany.com/91376683/fords-reimagining-offices-starting-with-a-historic-engineering-lab

This article should ask how much the employees love RTO! Papering over cracks. You can't polish a tu-d.

What's to keep employees from staying at home and boycotting RTO? My direct manager has worked from home the past 2 weeks with no explanation.

Were you told it’s optional go work from home tomorrow? What does that mean?

VBG specifically has been hosting VP/AVP level all hands calls where the leader will say “we expect you to be in full days. Talk to your manager if you need an exception”, yet Sam’s video and the VLC letter say “3 days with flexibility”, no mention of what flexibility’s definition is. Can this be enforced if it’s not in writing?

Rogers Communications announced a new return-to-office (RTO) policy that will ultimately require all corporate employees to be in the office five days a week. The policy was issued on July 28, 2025 and will be phased in: starting October 1, 2025, employees must work four days per week in the office, and from February 1, 2026, the requirement rises to five days per week. Rogers, which employs about 24,000 people, said the phased rollout is meant to give workers and families time to adjust.

The update comes just two months after layoffs in May 2025, when the company cut roughly 2 percent of its workforce (around 2,000 jobs). While not officially tied, many recent RTO mandates across industries have been announced near the time of workforce reductions.

Compared to Canadian peers, Rogers’ new policy is among the strictest. RBC, Scotiabank, BMO, and TD Bank will require four days per week in-office later in 2025, while many other employers still follow three-day or hybrid models. Only a few large companies, such as CIBC and Brookfield Corporation, currently enforce five-day office mandates.

Source:

• https://buildremote.co/return-to-office/rogers/

Here are some companies that go through RTO right now. Almost all of htem have RTO thereads here on layoffs.com:

Microsoft, Amazon, UnitedHealth Group, JPMorgan Chase, Thermo Fisher Scientific, Humana, Accenture, International Business Machines, Charles Schwab, CDW, Medtronic, PepsiCo, Best Buy, CVS Health, State Street, Target, American Electric Power, Dell, Emerson Electric, Cisco Systems, Intel, Abbott Laboratories, Anthem, American International Group (AIG), Bank of New York Mellon, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, U.S. Bancorp, Truist, Verizon Communications, Starbucks, Nike, Fiserv, Fidelity National Information Services (FIS), TransUnion, Illumina, AMN Healthcare Services, Cenovus Energy, SeaWorld Entertainment, Zoom Communications

they are useless. they WFH and put their status' as "busy" while they are at the hair salon and grabbing iced coffees, posting about it on social media. or they are in another country cause it's so convenient to travel around in europe with teams installed on your phone.

no wonder all managers hate analysts and interns. they inflate our HC and do nothing impactful.

Hey you guys, I received a call today that I will have to start working from the office again “soon” and I work in Risk. Has anyone else received such notice recently?

We all know this is the hot button issue right now. Management has created a downright demoralizing environment by their refusal to get with the times and allow more remote work. We’re now being told that (against HR policy) we need to be in 11 days a month no matter what. You were sick? Make up the day. On two weeks of vacation time? Make up the two weeks and add a day to the month. That means that even if you’ve gathered weeks of PTO and you want to go on a vacation and use 10 days of PTO you simply can’t because there are 20 working days in a month. I worked at another dinosaur bank just before coming here not long ago and even their RTO policy was less aggressive. I’m not sure why the obsession on being in office - are they just forcing attrition? Why continue to hire new talent if that’s the case as it is in my organization? Guess I need to dust off my resume again. This is getting ridiculous.

I was laid off in December without being given the option to move. My former boss, who also lives outside of a hub location, is still working! Are managers exempt from the location strategy?

I was just asked, well, told to come in to the office 3 days per week. This is ridiculous as I've been working remotely for years and years. Is anyone else dealing with this too?

These surveys are beyond RIDICULOUS…there is no REAL changes from them just more busy work!!! We as managers and Directors are not typically the issue but we have to fix it and create a goal..wtf?! The insanity in senior leadership is running wild. Employees want better raises/AIP, more PTO, TO WORK FROM HOME, to not need to use 6 platforms looking for pieces of information and for sh-t to just work in general. He-l I settled for not having too reach out to 20 people looking for simple answers. As line level manage and Directors we can tell our Staff VP’s til we are blue in face about raises and AIP needs but it doesn’t matter! That is if you have a Staff VP that will give you time to discuss anything!!!

Looking forward to see how everyone starts driving to office 4 days a week in traffic and complain about missing little Tommys dance classes. LBT will probably start badge tracking for hours spent as well. I am fully remote so I will continue to WFH

I have heard from multiple people that some groups are not having to go into the office four days a week in a month. TSG and some folks in TS are exempt. While this is great for them, what the actual F. This place just wants us gone. I won't say anything at work as I honestly think "good for them" but I'm pi---d for myself.

https://www.rcrwireless.com/20250814/business/att-ceo-memo

Kagan: Thoughts on AT&T CEO memo on loyalty between workers and company

Anyone read this B.S. Article from RCR wireless Jeff... He forgot to mention that AT&T pays it's workers peanuts compared to the Mag-7. Mag-7 may be asking their workers to RTO 3 to 5 days a week because they actually pay a reasonable salary and bonus to their employees compared to what AT&T pays. At AT&T, employees are literally sitting on the floor or on stairway steps in the office due to decrease in office space.
The author of this article needs a reality check and not comparing Apples to Apples but Apples to Garbage.

RTO- it’s a thing…… I hadn’t heard it until today’s Insurance call.

This nonsense of listening to leadership tell us why it’s “good for collaboration” - yet THEY live a time zone away…..? I’m all for it - if they move to Columbus and come to the office with us.

And - can someone please them how to say Gahanna?

If the RTO 3 Hunger games were not enough to pi-s off people lets introduce RTO 3.1 Hunger Games and remove about 1500 seats and close off Rotunda Center and see what happens on Monday Morning. GREAT MOVE FORD.

Unpopular opinion, I know but it is the truth. ElCrazio, Gumbo and the loser "executive" squad are looking for targets. Do not become one. News is that other goals do not matter and doing extraordinary work will not save one from termination if they do not meet the RTO goal.

Mark my word. The 5 day mandatory bs isn't working and Tell Dell clearly stated that. The building I report to has it's share of people in there but by 11-11:30am, the place empties out and is a ghost town lol.

A lot of teams in the building I report to, are global and/or country wide so, 99% of people even in the office are alone anyways so, what's the incentive or point in staying if NOBODY on your actual team is even there lol? How can you collaborate with those who live in other states, or countries, in person? Oh right, by TEAMS meetings. Meetings that can be done... at home!

I'd be willing to bet that between 75-90% of people "coffee badge" - meaning they go to the office, grab some coffee and/or food, maybe take a dump and then go straight back home.

Are any of you not coming in because it will disrupt your second job? I have Webex calls with my other job during the week that I can’t do in the office. Is there any advice for how to get around this? If I have to come in I am considering booking space away from others and hotspotting to my phone while I take the calls.

Heard last week that office was so packed people were sitting on filing cabinets to RTO

LL5 and higher are staying in office and engaged in office all day. However, LL6s are closest leadership level that influences GSR staff. LL6s prefer to stay home and do not like RTO, so they come to office for badge swipes, attend a selected meeting for visibility and then go home. To rationalize their desire to stay home, they coach staff to ensure 3 badge swipes per week for RTO; and communicate that it is OK to go home after badge swipes. LL6 people leaders do not even see need for in-person conversations with staff. Senior Leaders want RTO to improve "How to work" and collaborate for "Horizontal Interaction" ; but intent is getting distorted at LL6 level. LL6 level seem to be disconnected in overall big picture, and end up reacting to Manager assignments, when the issues go to Manager level. Instead of providing "Bridge" role hoizontally, they live in "silos" managing vertically within assigned chimney. Culture seem to reward heroes who put out "Fires" in the Chimney, which these heroes could have avoided. As an outcome, LL6 rank is filled with "Firefighters".

How embarrassing. Back in 2022-2024, we called out other companies requiring everyone back in the office. Especially cringeworthy - “AT&T follows Amazon in cracking down on remote work with 5 days in office mandate”. And now look at us.

Samsung has been making cuts left and right. RTO is just another way to push people out, either make them quit on their own or create an excuse to let them go. Either way, it’s a win for them. A cheap, quiet way to reduce the workforce.

It’s by design. More control, less communication, insane workloads, unrealistic expectations, and requirements few can actually meet. And it will escalate. Because RTO isn’t here to make Ford a leading company. It’s not here to retain talent, boost efficiency, or foster collaboration toward some grand vision. It’s here to make you quit, so they can get rid of you on the cheap.

Returning to office life just feels like a huge step backward. The noise, the constant interruptions, the long commute just to sit in a chair for eight hours under bad lighting trying not talk to anybody. I get more done at home in less time and without the headache.

https://share.google/dSOtmjb6ZVCG7XHaE

I got the second email about RTO. Although I have been to the office 14 days in July, the email says “you have not improved your on-site presence”. Then it threatens me that I will be subject to discipline up to termination.

It is really upsetting to get an email like that after I tried so hard to go to the office the whole month. The only week I was not there for three days a week was due to sickness. And my average per week in July is 2.8 days!

What kind of je-k company send emails like that to employees working hard getting extra things done and managing two hours’ commute every day?! What do they expect?!

Let's consolidate everything we know in this thread. Let's start with this Tue/Wed/Thur mandatory in the office update.

Can we have this thread just to vent about RTO?

Anyone get an Accommodation Approved yet?

Microsoft is preparing to tighten its return-to-office (RTO) policy, with a new mandate that could go into effect as early as January 2026 for employees at its Redmond, Washington headquarters. The potential shift would require most staff to be in the office at least three days per week, a departure from the more flexible arrangements introduced in 2020 that have, in practice, allowed widespread remote work.

The company has not finalized the policy yet, but an announcement could come as soon as September, according to sources familiar with the discussions. Implementation timelines may vary across different Microsoft offices.

This move would bring Microsoft in closer alignment with other major tech firms that have already adopted stricter RTO guidelines. Amazon, for example, now requires in-person attendance five days a week, and AT&T has issued similar mandates. Meta and Google, on the other hand, generally require three days in the office, a model Microsoft appears to be considering.

The renewed focus on office attendance coincides with increased performance expectations inside Microsoft. Leadership has signaled a clear shift in tone over the past year, emphasizing accountability and operational rigor. Thousands of employees were let go in recent months as part of a broader performance crackdown, and the company has introduced a more aggressive performance improvement plan designed to phase out low performers more quickly.

Top executives have echoed this message internally. CFO Amy Hood recently told staff that the upcoming fiscal year would require more “intensity,” echoing earlier remarks from CEO Satya Nadella calling for greater “dedication, drive, and hard work.” These statements suggest that Microsoft sees in-person collaboration as a lever to maintain or boost performance in a high-pressure environment.

Ironically, Microsoft has been one of the leading providers of tools that support hybrid and remote work. Its messaging in the past highlighted flexibility as a way to reduce costs and improve employee satisfaction. The fact that it is now considering a firmer stance reflects changing norms in the tech industry, where the pendulum is swinging back toward office-centric cultures.

For now, no decisions have been finalized. A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed that the company is reviewing its hybrid work guidelines but did not comment further.

In short, while the flexible work era is not entirely over, the direction is clear: Microsoft is recalibrating its expectations, and a more consistent office presence is likely part of that new normal.

https://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-considering-stricter-rto-policy-2025-8

Old office space on closed, new building open. If RTO is forced for all, will everyone fit in the new space?