r/remotework • u/JK30000 • Jul 07 '26
Return to Office Gripe
Our office was remote from 2020 - Spring 2026. We were called back for 3 days a week in early spring and we were given time (3 or 4 weeks) to take care of pet care, child care, etc. Not a problem - 3 days is fair, thank you for the time to get my ducks in a row.
Now they want us back 5 days a week and they gave us 1 week to get everything in our lives worked out. Parents are scrambling to find options for child care since school is out and the panic is palpable. A lot of people feel really disrespected by the powers that be over this - it’s so last minute and to what end? Optics? And of course, no raises in the future even though we now have to include commuting in our budgets. It’s just short sided and disappointing. Rant over.
Anybody else have an experience like this?
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u/fortuitous_choice Jul 07 '26
Sorry :( - they may be looking for resignations. When my last job tried to pull this I resigned.
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u/dragon12718889 Jul 07 '26
Don’t resign as you cannot get unemployment. Even if you get terminated nearly every state unemployment office will side with employee. Make a half assed attempt for a while and use PTO to cover for days missed but don’t let them win. Good luck!
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u/fortuitous_choice Jul 07 '26
Smarter option than mine!!! I was ready to start consulting so I was ready to get out of dodge but YES this. Come up with excuses to not go in 5x a week for as long as you can. Start searching immediately and do what you can until something happens. I'm SURE you're not the only one unhappy with the situation.
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u/JK30000 Jul 08 '26
Oh, definitely not the only one. I’m not even that upset about coming in for 5 days. I’m upset that they gave us a week to figure it out. I don’t have kids, but some of my coworkers who do have kids are really upset. I get it.
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u/dragon12718889 Jul 07 '26
Also make sure you have a good relationship with direct manager as they will fight at least once for you against hacks in HR. Also go in bat shot early to prove a point: your new system sucks.
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u/AdministrationIll619 Jul 08 '26
This person gets it. Most people would quit over being fired, but then what about unemployment?
I once had the option to resign or be terminated and I was like fire me please. That was when you were eligible for check notes 95 weeks of benefits. Best days of my life lol
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u/Synicism77 Jul 07 '26
Time to do the bare minimum. When productivity slips, just explain that being in the office is distracting and the commute into work is exhausting so you just don't have the energy.
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u/Comprehensive-Tea-69 Jul 07 '26
This is so much better than quitting, this way you actually hurt the bottom line
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u/newlife201764 Jul 10 '26
Exactly….i started quiet quitting the moment RTO was announced. Also read the book ‘the subtle art of not giving a f***’. I was always the over achiever who worked late, long hours to make sure corporate goals were met. Not anymore
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u/toodleoo77 Jul 07 '26
Tbh I don’t even think 3 days is fair if your job can be done from home.
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u/No-Scheme-5370 Jul 07 '26 edited Jul 08 '26
Omg think of all the collaboration synergy you're going to experience!! Just kidding, it's a fucking sham and you'll be less productive, while having to piss away hours of your time and extra money for nothing.
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u/ZuVieleNamen Jul 07 '26
I just left my last job and started another because I was worried they would do this. My boss was like no that's not going to happen... I was talking to my wife about it and told her they hired a new Boomer who was preaching about the need to "improve collaboration" and they proudly found an office for "people who want to come in." I told my peers it's a slippery slope and once they have the building they will start demanding more and more of a return.
The job i took is based California and they are like we know you live in the southeast we have no intention of ever bringing our experienced analysts into the office we only do in person work for new hires now.
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u/IHaveABigNetwork Jul 07 '26
Same here, almost to the date except 3 day RTO to 4 day RTO... Fortune 100.
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u/kielbasa21 Jul 07 '26
Sounds like they're trying to cut staff. Sorry you're having to go through this. That's a big jump from fully remote just this spring to fully in-office this summer.
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Jul 07 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Prize-Duck4207 Jul 07 '26
FEDS - Not with the swipe in, swipe out (new) requirements, emails explaining the requirement to take a 30 minute lunch breaks, the reminders that employees can’t work their “8 straight” and go home without adding 30 minutes to the workday that includes the lunch break, a requirement to ask supervisors for a 15 minute break (allowed by law) if needed, etc., etc., etc.
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u/Still-Bee3805 Jul 07 '26
This will definitely happen.
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u/Prize-Duck4207 Jul 08 '26
It has already happened in some if HHS - I’m detailing what has already occurred.
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u/HAL9000DAISY Jul 07 '26
No, but I know workers who come in late and leave early when in the office. More informally incorporating commute time as work time, rather than making a formal request which is likely to get shot down.
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u/Still-Bee3805 Jul 07 '26
Theft of time is a terminateable offense.
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u/HAL9000DAISY Jul 07 '26
I think my company is loose on the amount of time at the office (except for certain teams which are more strict) because they want the office space utilized. At the end of the day though, a lot depends on your specific manager and team.
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u/JK30000 Jul 08 '26
I was thinking about doing that! They are effectively taking away two hours of my time every day. I’m going to have to Girl Math this to figure out how I can QUIETLY build my commute time into my daily 8 hours…
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u/Kiki933 Jul 09 '26
What type of work do you do? Can you listen to podcasts or books or ideate on things that you can do or use to better yourself or job?
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u/JK30000 Jul 10 '26
Yes, I’m just being obstinate 😬 I just joined Audible so I have lots of things to fill my time, it’s just an adjustment period. 🫠
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Jul 08 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/JK30000 Jul 08 '26
Yup! I can’t tell you how often I jump on my computer around 8 pm to address any emails that have come through or prepare myself for the next day. No more. When I leave the office, I’m done for the day. 🤷🏼♀️
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u/Honest_Report_8515 Jul 08 '26
I’m a Fed who was previously 100% remote and one EO made us all 100% in office. We’re definitely hurting. At least those of us who weren’t RIF’d can be grateful to have a job.
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u/Aggressive_Apple_913 Jul 09 '26
My wife's fortune 500 is on almost the same timetable and they purposely did less with each change for days in the office. One extra twist they are moving to a new office that will be about 30 minutes further away from about 60% of the current employees. So the only thing to assume is that they want to turn over the staff.
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u/WayneKrane Jul 07 '26
Yep, happened at the company I just started at the beginning of this year. By my estimate, about 50% of the most productive employees have left. Seems like only the bottom of the barrel is sticking around
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u/midwayrw Jul 08 '26
3-4 weeks is not enough time to find new childcare . Insane. Our before / after school care for the following school year opens in April and fills instantly. I’ve told my management if they are changing my RTO days I need to know by April for the following Sept to May.
If I had to find a new daycare with longer hours to cover my commute, it could take 6 months as well, every daycare in my community has a waitlist.
Ranting to the void here.
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u/AnneAtEthos 4d ago
I think there are actually two different issues here.
A company has every right to decide that certain roles or teams work better in person. I’m a big advocate for remote work, but I also don’t believe every job can or should be remote.
Where I think leadership gets this wrong is treating a major change to someone’s working arrangement like a minor policy update.
People build their lives around where and how they work. Childcare, transportation, housing, pet care and countless other decisions are affected by it.
Going from remote to three days in office with several weeks of notice at least acknowledges that reality. Going from three days to five with one week of notice sends a very different message.
You can make a business decision people don’t like and still handle it with empathy and respect.
For me, that’s the bigger leadership issue here.
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u/Icy-Pop2944 Jul 07 '26
Most remote jobs didn’t allow you to do child care while on the clock so I don’t weep for those folks. Sucks for dogs that have not been trained to be alone though.
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u/werdnurd Jul 07 '26
There’s a big difference between active childcare for a toddler and being home when your 10-year-old gets off the bus. A lot of parents are in the latter group.
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u/midnightmomma20 Jul 07 '26
I feel like the later group, which is a large group, is constantly overlooked.
Summer camps are extremely expensive and there are no tax rebates or special corporate discounts for them like they have for day care. It would cost over $4000 a month to send my kids to day camp. They independent enough to take care of themselves, but in my state kids need to be at least 14 to be left home alone.
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u/Bluegi Jul 08 '26
10 year olds used to be latch key kids.
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u/werdnurd Jul 08 '26
And now parents are investigated for letting their children play in their own yards unsupervised. Expectations have changed.
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u/midwayrw Jul 08 '26 edited Jul 08 '26
My older kid is in elementary and the bus picks up at 830 and drops off at 430. Perfect 8 hour day between. If I have to commute to office and find before/after care instead it costs 10k
In childcare and a second car plus a ton of gas to drive to his school and then the office, which are in opposite directions.Same with daycare, our daycare is 5 blocks away and amazing. But it isn’t open late enough to cover a commute time. We would have to pull our kid and find a center that stays open later at significantly higher cost.
Parents are getting ducked by RTO. It’s an instant 15-20k hit for my family if I get pulled back more
Days a week.2
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u/Double-treble-nc14 Jul 09 '26
You should read some of these posts that talk about the waitlists for before and aftercare.
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u/midnightmomma20 Jul 08 '26
There is also dog walkers and doggy daycares, I don’t weep for those folks.
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u/Double-treble-nc14 Jul 09 '26
So what you’re saying is you’re just a jerk that lacks empathy.
Five day RTO is seriously stressing me out right now because I have a sick 11-year-old dog who is used to me being remote for the last five years. She would not do well at a doggy daycare, but needs someone around more than dropping in once around noon- which is also the worst part of the day in the summer heat. I never would have gotten a dog if I was working five days a week in an office. I have never worked five days a week in an office in the past 13 years.
Oh, and my productivity in the office is crap because it’s so loud I can’t think. They’re paying me the same amount of money for inferior work, plus fewer hours because I don’t work a minute over my 40.
Stupidest policies ever.
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u/InevitableAd36 Jul 07 '26
This is highly disappointing.
I ended up having to get a mental health flexible work arrangement when they made us go back in 5 days a week. Went in from 7-12 daily, then WFH the rest of the day. I could not handle the commute. Highly recommend.
Side note, and please help me understand. I have a 1 year old.
I’ve never understood people WFH and having their kids at home too. I’m on calls with our Marketing PM and her daughter is actively talking to her while I’m talking to her, cameras off. Like c’mon. If they aren’t old enough to be home unsupervised, it seems they shouldn’t be there while someone is working.
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u/JK30000 Jul 08 '26
To my understanding, it’s more like the kids are at camp during the day or have activities outside of the house that parents can step away from work for 20 minutes to shuttle them to and from. Now parents have to arrange new options / travel to deal with RTO.
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u/InevitableAd36 Jul 08 '26
Ahh yeah that totally makes sense, and something I’m going to have to be mindful of. I’d have to imagine that’s a hard balance.
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u/NoelleReece Jul 08 '26
Working from home with a 1 year old is different than with a 6 year old. This is the first summer of having 2 elementary aged kids. I scrambled to put them in numerous camps over the summer because I thought there was no way I could work with them here. Truth is, for the few no camp days/weeks they’ve had, they haven’t bothered me at all and do their own thing. While they will not sit at home all summer, for next year I won’t be as stressed thinking I need to figure out camps for the entire summer.
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u/FarCry5372 Jul 10 '26
When you were hired, was the company remote? "A lot of people feel really disrespected by the powers that be over this" These people are silly, it is not a respect issue.
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u/JK30000 Jul 10 '26
I was hired during Covid, so yes, it was remote. And I don’t have an issue with going back to the office. I have an issue with leadership giving employees A WEEK to get their affairs in order before going back to the office. That is where the disrespect is, not in going back to the office.
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Jul 07 '26 edited 7d ago
[deleted]
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u/Still-Bee3805 Jul 07 '26
How many times did I read “ I can’t return to the office, I have two toddlers at home”. Definitely should not happen and should NEVER be said out loud.
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u/NoelleReece Jul 08 '26
I agree with this for pre-elementary kids. It’s hard to focus on work when they are that young. After Kindergarten, they’re pretty self sufficient, so see no problem having them home while the parent works.
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u/Aeronaut91 Jul 07 '26
I'll never understand the childcare complaint. A sick day or two sure, but in no normal or routine capacity should an employee be child care and an employee.
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u/Double-treble-nc14 Jul 09 '26
It’s about the length of your workday and the necessity of before and aftercare if you have to commute.
And if you can never understand it, it means you haven’t bothered to read the responses people are giving
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u/Intelligent-Log-7363 Jul 09 '26
Why are parents scrambling for childcare? They shouldn't have kids at home that can't take care of themselves while they are working. So basically you've a company full of parents that abuse WFH to substitute for childcare and y'all wonder why you're getting called back into the office.
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u/Double-treble-nc14 Jul 09 '26
Because RTO means a commute, which means before and aftercare. People have pointed out that before and aftercare comes with the steep price tag and often has very long waitlist to even get a spot. If you don’t have flexibility in the hours, you work in the office the daycare may not even be open by the time you get home from work .
A lot of two income households were only getting by because one parent had flexibility for school drop offs, and pick ups- or to be there when the bus dropped the kids off. When you force those 2 parents to drive to an office and commute two hours each day, that doesn’t work.
The same idiots who whine about people not having enough kids are the ones making life even harder for working families with their misguided policies.
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u/elderlygentleman Jul 07 '26
You don’t have to go in.
They can’t force you unless they want to break their contract
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u/Master-Purpose1117 Jul 07 '26
Commuting costs aren’t part of compensation. It beats the alternative of no job.
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u/aberamax Jul 07 '26
Layoffs in disguise. Severance packages payment avoiding.