After Working at Home, What If You Have to Return to the Office?

01In 2025, thousands of American workers are likely to face a new reality.

02After years of working from home, they might have to return to the office full-time.

03For many workers, it would be the first time since the coronavirus pandemic that such a requirement would take effect.

04Workers and experts recently shared advice with the Associated Press about how to deal with changes when an employer calls a person back to the office.

05Employers can reach a compromise with employees if the goal is to increase how much time workers spend together.

06Mark Ma is a professor of business administration at the University of Pittsburgh.

07Ma suggests an employee choice method, which gives teams the power to decide how many days they will work in the office as a group.

08If that is not possible, employees can ask to change their hours.

09Jason Lacroix is a systems engineer based in Atlanta.

10Lacroix leaves home at 5 o'clock in the morning and works in the office until 2 o'clock in the afternoon to reduce the time he spends in traffic.

11This schedule also permits him to be home when his children get off the bus after school.

12His employer requires 8 hours in the workplace but gives Lacroix a choice about work hours.

13Some people are coming up with methods that are not approved by high-level management.

14Coffee badging is a behavior that involves going to the office, passing a company ID through a card reader, having a coffee, and leaving to work from home.

15Hoping to hold on to valuable employees, some supervisors have tried what is being called the hushed hybrid method.

16This involves the supervisor taking their workers' ID badges and using them to record in and out readings.

17The goal is to make it appear that the workers have been in the office, Ma said.

18Medical conditions can make it especially difficult to work away from home for some workers.

19Kyle Ankeny is a public relations strategist based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

20He has cerebral palsy and needs a nurse to help him change a catheter three times a day.

21His health insurance will only send a nurse to one place.

22So, working in an office is not a choice for Ankeny.

23If that weren't an issue, I could find my way into the office, he said.

24Ankeny ran his own public relations company for years.

25He was seeking director-level jobs.

26But a recruiter told him he should consider different jobs because of his need to work remotely.

27Instead, he applied to director-level jobs that were advertised as on-site or hybrid.

28Ankeny then contacted the companies to explain his circumstances and asked if the hiring companies were open to him working from home.

29While I would never normally, especially in a career setting, lead with, I have cerebral palsy and I'm in a wheelchair, I'm finding that I'm almost having to make myself vulnerable in that way, just to see if the opportunity is even there for me, Ankeny said.

30Siobhan Terrell-Camper is a therapist and mental wellness expert.

31Terrell-Camper said getting a fully remote job can be competitive.

32There are going to be many people that don't have the luxury just to leave their current jobs if they are required to return to the office, said Terrell-Camper.

33The therapist added, Especially in a volatile market such as we're in right now.

34Attorney Holly Kirikot was recently working on-site five days a week at a hospital.

35It took her three hours a day to travel to work.

36Kirikot was looking for a job that permitted her to spend more time with her family.

37She received two job offers.

38One was fully remote.

39The other paid 50% more, but required a long commute.

40She recalled this statement, The only people who remember you worked late are your children.

41She chose the remote job.

42My primary driver is what's best for my family, Kirikot said.

43My advice is to be upfront and transparent about what you want, what you're looking for, and why.

44It's best to have an honest discussion with a manager about any personal needs, and to ask for forgiveness ahead of time, because your family is the most important thing, said Amy Dufresne of the Human Resource Certification Institute based in Alexandria, Virginia.

45Many companies have employee assistance programs.

46These programs can direct employees to resources that can help them care for parents or children, she said.

47When faced with the need to return to the office, look for the bright spots of the situation.

48The AP advises that friendships can develop as workers take coffee breaks together, or try new places for lunch.

49In-person discussions can produce ideas that would not surface at home.

50Employers can ease the change by organizing activities that create a feeling of friendship or camaraderie.

51For example, Dufresne suggested managers can put together a series of talks about the change and have groups share their success stories.

52I'm Anna Mateo.

53And I'm John Russell.