 "Will 2025 be the year work from home ends?")
For many, remote work has been a boon.
Those who have to take care of young children or aged parents have no doubt found work from home (WFH) much more to their liking than commuting to the office every day.
But is 2025 the year work WFH ends?
It’s looking that way because several companies around the world are looking to crack down on the practice.
Let’s take a closer look
Companies cracking down
A number of companies including Wipro, Amazon and AT&T are cracking down on remote work.
As per Fortune, Amazon, for example, has ordered employees to return to the office five days per week.
In India, IT giant Wipro earlier this year tamped down on WHF for employees.
Mint in September reported that the Bengaluru based company ordered employees to work from the office at least three days a week.
The company warned they would lose a day’s leave if they did not meet this quota.
Human resources has also been ordered to not approve any requests to work from home.
LTIMindtree also did the same in September – saying it would take away 1.5 days of leave per month in case of employee violations.
The US government, a major employer in the United States, is also planning to do away with remote work .
As per Computerworld, this, ironically, in the backdrop of showing that remote work is actually raising employees’ productivity .
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics found that this to be the case across five dozen private sectors.
Non-labour costs like office space also declined with more and more businesses turning to remote work.
Workers also saved time and money from not commuting to the office every day.
The US Government Accountability Office (GAO) also discovered that WFH increased employee productivity and morale and helped companies hold on to and recruit new employees.
Data also shows remote work offers a slew of other benefits.
Scientific American magazine quoted data as showing that working remotely four times a week or more can bring down a person’s carbon footprint up to 54 per cent.
The Washington Post reported that going fully remote could cut the average worker’s carbon footprint by half.
Working from home two to four times per week could reduce a person’s emissions by nearly a third.
USA Today quoted data as showing that remote work can offer employees’ several benefits including better work-life balance, reduced stress or burnout, improved sleep, reduced depression or anxiety, getting more exercise, and increasing overall physical health.
So why are companies so insistent on ending remote work despite the numerous benefits?
According to Fortune, some contend that companies have spent millions of dollars on high-end offices – and thus want them to be used.
Others say companies simply want to lay off staff – and this is a way to get employees to quit.
Musk, writing an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal, gave the game away.
“Requiring federal employees to come to the office five days a week would result in a wave of voluntary terminations that we welcome,” Musk wrote.
As per Computeworld, more and more business leaders are signalling a permanent return to the office is on the cards.
The outlet quoted a KPMG 2024 CEO Outlook report, which spoke to over 1,300 CEOs across the world including 400 in the US as saying that 79 per cent of them supported in-person work.
That number was at 34 per cent earlier this year.
CEOs are also dangling carrots to get employees to return to the office.
Around 86 per cent said they would also reward those working in person with plum projects, raises and promotions.
Employees love WFH
Employees, regardless, continue to overwhelmingly favour WFH.
Forbes in June reported that 71 per cent of remote workers in the US say it helps keep a good work-life balance. A
Upwork estimates that around 32.6 million Americans – 22 per cent of the work force – will be working remotely by next year.
Fast Company quoted FlexJobs’ Work Insights Survey as showing that 95 per cent of workers want either hybrid or fully remote jobs.
A Gallup survey showed that six in 10 employees want hybrid work, while 1 in three favour completely remote work.
Under 10 per cent want to work from the office.
Forty per cent of workers say they will look for a new job if no longer given the option to work hybrid or completely remote.
Remote work is gaining acceptance in India too.
Forbes quoted a CXOToday survey as showing that between 60 and 90 million Indians – around 15 per cent of workers – will be working remotely in 2025.
That figure is currently at 12 per cent.
Employees are also no longer willing to kowtow to the company line.
Fortune quoted a study from the Harvard Business School and the University of Pennsylvania as saying that employees will likely leave their jobs if denied the opportunity to work from home.
Raj Choudhury, an associate professor at Harvard Business School, told the outlet, “My prediction is eventually every company and every company leader will have to accept [remote work].”
Choudhury quoted the example of Amazon.
He said that since the mandate, seven out of ten employees have admitted to looking for jobs elsewhere.
“This is a simple economic argument about talent. There are enough companies—including very large companies like Microsoft—that have realized Amazon’s loss is Microsoft’s gain.
“In the Seattle area if a large number of people are going to be looking for jobs out of Amazon, where will they go? Many of them will end up at Microsoft. There are enough smart CEOs out there who understand that rigidity has a cost.”
And as for those who insist on return to office?
Experts say they may suffer in the long run.
“You can try these gimmicks a couple of times but employees will see through this. It’ll be serious reputational damage if you continue this path of [not] being able to attract and retain talent,” Chowdhury told F_ortune._
So who will prevail in the battle between firms and workers?
Keep watching this space for more.
With inputs from agencies
 "Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?")
 "As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland")
 "Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar")
 "Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe")
 "Russian drones over Poland: Trump’s tepid reaction a wake-up call for Nato?")
 "As Russia pushes east, Ukraine faces mounting pressure to defend its heartland")
 "Why Mossad was not on board with Israel’s strike on Hamas in Qatar")
 "Turkey: Erdogan's police arrest opposition mayor Hasan Mutlu, dozens officials in corruption probe")
