Tech CEOs have spent the last two years forcing workers back into the office—but now, research shows they've given up in the tug-of-war battle on working from home.
  • Tech CEOs have been trying to force workers back into the office for the past two years, often threatening layoffs.
  • However, a new study shows that tech bosses are now backing down from their demands.
  • Only 3% of tech companies now require workers to be in the office full-time, down from 8% last year.
  • The study, conducted by Flex Index, analyzed the flexible work policies of 2,670 tech companies employing over 11 million people.
  • The number of fully flexible tech firms has increased from 75% in 2023 to 79% this year.
  • The most popular policy among tech firms is now the “employee’s choice” model, where employees can choose when and where they work.
  • This model is now used by 56% of tech firms, up from 38% in 2023.
  • Only 18% of firms now dictate which days their workers need to work from the office.
  • Despite tech companies being well-positioned to work from home, many CEOs have flip-flopped on their remote work policies.
  • In 2020, companies like Meta, Twitter, and Shopify announced they would leverage remote work, but many have since backtracked on those promises.
  • A survey of US CEOs by KPMG found that only one-third expect a full return to the office in the next three years, down from 62% last year.
  • Resistance from workers has been cited as a reason for the change in CEO attitudes towards remote work.
  • Amazon is an example of how contentious the RTO battle can be, with around 30,000 employees signing a petition against the company’s in-office mandate.
  • Dropbox co-founder and CEO Drew Houston summed up the situation, saying that CEOs keep hitting the “go-back-to-2019” button, but it’s not working.