While the "year of the mandate" is being implemented in offices, hybrid and remote work are not disappearing.

In recent months, Amazon, like other companies such as Citigroup, Walmart, and UPS, has been enforcing stricter office attendance policies for its workers.

The number of people working remotely and hybrid has increased, while the number of those working in an office full-time has decreased, according to a new report.

A survey of 2,000 knowledge workers from Owl Labs found that 27% of workers now work in a hybrid arrangement, an increase from 26% in 2023.

The percentage of people who work fully remotely has increased from 7% to 11%, as per the report.

The percentage of people who work from a physical office five days a week has decreased from 66% to 62% since last year.

According to Frank Weishaupt, CEO of Owl Labs, it's surprising to see remote and hybrid work increase slightly in what's shaping up to be "the year of the mandate."

Despite the preference of hybrid workers to be in-office three days a week (33%), the most common in-office schedules require three (41%) or four (32%) days a week.

Employee tracking is on the rise

Employees are increasingly being tracked by their companies through the use of employee tracking software to gather activity data.

According to WFH Research, data shows that workers claim their employers are stricter about enforcing attendance policies, including the possibility of termination, compared to 2022.

Strict attendance policies can become unenforceable, according to Jose Maria Barrero, co-founder of WFH Research and assistant professor at the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México Business School.

"Will managers really punish employees who work from home effectively and have no reason to come into the office other than policy, potentially pushing them to find a different job?"

Business leaders may adopt strict office policies to prevent layoffs, but I believe they would only take a hard line if things are not going well, he says.

According to Deepali Vyas, the global head of fintech, payments and crypto practice at Korn Ferry, there has been a "severe backlash" from employees regarding many attendance and tracking efforts. The reason for this resistance is that employees desire autonomy and the avoidance of feeling micromanaged.

Vyas believes that while tracking policies and tools can improve transparency and performance, they can also be intrusive and potentially damage trust, which is essential in any workplace.

A recent Glassdoor poll of 1,400 users found that 73% of professionals believe employee-tracking initiatives, such as monitoring badge swipes and computer activity, are not useful or necessary.

Despite data indicating that employees want flexibility, Weishaupt predicts that 2025 will see more RTO mandates, tracking software, and badging enforcement. He believes this will create a trust barrier between employers and employees.

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