Could the Threat of Cutbacks Bring Workers Back to the Office?

Is the Great Resignation about to hit the brakes? Real estate tycoon Stephen Ross thinks so. 

“The employees will recognize as we go into a recession, or as things get a little tighter, that you have to do what it takes to keep your job and to earn a living,” Ross said in an interview with Bloomberg. 

The comments were related to many workers’ desires to continue working from home and their resistance to return to a centralized office full-time. 

With a recession looming, Ross believes the threat of cutbacks “will bring people back to the office”. 

Of course, it’s not unsurprising that an owner of commercial real estate would advocate a widespread return to the office. Still, Ross isn’t alone in his thinking. Elon Musk recently made his feelings about remote work known in a strongly worded email to Tesla employees, effectively stating that remote work would not be tolerated there.  

Other companies have adopted a similar stance, and yet in a tight labor market – and given the ability to cut costs on office space by allowing people to work from home – many employers are happy to allow remote and hybrid work to continue.