While I’ve covered a lot of labor news recently, I hadn’t looked at return-to-work stories in a bit… and I’m seeing more of them. I missed this in the beginning of February. Dell’s CEO, Michael Dell, announced a significant shift in company policy, declaring the end of hybrid work and mandating that employees return to the office full-time starting March 3rd for those living near an office. This decision marks a reversal from the company’s previously flexible stance, as Dell emphasized the efficiency of in-person collaboration over digital communication. He stated that a thirty-second conversation could replace lengthy email threads that can take hours or even days. While Dell commits to maintaining some flexibility for remote workers living far from an office, he noted that the company strives for increased in-person interactions to drive market leadership. A recent employee survey revealed a sharp decline in morale, with satisfaction scores dropping from sixty-three to forty-eight in just one year, indicating widespread dissatisfaction with the shift back to traditional office work.
The Office of Personnel Management announced that spouses of active-duty U.S. military members working for federal agencies will be exempt from the Trump administration’s return-to-office policy. The memo allows military spouses to maintain their remote-work arrangements, supporting their ability to manage family expenses. This guidance also applies to those married to U.S. Foreign Service members stationed abroad. Google employees have begun circulating an internal petition titled “job security,” which has garnered over 1,250 signatures. This petition comes in response to ongoing layoffs and cost-cutting measures anticipated for this year. Workers express concern about instability affecting their ability to perform high-quality work, as highlighted in the petition stating, “Ongoing rounds of layoffs make us feel insecure about our jobs.” The employees are calling for Google CEO Sundar Pichai to offer buyouts before any layoffs, guarantee severance for those affected, and refrain from using low performance reviews to justify dismissals.
And some data — In a recent trend report by Indeed, the demand for remote and hybrid work continues to be strong, with over 17 percent of job postings in Ireland mentioning these work arrangements. The report indicates that remote work is here to stay, particularly in high-demand sectors such as software development, where 41 percent of roles are remote or hybrid. Jobseeker interest in flexible work remains high, with around 2.6 percent of all job searches in Ireland containing keywords related to remote or hybrid positions.
Why do we care?
Note what Dell didn’t say – I was wrong before. His previous statements were “Remote work is here to stay”. Dell’s justification is revealing. He frames this as a productivity issue, citing the speed of in-person communication. However, he doesn’t provide hard data to back this claim—only a general argument about efficiency. Meanwhile, employee morale is dropping sharply, with satisfaction scores plummeting 15 points in just a year. That’s a huge hit to engagement; low morale is a well-documented Predictor of attrition. If Dell makes this move to boost productivity, he’s trading one problem for another.
The Office of Personnel Management’s exemption for military spouses exposes another truth: return-to-office mandates are about what benefits the employer, not the employee. The government is willing to make an exception when it’s in its best interest—keeping military spouses employed and reducing turnover costs. But for everyone else? Back to the office. It reinforces the idea that flexibility isn’t about what’s possible—it’s about who has the leverage to demand it. Not every company is doubling down on office work. The Indeed data from Ireland shows continued strong demand for remote and hybrid roles, particularly in tech. If remote work were truly an obstacle to productivity, we’d expect hiring to slow in those areas, but that’s not happening. Instead, high-demand fields like software development still prioritize flexibility.
So, the question becomes: Are companies like Dell reacting to real business needs or just following outdated managerial instincts? The companies that lean too hard into in-office mandates risk losing top talent to competitors who remain flexible. That’s the real cost of these decisions, and it’s one Dell might feel sooner rather than later.
