27 Oct Another (sad) vindication
Image by StartupStockPhotos from Pixabay
I’ve reported for months and months that RTO was and is an inevitable conclusion, IMO. I don’t agree with it, but I don’t think it’s fair to put out hot air and hopium just to get likes and shares.
Key topics:
✔️ With more and more layoffs, how long can people hold out for a fully remote role? Let’s be real here.
✔️ You’re being told that remote work = bad and companies still “allowing” it are in financial trouble whereas companies that have demanded RTO = good and still thriving.
✔️The issue is not productivity and never has been, IMO. With that said, it certainly has not helped that people will go on social media and brag about goofing off. Doing that is like loading a cannon and pointing it at yourself.
✔️There are areas of childcare and eldercare deserts. Depending upon where you live, certain facilities that were open in 2019 may not even exist anymore. How would you handle that scenario?
-“What’s Your RTO Survival Plan?” published on February 2, 2023 https://www.buzzsprout.com/1125110/12125019
Oh, the treasure trove that is Fortune.com these days. Yesterday, they published an article titled, “Bosses admit they’d start with remote workers during a layoff. How to make sure it doesn’t happen to you.”
IMO, we’re moving from the dress rehearsals to the opening night of whatever this economic 💩 storm is about to be. Corporate America is emboldened and they know what’s coming down the road. Ya know, things like layoffs, hiring freezes, PIPs, and a demand that you RTO. I have warned you about this for months now. So many Americans live paycheck-to-paycheck and have personal debt. I find it hard to believe that in a recession, most people will be able to say, “Hell no, we won’t go” for very long. I’m not saying it’s right – I’m just telling you reality as I see it.
-“They. Want. You. Back.” published on October 6, 2022 https://www.buzzsprout.com/1125110/11443801
Back in 2022, plenty of people in HR and recruiting and so-called influencers and so-labeled remote work ____ (fill in the blank as you like: gurus, experts, advocates, unicorns, etc.) were still on their bullsh*t, weren’t they? Hyping The Great Resignation and acting like WFH was gonna last forever and ever. I was out here spitting truth at you.
WFH rates hit post-pandemic low
Remote work has extended its post-pandemic slide, new federal data reveals. Only 26% of U.S. households currently have a work-from-home member, according to a Census Bureau survey cited by Bloomberg. That’s down from a peak of 37% in early 2021. The numbers appear to reflect a larger return-to-office trend that has taken root among notable companies including Amazon, Meta and Goldman Sachs. Firms have cited in-person collaboration as the main driver behind the push, but analysts have also pointed to remote work’s negative impact on commercial real estate and urban businesses.
- Remote work rates have declined across the U.S. but vary greatly from state to state, the survey reveals. In Colorado, 38% of households still claim a work-from-home member. In Wyoming, that number is just 13%.
–https://www.linkedin.com/news/story/wfh-rates-hit-post-pandemic-low-5516937/
If you post a remote job right now, the flood gates open. I recently had the experience of seeking a junior level person and getting throttled by people with 10, 20, even 30 years of experience who were “desperate” for a WFH role. But here’s the paradox: people also need increasingly more money to cope with inflation. (Turns out that inflation wasn’t transitory, Lady Yellen.) So when push comes to shove, what happens? They RTO to get more money. This isn’t difficult to figure out. If someone was caught in a layoff, had been making $175K, and is now applying for junior level $60K roles, the day will come where they decide, “I can’t make ends meet on this.” And what next? They get back in a cube farm. I’m not telling you it’s right or that it’s fair. I’m simply sitting here like Mr. X in Oliver Stone’s JFK breaking it the hell down for you. The flood gates open because more people are waking up from their stupor and all the labor market hopium they smoked and realizing, “Oh sh*t. There aren’t as many remote roles to choose from anymore.”
In the comments section on LI, you’ll find plenty of people playing semantics and trying to twist the information into a pretzel as if to say, “Naw. This can’t be right. There are still plenty of people working from home.” 😒 Maybe. Perhaps. What I’m seeing in real time these days is that, the majority of people I speak to who are fully remote, were fully remote before C*v!d. In other words: they’re working remotely because they were already remote before the pandemic and C*v!d has nothing to do with how they work.
Do you have an RTO survival plan? Do you have a job loss survival plan? Go look at https://layoffs.fyi/ – it’s not blank. Layoffs and RIFs are still happening. I don’t think there’s a snowball’s chance in hell we have an unemployment rate under 4%. I. Don’t. Believe. It.
If you still believe it, first of all, why? And secondly, the person who has to live with the consequences of that belief is you.
No Comments