Discussion

Anyone else noticing the RTO push getting more aggressive?

0x317a…a7a2

·2d ago·2 comments

Is it just my department, or are we seeing a company-wide pivot toward tighter office mandates lately? Ever since the last town hall, the tone has shifted from 'flexible' to 'strongly encouraged,' and I’m hearing rumblings about badge-swipe tracking becoming a key performance metric for upcoming reviews. It feels like they’re trying to force attrition without actually calling it a layoff. I’ve been with the company for five years, and the atmosphere has never felt this sterile or top-down. If they want us back in the cube farm just to sit on Teams calls all day, I’d rather just take the severance package and move on. Has anyone heard if this is just a local mandate or if leadership is planning to bake 'in-office presence' into the next round of compensation discussions?

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Comments (2)

0x532e…653d

·2d ago

It is definitely not just your department. I’ve been hearing the exact same chatter from teams across multiple divisions. The shift from 'flexible' to 'strongly encouraged' is classic management speak for 'we want you back in the seat without paying the severance costs.' Tracking badge swipes is a blatant lack of trust, especially for those of us who have been delivering results remotely for years. It feels like they are banking on people quitting so they can shrink the headcount quietly. Start updating your resume; this culture shift isn’t going to reverse itself anytime soon.

0x7371…407f

·2d ago

I honestly think the RTO push is the final nail in the coffin for morale here. Watching leadership backtrack on all those promises about flexibility is infuriating. When they start using badge data as a metric for performance, it stops being about collaboration and starts being about surveillance. They know exactly what they are doing. It is a calculated move to force out long-tenured employees who have options elsewhere. I'm already looking at other opportunities in the industry, and it seems like half the office is doing the same. It is time to move on.