Hybrid Work

Since 2020, an increasing number of companies and public-sector agencies have embraced remote work. A 2022 McKinsey study found that 58 percent of U.S. employees (about 92 million people) had the option to work remotely at least part of the time, with 35 percent working fully remote and 23 percent working remotely part-time or occasionally.

Despite efforts to bring employees back, U.S. office attendance has not returned to pre-pandemic levels, and may never. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found that though average weekly hours worked at home declined from 2023 to the first quarter of 2024, telework hours as a share of all U.S. hours worked increased, reflecting more people working some of their time at home.

Meanwhile, fully on-site roles continue to decline. One study found that new in-office job postings dropped from 83 percent to 68 percent in 2023, and in 2024, that number fell further to 61 percent, reinforcing that flexible work is here to stay. However, while some employers are allowing more remote options, and some developers are building housing to accommodate this, many major businesses, particularly tech and finance corporations, are mandating a return to the office for at least part, if not all, of the week. In 2025, around 32 percent of U.S. companies now require corporate employees to be in the office full-time. Planners should be aware of hybrid and return-to-work policies in their communities and the implications for traffic management and economic development.