Nike ups its return to office policy from 3 days to 4

The footwear giant first announced its plans for a three days in office a week back in 2021, but delayed implementing it until the spring of 2022 due to COVID variants. Now, it wants more. “We’ve seen the power and energy that comes from working together in person, and we aim to create more of that,” a Nike spokesperson said in a statement to Footwear News. 

Over the past two years, CEOs have been fighting rounds of pandemic surges and employee pushback to bring workers back to the office. They’ve been somewhat successful, with hybrid work becoming the norm and office occupancy rates hovering around 50%, according to data from building security firm Kastle Systems. But leaders aren’t giving up on their dreams of a bustling office or a return on their real estate investment, as 90% of companies intend to return to the office by 2024 per a ResumeBuilder survey.

And it’s not just Nike bringing down the hammer to make it happen. Chipotle and Black Rock have also bumped up their in-office mandates from three days to four this year, while more companies are reneging on remote work policies for a hybrid option.

Online gaming platform Roblox is one of the latest to join the office train, announcing that remote workers will begin to work from their headquarters by next summer. Giving the employees the option to either come in three days a week or take a severance package, CEO David Baszucki noted in a statement that virtual workplaces are not as “engaging, collaborative, and productive as physical spaces.” 

Meanwhile, Amazon has had a three day in-office requirement since April. But the mandate hasn’t run smoothly, with a senior executive admitting it hasn’t “been perfect” (30,000 workers signed an anti-RTO…