Return-to-office orders spark mass exodus of talent
NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA — The corporate world is experiencing a significant talent drain as companies implement return-to-office (RTO) mandates.
Researchers from U.S. and Chinese universities analyzed job vacancy data from 54 S&P 500 firms and the LinkedIn histories of 3 million tech and finance professionals. It revealed a 14% increase in staff turnover following RTO policies.
This phenomenon particularly affects women, senior employees, and highly skilled workers who are most likely to seek new opportunities when faced with mandatory office attendance.
“Further, it takes [a] significantly longer time for these firms to fill their job vacancies after the mandates,” the researchers said.
“These results are consistent with firms losing their best talent and female employees, and facing greater difficulties with talent attraction, after RTO mandates.”
The hidden agenda
Another survey of 1,504 American executives conducted by BambooHR found that 25% of high-level executives used the RTO policy to force employees to quit their jobs voluntarily — a method to reduce workforce size while avoiding severance payments.
This controversial approach has emerged as companies attempt to reshape their workforce without direct confrontation.
In fact, Amazon’s RTO policy is seen by future of work expert Nicholas Bloom as a layoff strategy, which Amazon CEO Andy Jessy denied, emphasizing that the mandate was “not a cost play” and that it was “very much about the company’s culture and strengthening their culture.”
Corporate resistance and innovation
The impact on talent retention has surprised even seasoned researchers. Mark Ma, associate professor at the University of Pittsburgh, noted that even top management team members are choosing to leave, indicating internal disagreement over these policies.
This was exemplified by the departure of Cheryl Ainoa, Sam’s Club’s former chief technology officer, following Walmart’s RTO mandate.
Flexible policies give firms a competitive edge
Some employers, like Medibank, are embracing flexibility to retain top talent. Medibank’s group lead of people, Kylie Bishop, reported lower turnover and increased interest from candidates as a result of their non-mandatory office attendance policy. “Our turnover is the lowest since 2019,” she said.
The findings align with a May study by Swinburne University, which showed only 17.5% of Australian knowledge workers attend the office full-time, while most prefer hybrid arrangements. The Finance Sector Union echoed these insights, stating that many members of the banking and insurance industries face challenges with RTO mandates.
