Study of 7,704 Workers Challenges a Major Argument for Return-to-Office Mandates

Airbus spent months pushing employees toward the office. Then workers pushed back. After protests and strikes (including industrial action involving roughly 40% of its Spanish workforce), the aerospace giant softened its plan this week and preserved an average of two remote days a week.

The clash captures an argument playing out across workplaces worldwide. Does bringing employees back into the building actually make them happier, more connected and more likely to stay? Or are companies imposing office attendance without much evidence that it helps?

The new research aims to answer a part of that question.

The new study takes that debate into a very different workplace: healthcare workers in the southwestern United States. Researchers followed 7,704 employees, from people working fully remotely to staff who spent every day onsite. The study offers one piece of evidence about remote work rather than a direct test of return-to-office policies across every industry. Still, the differences were striking.