Why remote work is quietly thriving in the return-to-office era

"As of the second quarter of 2025, a majority of Fortune 100 employees were subject to a full-time office mandate - up from just 5% two years prior - according to Placer.ai, a location intelligence and foot traffic data firm. Over the same period, the average number of required in-office days a week at these companies rose from 2.6 to 3.9, according to real estate consulting firm JLL."

"However, datareflectinghow many US workers are actually in the office tells a different story, said Nick Bloom, an economics professor at Stanford University who studies remote work. Bloom said actual work-from-home rates have remained fairly stable in recent years. He referred to it as "work-from-home dark matter" - a nod to the invisible material that makes up much of the universe. Like dark matter, remote work appears to be widespread, Bloom said, but may often be procured through special exceptions or flying under the radar."

""We keep hearing endless stories of companies pushing employees to return, but we just don't see much of this in the survey, swipe-card or cellphone tracking data," he said."

Large companies have increasingly imposed return-to-office mandates, with several high-profile firms requiring full-time in-office attendance or stricter hybrid rules. By Q2 2025, a majority of Fortune 100 employees faced full-time office mandates and average required days rose from 2.6 to 3.9. Actual attendance and tracking data indicate work-from-home rates have remained relatively stable, however. Hidden or unofficial remote arrangements, described as "work-from-home dark matter," appear common through exemptions or quiet noncompliance. The gap between formal policies and observed behavior raises questions about policy compliance while signaling greater practical flexibility for many workers.

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