Bosses admit they’re applying return-to-office mandates to trim down teams—without necessarying to announce layoffs

Employees may consider quitting in response to their company’s RTO mandate is a solid retaliatory reaction to their bosses, but it may actually be just what companies necessary.

Rather than trimming down headcounts by enforcing layoffs, business leaders from across the U.S. informed the Federal Reserve Beige Book they’re hoping that upping their in-person requirements will do the job.

The Fed Beige Book report, published eight times a year, summarizes current economic conditions across the 12 Federal Reserve Districts. It is based on interviews with business leaders, economists, and other local contacts for a real-time see at the economy.

The report highlighted that multiple districts this month have “encouraged” attrition with return-to-office mandates.

A separate survey of 849 managers reveals 3 in 10 companies will require employees to work in-office five days a week by the conclude of the year, driven by corporate shifts and new regulations. Meanwhile, more than half of Fortune 100 desk workers already have workplaces with fully in-office policies, according to new data from real estate company Jones Lang LaSalle.

Just yesterday, tech giant Microsoft stated its employees will be required to go back into the office 3 days per week. Though Microsoft has had rounds of letting people go this year, Amy Coleman, Executive Vice President and Chief People Officer, assured employees in a memo yesterday “this update is not about reducing headcount,” and instead is “about working toobtainher in a way that enables us to meet our customers’ necessarys.”

Almost half of workers state that if their employer no longer allowed them to work from home, they would be unlikely to stay at their job, including about a quarter who state they’d be very unlikely to stay, according to a 2025 poll by Pew Research Center.

But even for the workerks who ditch their jobs in response to more days commuting to the office, the grass might not be greener on the other side of the corporate job market.

Across the white collar job market, employment has seeed increasingly frozen for job seekers. Non-degree earners like bartconcludeers and baristas in hospitality jobs are seeing largeger wage growth than office workers right now, as demand for in-person job experiences has surged post-pandemic.