Two Years Into the Pandemic, People Want Back in the Office--GenZ Doesn't

On March 13th, 2020 I was sitting in my cubicle doing my mundane data entry job when my boss turned on the kitchen TV to watch President Trump declare a National Emergency due to Covid-19. I can't remember all that was said, but my boss told us that we would be going to work from home for the next two weeks and be back in the office in no time. We were going to be shipped a computer monitor and be expected to be diligent in keeping on task while we were at home. Zoom was new to most of us, chatting online instead of in person was an adjustment, and life just seemed bizarre and unreal and this just a short, weird phase in life.

I haven't been back in the office since, which isn't as common as I thought it was. It's hard to find an exact number on it, but about 20-25% of people in the U.S. work from home full-time or at least part-time. I am fully remote and work in public relations, an industry that usually demands being in the office, face to face meetings and brainstorming sessions late into the evening. In full honesty, I think I am pretty lucky to be in the position I'm in right now and am grateful. My husband works from home probably 2-3 days a week, depending on the nature of his meetings and workload, my mom is a junior college professor and high school substitute teacher and has a varied schedule of at home and in person work, and everyone else I'm close with works exclusively in the office. It's often not a black and white working situation for people, and what I've noticed at least on social media platforms like LinkedIn and TikTok is that some people are dying to get back into the office full time and some would love to be comfortably holed up in their home office.

I've seen a lot of LinkedIn posts about whether or not those in the workforce want to go back in the office, and it usually sparks debates in the comments about productivity, whether masks should be worn in the office, if there should be proof of the vaccine to go back in, or if the 9-5 corporate life with an insufferable commute is really worth it. Those new to the workforce (like myself, I've only been out in the more corporate workforce for 3 years) find that the mundane act of having a 45 minute commute and getting up early to put on makeup and jeans that are too tight and putting on niceties with your coworkers isn't worth it. At my last job, I was getting paid $18 an hour and had to sometimes commute 30 minutes sometimes each way to the office 5 days a week--in southern California traffic. Being in the office meant having to participate in coworker functions and events such as parties or where I had to contribute up to $15 for a cake or a gift card for a coworker that I hardly knew.

When I go on Tik-Tok I see so many Millennial and Gen Z work-from-home videos about teaching your superior who gets paid twice as much as you how to open a PDF and how frustrating and comical it can be to have to "circle back" and navigate the ropes of corporate life. My age group complains about corporate America and how much time that lifestyle takes from you ( I saw a meme the other day that talked about how we've been taught that working from 8 to 5 every day, having 2 weeks a year to explore the world, and watching Netflix every night because you're so tired after work will make you so happy). I talked to several people who are at least 15 years older than me yearn to go back into the office. I don't blame them for that sentiment however what I think they want is to have that social aspect and to be physically present in meetings and other projects to feel important and heard. Most of them have had careers for 20 years in a traditional office. Some people might not understand that people my age know how successful relationships can be built through a screen.

Our generation isn't having kids early in life anymore, so there's more time to dedicate to ourselves, pets, and our jobs. I've heard from so many people that have kids that they need a break from being at home and would love to have a quiet place to escape to. What I love about working from home is the convenience of work being 20 feet away. I have more flexibility with my day and save money on gas. However, some days I don't even leave my apartment. These are the dark parts of working exclusively from home and it can be very isolating. Even though I've been working from home for almost two years, I still haven't quite figured out how to balance being at home most of the days and sometimes not even leaving even for a walk or even to get my mail. Gen Z are self-proclaimed loners and have social anxiety, and though having tough conversations is easier with a computer screen barrier, it can make us draw into ourselves even more.

I think the pandemic sparked something in people working at tiring or dead-end jobs. It sparked a need for change and for people to realize there might be something bigger and better out there. I'm just starting my career but I feel like I have a better hold on what I want what I will take and what I deserve. I'm from a generation that takes care of themselves (call us selfish I guess) and doesn't stay at the same job for more than 2 years. We want to work to live not live to work, and working remotely has given us that opportunity.