Networking or the naughty step | Are in-office mandates taking employees back to their school days?

Back to office mandates over the past year have been nothing short of controversial, in part because many workers have outwardly opposed returning to the office full-time.

Primarily however, these mandates have been controversial because of the - at times - Orwellian surveillance employers have imposed upon their staff in a bid to end flexible work models.

Some businesses have aimed to entice their staff with in-office perks and, in some cases, financial incentives. Whereas other companies have outright pushed their employees back to their desk – Amazon threatened to sack any workers who wouldn’t move closer to their office, even those who were employed over the pandemic.

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'Turnstile' tracking | EY's monitoring of staff office attendance 'not surprising for HR professionals', expert says

Heightened surveillance has been a way employers have aimed to tighten their control over their workforce and encourage staff back to the office. A striking 96% of UK bosses have said they use surveillance technology to spy on their staff.