Apple risks employee revolt with new return to office policy

Apple has become the latest tech company to require its workers to return to the office.

As of September 05, the Cupertino-based firm will require its corporate workers visit the office on Tuesdays and Thursdays, as well as a third regular day that should be determined by workers and their supervisors.

Silicon Valley-based employees will be among the first to be affected, before the company’s policy rolls out more widely.

Previously, Apple had decided that the third day should be a Monday, however it appears that the company is willing to extend a certain level of flexibility to its employees.

Apple return to office

Apple first expressed an interest in returning to the workplace back in June 2021, when it toyed with the idea of implementing a three-day-a-week policy, however rising Covid-19 cases reduced this to a two-day hybrid working policy.

News of the new three-day policy comes just weeks after the company relaxed its office common area face mask policy, and several months after the relaxation of face masks at individual desks.

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These changes, and June’s WWDC event, signal some return to normal for the company, though rumours suggest that Apple’s September event, which is expected to reveal new iPhones and Apple Watches, is being pre-recorded.

Overall, Apple’s return to work policy has proven more strict that those of Microsoft, Amazon, and Google’s parent Alphabet, which have until now been fairly open to remote working setups.

In May, a group of employees published an open letter expressing their distaste and accusing Apple of being driven by a "fear of worker autonomy" and a "fear of losing control". Later, the company's head of AI made for the exit, reportedly over a connected dispute.

Apple’s plans remain far less strict than those of Tesla’s Elon Musk, though, who a couple of months ago told all workers to return to the office or face the sack.

• Arm yourself against hybrid working with the best online collaboration tools

Via Bloomberg

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