Hybrid work leads to mid-week crowding and need to retain space

Because of mid-week office crowding—or the tendency of hybrid employees to show up at company premises on the same days—a reduction in office attendance won’t necessarily correspond to a proportional decline in space requirements.

That’s the upshot in a research note from JLL. Those who are able to fashion a hybrid-work solution may favor being in the office on the same days, especially during the mid-week. For some it may be because the companies require attendance on certain days. For others, it may be because staff is so eager for the human social interaction or work collaboration or both that occurs when they’re in the office together.

As a result of the trend of mid-week crowding at some firms and the unknown at others of which days staff will turn up, many companies have found they still need the same amount of office space.

 In addition, the momentum continues to build in the Return-To-Office groundswell, according to JLL, with 9% more doing so year-over-year.  Seasonal variations also occur. In each year since the pandemic began, attendance in the office was highest in the post-Labor Day, pre-Thanksgiving fourth quarter of 2022. Then, it was 20% higher than the first five months of the year. In 2021, however, attendance was almost 50% higher. 

Another reason that square footage office space is needed is that company attendance policies among major employers continue to shift in favor of having staff show up at the office almost every week. In recent weeks, the JLL noted that Meta Platforms and giant law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate & Meagher announced new office attendance mandates that affect large numbers of their workforce doing so.

The new policies of these two businesses also reflect the absence of one schedule fits all. “Employees will need to work from the company’s offices three days a week beginning in September,” Meta announced, adding, “We’re also committed to continuously refining our model to foster the collaboration, relationships and culture necessary for employees to do their best work.”

Skadden, Arps took a different course requiring lawyers to show up in the office four days per week, Monday through Thursday. The firm, among the largest in the U.S, previously required attorneys to be in their offices Tuesday through Thursday.

Related: Return to office inducements get tougher and more creative

Other businesses are coming up with their own solutions, and it can be hard keeping track of different company policies. (One source is Hubble, which tracks such policies.) But as policies continue to change and as some employees are permitted to make their own choices, most companies see the viability of maintaining the same amount of square footage as they have done when employees show up five days a week.