What do organizations like Intel, Amazon, and Google have in common? Well, there are quite a few things, but today we have our eyes on workers unhappy about RTO policies. Workers across the country are returning to their offices unwillingly, forcing themselves to suit up and show up at work. Among the workers are a few who don’t plan on taking the forced return sitting down. Revenge RTO tactics are on the rise, as small acts of workplace rebellion lead the way for employees.
Workers protesting return-to-office trends can no longer do so loudly for fear of losing their jobs, and as a result, they’re turning to quiet resistance to RTO mandates. Some employees are using up more than their fair share of snacks at work while others are defying RTO policies by checking out of work early. Should HR teams be putting an end to this revenge RTO strategy?
Quiet resistance to RTO mandates are brewing up a storm. (Image: Freepik)
Revenge RTO and Workplace Defiance: Quiet Resistance to RTO Mandates Gain Ground
At first, there was peace, employers and employees finally agreed on something, and it was that employees could be productive and work from the comforts of their home. With the onset of the pandemic, employers were quick to find an alternate solution to shutting down their businesses permanently by helping employees adapt to working and collaborating with colleagues entirely online.
Once the pandemic ended, there was a temporary atmosphere of calm as employees continued to work from home, and managers and leaders monitored their work from elsewhere. Unfortunately, employers have now changed their tune on remote work, and believe that workers should come back to the office.
With no choice but to comply, employees have begrudgingly returned to the office full-time or for a few days a week, but it’s not easy for them to complain about the experience. Being fired right now could mean months of unemployment and workers are unwilling to take the risk. Still, they want their ire to be felt somewhere, even if the two issues are never connected to each other.
How Are Workers Protesting Return-to-Office Trends?
An anonymous source told Fortune that they were rebelling against their employers by picking up extra snacks and drinks from the refreshments provided by the organization, and she’s not alone in rebelling this way. Another employee at an ad agency told us, “I take what I can get. Want me sitting in the office all day with no extra compensation for switching from the remote work I was hired for to in-person work out of the blue? Well, I’m here then, running the AC in my office all day and making the most of the snacks on offer.”
Another employee told us that their way of showcasing quiet resistance to RTO mandates was actually staying quiet, and choosing not to contribute very enthusiastically to any discussion at work. “My boss thinks bringing us to the office makes us more productive. There’s so much time and energy wasted on getting here, arranging meetings, fighting to reserve conference rooms, getting people to break up the extra-long lunch sessions, making small talk across the desks, and all the little things that just drain you slowly. I don’t want to be here and my silence will let it be known.”
Some employees defying RTO policies are also choosing to check out of work early, either just mentally or physically as well, while others are doing the bare minimum to keep the job and nothing more. Users on Reddit have been gathering up ideas on malicious collaboration, sharing thoughts on how they can unitedly disrupt the organization with colleagues. The problem isn’t going to go away on its own.
What Does the Quiet Resistance to RTO Mandates Mean for HR Teams?
Even if the revenge RTO trends only involve small infractions that don’t appear to be an immediate concern, HR leaders need to understand the disruption taking place among workers. Unhappy workers who feel slighted by their employers are getting back at them in small ways trying to intentionally make things tougher on the organization. This ensures that everyone else stays distracted and unproductive with them.
It might sound petty but helpless employees will always try to find some sense of control over the situation. If they don’t believe their bosses or HR teams care enough to listen, it’s inevitable that their frustration may show up in different ways. Most employees just want to be heard and reassured about their place in the organization.
Revenge RTO and workplace defiance is a better situation than employees suffering in silence, as this gives HR teams some early signs that there is a problem that needs to be addressed. If HR leaders lash out by yelling at workers or cutting off their access to resources, matters will only grow worse.
What HR Can Do About Revenge RTO
HR can address quiet resistance to RTO mandates by:
- Asking employees how the transition to in-office work can be made easier for them
- Providing a one-time recollection payment to help workers move closer to the office
- Ensuring the office space is prepared to handle workers returning at full capacity
- Slowly easing workers into in-person work rather than slamming them with tasks and new rules on day one
- Providing some appealing benefits to being in the office like access to fitness centers or additional refreshments—even if employees nab a few extra items for themselves
- Eliminating unnecessary processes and bureaucratic systems that make it cumbersome to work at the office
- Communicating with employees regularly to understand how they are doing
- Giving employees space at work instead of breathing down their necks constantly
Revenge RTO tactics and workplace defiance can extend to workers faking work as a form of rebellion but HR should not instinctively turn to punitive measures at once. Give workers a few weeks to settle back in before you start tracking their productivity, and if you find an issue, communicate with them and find a solution to the problems they are dealing with, instead of just turning them away to handle it alone.
Whether there’s loud or quiet resistance to RTO mandates, it’s the HR teams that will have to pull their weight and set things right.
Are you a proud participant of the revenge RTO trend? Tell us about your experience and what your employer could do to fix it. Subscribe to The HR Digest for more insights into the ever-evolving landscape of work.