Meta ends remote work policy; find details

Facebook parent Meta is reversing its full-time remote work policy, though the company still offers the hybrid work option. Under the new policy, Meta employees must work from the office three times a week, while remote workers can continue to work from home. The new policy will go into effect in September. The company expanded its remote work policy in 2021 amid fears of the Omicron variant. However, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg began hinting at an end to remote work after the company laid off 11,000 workers late last year. Not just Meta, other big tech companies, including Amazon, Google and Apple, are also operating on a hybrid model.

A Meta spokesperson confirmed the change to CNBC, saying the company anticipates a "significant impact." The statement reads: "We are committed to distributed work and believe people can make a meaningful impact from the office and home. We are also committed to continually refining our model to foster collaboration, relationships and culture necessary for employees to do their best work.

After announcing the first round of layoffs in November 2022, Meta has been looking for ways to get employees back in the office more often. Zuckerberg also claimed that engineers from the office performed better than those who worked remotely, citing internal studies. This was contrary to what the Meta boss said in 2021 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. He noted that "good work" can be "done anywhere." Zuckerberg added that remote work could be improved at scale like virtual reality technology, referring to the company's work on the metaverse and the Oculus VR headset.

Meta is also completing the second round of layoffs that will impact 10,000 more workers. The company has also reduced employee "benefits," including Meta days, extra vacation days introduced during the pandemic for workers' mental well-being.

There could be a few hiccups, though Meta may be more rigid on getting employees into the office three times a week. Apple employees expressed dissatisfaction with the mandatory three days to work from the company's office. On the other hand, Apple believes that "in-person collaboration" is "essential" to the company's culture and future. Similarly, Amazon workers went on strike earlier this week following the company's decision to make mandatory three-day office work. Amazon workers are also upset with the layoff decisions.