- Ed Bastian told Semafor that bosses complain to him about trying to get employees back in the office.
- The Delta CEO said remote and hybrid workers now spend more time traveling.
The return to the office push is well underway, but some employers are being challenged by staff unwilling to give up the freedom of hybrid or remote working.
Office buildings are declining in value, and some CEOs are threatening to get tough with those unwilling to return to commuting at least some of the time. But the CEO of Delta CEO says their workers aren't just sitting at home – they're taking trips.
"When I talk to CEOs and they moan about how they're having a hard time getting their employees in, I say 'I know where they are – they're on my airplanes,'" Ed Bastian said in an interview with Semafor.
In his view, many are taking full advantage of flexible schedules not possible before the pandemic when workers had to be in the building five days a week.
American employees are clinging to remote work despite senior management thinking it's time to draw a line.
In his interview, Bastian told Semafor that that business travel was "about 80% back," but there's still the issue of these "new work patterns" that allowed people to travel more than their work has previously let them.
One Arizona worker left her six-figure job after being asked to work in the office five days a week instead of three.
"I know how to do my job. I don't need to be in an office to do my work," she previously told Insider. "I just knew I didn't want to go back to what it felt like before."
Work-from-home expert Nick Bloom says the fight to return is already over because the hybrid model has won. Outside of workers' desire to stay out of the office, Bloom believes a hybrid pattern could also prove beneficial to businesses.
"When you allow flexibility, it expands your talent pool," he said. "The reason I think this model will stick and become the equilibrium is every company is fighting for that same talent pool, and flexibility allows companies to attract and retain talent."