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Last year, Dell turned heads when it changed its tune and ended a generous company policy, frustrating some of its employees nationwide.
In February, Dell CEO Michael Dellsent an email to employees warning them that, starting in March 2025, they would be required to work from the office five days a week due to the rapid pace of innovation in the tech industry. Previously, Dell required employees to work from the office only three days a week.
“The pace of innovation has never been faster, and for us to lead, the speed of our business must continue to accelerate,” wrote Dell in the memo. “What we’re finding is that for all the technology in the world, nothing is faster than the speed of human interaction. A thirty second conversation can replace an email back-and-forth that goes on for hours or even days.”
He also said that after ordering several teams to return to the office five days a week in 2024, the company has noticed that those employees have “come alive with new speed, energy, and passion.”
Shortly after the change took effect, Dell employees claimed that enforcement of the new in-office mandate had been inconsistent, causing “lots of in-office politics.” Some employees have even opted to leave their desks early to work from home, despite the new mandate.
Ignoring return-to-office (RTO) mandates has become a common trend in corporate America over the past few years, as more companies scale back remote work. A 2024 survey from Resume Builder even found that leaving the office early is the most common way employees rebel against these policies.
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Approximately 1 in 5 workers aren’t following their company’s RTO policy, with some faking badge swipes and leaving the office early.
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The majority of workers want to be in the office three days or fewer per week.
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If companies start to crack down on RTO compliance, 20% of workers said they are very likely to quit, while an addditional 33% are somewhat likely to follow suit.
Source: Resume Builder
“While many companies adopted more flexible work-from-home policies during the pandemic, many are now reversing course, requiring employees to return to the office as they reshape their long-term work models,” said Stacie Haller, Resume Builder chief career advisor, in a statement.
“However, for many employees, remote work has become a non-negotiable part of their professional lives,” she added. “As companies attempt to reinstate in-office requirements, there has been pushback from workers.”
As Dell faces pushback from employees over its new in-office policy, the company is reportedly cracking down on this behavior.
Jackie Miller, Dell vice president of North American commercial sales, recently sent an email to enterprise sales employees stating that ignoring the company’s RTO policy will not be tolerated, according to a recent report from Business Insider.
“Effective immediately, all onsite-classified sales team members are expected to be in the RR, NV, and OKC offices five days a week for at least eight hours per day,” said Miller in the email, which was sent on Nov. 5.
“RR, NV, and OKC” are Dell’s headquarters in Round Rock, Texas, and its offices in Nashville and Oklahoma City.
She also stated that “recent site visits” and “end-of-day walkthroughs” conducted by team leaders revealed that employees were not following the company’s new in-office policy.
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“I want to reinforce our expectations regarding onsite office presence,” she said. “Maintaining a strong in-office presence is essential for fostering collaboration, communication, and productivity, and it is company policy.”
Miller reminded employees in the email that they should use personal business allowance or vacation hours to step away from the office.
In response to the email, two Dell employees told Insider that this is the first time managers have enforced the RTO policy since it was first implemented for sales teams in September 2024.
Employees with children were reportedly permitted to leave the office early to pick up their children from school, despite the new policy.
“A lot of parents previously were told they can leave around 2 p.m. to pick up school-age kids and can finish the day at home,” said one of the sales employees.
After Miller’s email was sent, team leaders have allegedly clarified to employees that they are not allowed to leave their desks early to pick up their kids from school.
Dell’s return to full-time in-person work mirrors its competitors in the tech industry, such as Amazon, Samsung, and AT&T, which have ordered employees to return to working in the office five days a week.
Many Americans nationwide are not happy with the elimination of remote work, with some even claiming that they will quit their job in response to the enforcement of an RTO policy, according to a survey from FlexJobs last year.
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Approximately 53% of U.S. workers say they or someone they know has been required to return to the office in the past year, a significant increase from 23% in 2024.
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Additionally, 76% of workers stated that they would seek a new job if remote work were to be eliminated.
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Also, 69% of workers would accept a pay cut for remote work, an 11% increase from 2024.
Source: FlexJobs
“Low quit rates and trends like ‘job hugging’ may suggest a workforce that is staying put, but that does not mean workers are not quietly considering a job change,” said Toni Frana, a career expert at FlexJobs, in a statement.
“As our latest report shows, it comes down to what workers are willing to accept before deciding to job-hop, and most are drawing the line at remote work,” she said.
As more U.S. employers shift their stance on remote work, office foot traffic remains below pre-pandemic levels but is slowly recovering.
More Labor:
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Intel quietly pulls back major employee commitment amid troubles
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Google quietly doubles down on a controversial workplace trend
According to a recent data analysis report from Placer.ai, the average nationwide office visits per working day in November 2025 were 32.9% lower than in November 2019, marking post-pandemic record occupancy.
“November 2025 delivered the strongest nationwide office occupancy for any November since 2019, with average visits per working day reaching a five-year high,” wrote Shira Petrack, head of content at Placer.ai, in the report.
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This story was originally published by TheStreet on Jan 6, 2026, where it first appeared in the Employment section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here.