The Return-to-Office Push Is Real – What Australian Workers Need to Know
Is the death of WFH among us? The push to return to the office is gaining serious traction in 2025. Large Australian employers are rolling out new attendance policies, and the days of full-time remote work are quietly fading. For many workers, this shift is raising big questions about rights, flexibility, and whether it's time to push back.
Major employers including Woolworths, Coles, Amazon, Dell, and JPMorgan Chase have updated their office attendance expectations. Some are requiring employees to return on a full-time basis, despite staff having successfully worked remotely for years. The trend reflects a broader shift in corporate culture toward in-person presence and team-based work.
Recent data shows that 39% of Australian businesses now expect employees to be in the office full-time. Fully remote roles have dropped to just 6% of the workforce. Meanwhile, hybrid arrangements remain the middle ground—but even those are becoming more structured, with average in-office days creeping up month by month.
For employers, the message is about culture, collaboration, and performance. But for workers, it’s about time, cost, and autonomy. The financial cost of returning is real—commuters in Sydney can expect to spend around $75 a day just getting to and from work. Over a year, that adds up to nearly $6,000 in avoidable costs. For parents and carers, the return-to-office mandates are even more disruptive, cutting into flexible care responsibilities that were previously manageable.
Despite the shift, hybrid work remains the most common model. Over 80% of employers say they expect hybrid arrangements to stay the same or increase over the next two years. But the pressure is on. Many employers are quietly using RTO as a tool to encourage voluntary resignations, especially from staff unwilling or unable to comply.
Unions are responding. The Australian Services Union has proposed a right for clerical workers to work from home unless the employer can prove it's not practical. Meanwhile, in Victoria, the State Government has signalled it may legislate a minimum of two WFH days per week by 2026. These measures reflect growing concern that return-to-office mandates could disproportionately affect women, carers, and regional workers.
The Fair Work Commission is also being asked to weigh in. One recent matter involved a worker forced back to the office without consultation, leading to a formal dispute. As these cases become more common, workers may find they have grounds to challenge unreasonable mandates, especially if the business has failed to properly consult, or if flexibility is a reasonable adjustment for health or caring responsibilities.
What You Should Know:
Your employer can direct you to return to the office, but not without limits. If you’ve been working from home remotely for an extended period, especially under flexible work agreements, you may have legal grounds to request continued flexibility.
If you're a parent, carer, have a disability, or live regionally, your right to request flexible work is protected under the Fair Work Act—and employers must seriously consider it.
