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Lately, the conversation about office policy has been dominated by reports of return-to-office mandates, with many employers aiming to get all of their workers back in-person by the end of the year. But a new study shows that, despite the best efforts of many RTO proponents, hybrid schedules represent a lasting shift in the way we workand employees like it that way. The study is the ninth annual State of Hybrid Work report from Owl Labs, a company that offers remote work tech like video conferencing. It found that, across industries, hybrid work isnt just a trend. Rather, its now become a priority that workers are often willing to trade compensation or quietly sacrifice productivity to protect. Here are three main takeaways from the data: When flexible work gets taken away, employees start looking for a way out A Resume Builder survey released in January found that nine in ten companies plan to require workers back in the office by the end of the year, with 30% already enforcing full five-day, in-office schedules. In the past several months, high profile companies like JPMorgan, TikTok, and Ford have implemented stricter RTO policies. Based on Owl Labs report, chances are pretty high that, once those new policies came into place, employees started looking a lot more closely at their LinkedIn Jobs page. Per the survey, 40% of employees reported that, if hybrid work were taken away, they would start job hunting. Another 22% said thatd expect a raise for the lost flexibility, while 5% said theyd quit on the spot. Some companies have already seen the impact of this trend: After Amazon implemented its RTO strategy late last year, more than half of its office workers started looking for new jobs. Hybrid workers have a clear preference on how many days to spend in the office Any company still working out its hybrid schedule has encountered one key question: How many days should we ask employees to come to work? The answer, according to Owl Labs, is fairly clear: Workers want to spend three days in the office, and two at home. Of the total respondents, 32% chose the three-day-a-week option, 24% voted for two, and only 14% voted for four. Quiet quitting is real; quiet vacationing is not quite as common Buzzwords like job hugging, job hopping, and clock-blocking have become popular ways to describe workplace trends, but it can sometimes be tricky to parse which are real practices and which are just passing fads. Owl Labs looked into some of the most popular terms to see which have been proven out, especially among hybrid workers. One trend that appears to be here to stay is polyworking, or juggling multiple jobs at once. Owl Labs found that 31% of hybrid workers have at least one additional job, compared to 27% of in-office workers. Coffee-badging, or showing up in-person just long enough to be seen by colleagues, is also common: 43% of hybrid employees said they show up to work just to get a bit of face time. Some much-hyped trends are less common in actuality. Only 17% of workers said theyd tried (and would try again) quiet vacationing, the art of taking time off without actually using vacation days. Meanwhile, though, 32% of employees said theyd engaged in quiet quittingwhich refers to performing only the bare minimum requirements of ones’ job to avoid getting fired. One rising trend that may become more popular, Owl Labs notes, is unbossing, which occurs when workers intentionally dodge management positions to focus on individual career progression versus managing others.
Category:
E-Commerce
Two U.S. senators sent a letter to Tinder parent Match on Wednesday, pushing for action against dating scams on the company’s platforms and asking for information about its efforts to detect fraud and protect its users. In a letter to Match CEO Spencer Rascoff, Democratic Senator Maggie Hassan and Republican Senator Marsha Blackburn asked the company to provide documents about its policies and procedures related to fraudulent activity on its platforms. Romance scams often involve fraudsters creating alluring but fake profiles on dating apps, stringing along victims for weeks or months before asking for gifts or money. “We are also concerned that Match, through its algorithmic design, creates trust that romance scammers can exploit,” the senators wrote. Cybercrime of all stripes cost victims over $16 billion globally last year, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said in an April report, including hundreds of millions of dollars in losses caused by romance scams. The senators have given Match, which also operates Hinge and OkCupid, until October 15 to provide evidence that it has made efforts to prevent romance scams and the factors that allow such fraud to occur on its platforms. Match said in an emailed statement to Reuters that it was looking forward to “constructive conversations” with the senators. “In recent years, we have made significant investments in advanced fraud detection, cutting-edge safety features, and expanded partnerships with law enforcement, industry, and civil society groups to better safeguard our communities,” said Yoel Roth, Match’s Trust & Safety head. Match has previously been caught in regulatory crosshairs, with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission alleging in 2019 that the company knowingly sent automated advertisements via Match.com with expressions of interest from accounts that it knew were likely fake. The Department of Justice closed its investigation related to the FTC lawsuit in 2020. Match has rolled out new features such as “face check” to detect fake profiles and prevent impersonation. Kritika Lamba, Juby Babu, and Steve Stecklow, Reuters
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E-Commerce
Want more housing market stories from Lance Lamberts ResiClub in your inbox? Subscribe to the ResiClub newsletter. Heading into the fall last year, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate slipped to a low of 6.07% by September 17, 2024 as the market reacted to weaker than expected labor market data. At that point, there was a noticeable upswing in refinances as some 20222024 borrowers took the opportunity to get payment relief. However, it was short-lived and quickly fizzled out once labor market data tightened a bit and mortgage rates popped back up. Fast-forward to September 2025, and were once again seeing a mini refi boomlet. Similar to early last fall, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate has fallen a bit heading into Septemberwith the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate hitting a calendar year low of 6.26% last week, according to Freddie Macs weekly reading. With the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate sitting well below 2025s calendar-year high of 7.04%, some recent borrowers are taking the opportunity to refinance and gain some payment relief. The Mortgage Refinance Index reading for the second week of September, by year: September 14, 2018: 917 September 13, 2019: 2,274 September 11, 2020: 3,289 September 10, 2021: 3,186 September 9, 2022: 533 September 8, 2023: 367 September 13, 2024: 941 September 12, 2025: 1,597 If you look closely at the chart above, youll notice that last years peak weekly reading for the Mortgage Refinance Index (1,133 on the week ending September 21, 2024) is well below the reading we just saw for the week ending September 12, 2025even though mortgage rates last September dipped slightly lower than they did this September. The reason this Septembers refi boomlet is likely bigger than last years is that many borrowers who held out for a larger rate drop last fall were burned when mortgage rates jumped back up late in 2024. So when the opportunity for payment relief came around this year, many jumped on it. You may have noticed that ResiClub calls this a refi boomlet rather than a refi boom. We use the term boomlet because theres a ceiling on how big this refinance pop can getand how long it can lastwithout a much more substantial drop in mortgage rates. After all, according to the latest FHFA data, 71.3% of U.S. mortgage borrowers still hold an interest rate below 5.0%. How far would mortgage rates need to fall to spur a real refi boom? Read this ResiClub article.
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E-Commerce
YouTube will offer creators a way to rejoin the streaming platform if they were banned for violating COVID-19 and election misinformation policies that are no longer in effect, its parent company Alphabet said Tuesday. In a letter submitted in response to subpoenas from the House Judiciary Committee, attorneys for Alphabet said the decision to bring back banned accounts reflected the company’s commitment to free speech. It said the company values conservative voices on its platform and recognizes their reach and important role in civic discourse. No matter the political atmosphere, YouTube will continue to enable free expression on its platform, particularly as it relates to issues subject to political debate, the letter read. The move is the latest in a cascade of content moderation rollbacks from tech companies, who cracked down on false information during the pandemic and after the 2020 election but have since faced pressure from President Donald Trump and other conservatives who argue they unlawfully stifled right-wing voices in the process. It comes as tech CEOs, including Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, have sought a closer relationship with the Republican president, including through high-dollar donations to his campaign and attending events in Washington. YouTube in 2023 phased out its policy to remove content that falsely claims the 2020 election, or other past U.S. presidential elections, were marred by widespread fraud, errors or glitches.” The platform in 2024 also retired its standalone COVID-19 content restrictions, allowing various treatments for the disease to be discussed. COVID-19 misinformation now falls under YouTube’s broader medical misinformation policy. Among the creators who have been banned from YouTube under the now-expired policies are prominent conservative influencers, including Dan Bongino, who now serves as deputy director of the FBI. For people who make money on social media, access to monetization on YouTube can be significant, earning them large sums through ad revenue. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan and other congressional Republicans have pressured tech companies to reverse content moderation policies created under former President Joe Biden and accused Biden’s administration of unfairly wielding its power over the companies to chill lawful online speech. In Tuesday’s letter, Alphabet’s lawyers said senior Biden administration officials conducted repeated and sustained outreach to coerce the company to remove pandemic-related YouTube videos that did not violate company policies. It is unacceptable and wrong when any government, including the Biden Administration, attempts to dictate how the Company moderates content, and the Company has consistently fought against those efforts on First Amendment grounds, the letter said. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has also accused the Biden administration of pressuring employees to inappropriately censor content during the COVID-19 pandemic. Elon Musk, the owner of the social platform X, has accused the FBI of illegally coercing Twitter before his tenure to suppress a story about Hunter Biden. The Supreme Court last year sided with former President Joe Bidens administration in a dispute with Republican-led states over how far the federal government can go to combat controversial social media posts on topics including COVID-19 and election security. Asked for more information about the reinstatement process, a spokesperson for YouTube did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Ali Swenson, Associated Press
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E-Commerce
While dozens of companies have suddenly retreated from DEI efforts this year, leaders in inclusivity say theres reason to be hopeful that this work is continuingalbeit more quietly than before. Even as companies like Target, IBM, and Goldman Sachs have ditched their diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, other leaders still firmly believe that diverse teams offer a competitive advantage. There has been progress in the past decade-plus, but it has looked like three steps forward and two steps backwhich underscores that such work has never been more important, according to Jana Rich, founder of Rich Talent Group. What you’re seeing, I think, are some really strong leaders taking a stand as the antithesis of fear, Rich said, speaking at the Fast Company Innovation Festival in New York last week. Leaders who have retreated on the work of inclusion are really missing the moment, added Daisy Auger-Domínguez, CEO of Auger-Domínguez Ventures. What you’re seeing now is this retrenchment to try and build more status quo in organizations at a time where innovation and creativity are most needed. Who killed DEI? The notion that DEI programs are expandable if a companys financials are impacted or there is a different shift politically is problematic, as other key programs wouldnt be on the chopping block in similar scenarios, Auger-Domínguez told the audience. Why cut DEI when it is fundamental to the culture and the creativity and the innovation?” she asked. Even though there is data to support that inclusivity improves a companys bottom line, some DEI programs were built with zero scaffolding, noted Cristina Mancini, CEO of Black Girls Code. Programs built on optics versus systems were bound to fail, she added. At the first sign of a wobble, at the first sign of a wind, they come tumbling down because the intent wasn’t 100% there, Mancini said. My frustration with DEI programs is when the DEI programs are actually marketing versus hiring DEI practitioners to build true pipelines of talent that can, for the better, support the organization and become leaders themselves. Banking on younger workers Even so, theres reason to be optimistic that this retrenchment is temporary and companies will opt back in, Mancini said. While consumers have successfully boycotted companies like Target for walking back their DEI efforts, Auger-Domínguez noted that employees also need to feel empowered to create workplaces that work for everyoneand to remember that they have a choice in where they work. We see through the B.S. of what’s being told to us, and people are voting with their feet, Auger-Domínguez said. The challenge here for these organizations is that you’re losing trust, you’re losing loyalty . . . many of us may still stay in organizations because we’re trying to wait this out, but I’m going to give you a lot less because I just don’t trust that you’ve got my back. Younger generations in the workforce are being very selective about where they put their energy and will have the opportunity to affect change, Mancini said. And because they were raised on the idea that diversity comes in many forms, those future leaders are a beacon of hope, Rich added. While it might take a while, I actually feel like our twentysomethings are going to change the world, Rich said.
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E-Commerce
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