As companies scramble to develop return-to-office policies, a lack of plausible explanation from bosses can exacerbate rising tensions. When digital-agency worker Sarah began a new job in the north of England, her employer said they’d need her at their headquarters on a full-time basis because she lived locally. Her colleagues, however, were allowed to work remotely because they weren’t a commuting distance away. “My boss didn’t have a clear flexible-working policy: they just made it up as they went along,” she says. “They said because it was easier for me to go in, I should be there every day.”
