It's time to do a vibe check on the state of remote work

Aug 28, 2024

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Earlier this month, City of Seattle workers were told most of them will have to return to the office at least 3 days a week starting this fall. Meanwhile… a certain large tech and online retail company (named after a river in South America) has reportedly started a mulling the minimum number of hours employees must stay on site to count towards its three day in-office mandate.

These changes had us wondering – is remote work gradually eroding in the Puget Sound region?

One study looking at 2022 Census data found that a quarter of workers in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area worked at least part of the week remotely, away from the office.

But the past year has brought a lot of changes to employer policies around where employees have to put in their hours – and for policymakers, that’s coinciding with concern about the lasting effects of remote work on Seattle’s struggling downtown core.

For a vibe check on remote work and what the numbers tell us about its effects on Seattle, Soundside host Libby Denkmann caught up with Tracy Hadden Loh, fellow at the Brookings Institute, and Joshua McNichols, growth and development reporter for KUOW and co-host of the "Booming" podcast.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible. If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

Guests:

Tracy Hadden Loh, fellow at the Brookings Institute in Washington, D.C.
Joshua McNichols, growth and development reporter for KUOW and co-host of the "Booming" podcast.

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