#rto

"The direction is global, but implementation may vary by country to account for local laws and regulations..."

So EMEA is next once they get Work Councils sign off

I saw an article pop up in business insider but it’s behind a paywall. Did you answer honestly?!

This company feels like a team stuck with bad coaches who refuse to adapt, and the scoreboard proves it. You don’t win by wearing out your players. You win by putting them in a position to succeed.

Employees aren’t asking for less accountability. They’re asking for flexibility, which most of the market already offers. If five day RTO actually drove performance, we would see it in execution, morale, retention, and the stock. We don’t. We see burnout, attrition, and continued underperformance.

In sports, when coaches pile up losing seasons, blow money on bad deals, and lose the locker room, they don’t get more time to tighten discipline. They get fired. And we already have a losing record. Years of bad acquisitions, billions written off, talent walking, and a stock that can’t keep pace with the league.

Good coaches listen to feedback and adjust. Bad coaches double down, blame the players, and keep losing. Flexibility is the fix. Rigid RTO is the mistake. Until leadership accepts that, this team isn’t turning the season around.

What is RTO policy for non exempt employees? We don’t have access to the average hours dashboard, do we still have to RTO 5 days?

Get ready for the RTO email and the chaos that will ensue

North America right away but it will be the same for rest of world shortly once the company has spoken to work councils

Get ready for 5 days of coughing / spluttering / loud noise / body odor / alcoholic breath and fun !

Now that we know about layoffs, are there RTO changes?

Employees in Charlotte will focus on emerging cyber threats, designing defenses using AI and serving as part of AT&T Dynamic Defense, a network-based security service designed to detect and stop threats before they impact a business.
New office to be located approximately 1 mile from the Charlotte NRC.
And yes, RTO will be in full effect

Can someone please share the directives coming down right now? Every leader seems even more in a scramble this week than the last 8 combined.
Yes it’s clear layoffs happened this week, but it’s something more. I had vaguely overheard, I was trying not to be obvious, about a directive that was given from HR about a RTO mandate. As in some directive about a larger mandate to ensure employees are in hubs and not remote. What is going on? All of us see and sense something.

Yes, a new Office First policy will be announced.
No, not every employee will be mandated back to an office.
Yes, employees currently assigned as hybrid office based will be required to work from that office each day. No more 3 day schedule. This will happen over a few months.
Yes, if you are currently a virtual employee (meaning that your HR profile which you can access on Talent Central has you listed as virtual), AND your home address is within 31 miles of an OT office, you will be reassigned as an office employee and will be required to work from your assigned office every day. These employees will be given several months before they have to begin working from the office.
Yes, this applies to ALL employees in the US who live within that distance to an office, other than customer facing sales.
No, employees in countries with council will not immediately have to comply. OT is negotiating with these councils.

Word is new seating assignments have been announced in Deerfield support office. But that the areas assignments for the most part aren't big enough to accommodate all the team members. Also, that the parking lot will be 325-350'ish spots short once OPO staff join in Deerfield in 10 days. Anyone hearing anything else? Feels too quiet this week.

Email tomorrow? North America only?

July or September?

Does anyone know anything for sure ?

I assume Dallas will shut down this week when the snow hits. Some forecasts predict twelve inches. Is everyone planning to work from home? Or since we can’t get to the office, and that’s the only place we can work, do we get a snow day off? My supervisor is on maternity leave so no info coming,, wondering what others are hearing.

Can anyone explain the financial benefit to Edward Jones by having people return to the office?

The lack of any mention of relaxing RTO minimums while also sending out daily safety alerts (sometimes more than 1 a day) to those of us working in downtown Minneapolis is appalling.

When revenue tightens and the stock slides, forcing five days in-office is pure waste. Higher real estate costs, higher attrition, lower productivity. If leadership is serious about discipline, RTO should be the first thing cut. However, it will just be headcount. Expect layoffs and FTW letters to increase at record speed.

I've heard on good authority that there are no changes to the hybrid schedule planned

We've all shared our grievances, but I'm curious to know how this will affect others, not just personally, but at work. Many of us are clocking in 50+ hours a week and if they expect us to come in 8-5/5 days a week AND continue working from home... yikes.

If the return to office thing is happening, can someone confirm what will happen to virtual

There are thousands of virtual employees so they won't all be let go

Will they be told relocate ? Or will they remain virtual if over 50 miles to an office

I was reading this Wharton article about how small slights from employers cause a loss of productivity. link to article: https://penntoday.upenn.edu/news/penn-wharton-when-employees-feel-slighted-they-work-less

PNC better get ready for this on a grand scale. Obviously, RTO increases costs for employees (parking, gas, additional child care, loss of time because of the commute, the list goes on). But we’ve also lost our personal day out of nowhere, HSA wellness contributions have gone down significantly, and rumor has it that bonuses will leave a lot to be desired. All in one year. This company is ran by CLOWNS. I encourage everyone to use every second of every occasional absense day in 2026. Don’t work a minute past 5pm. Don’t even think about logging in on the weekend. They take, take, take and only give back to the C Suite. Don’t give them anything more than the bare minimum, because PNC sure isn’t going to give you anything.

When’s the email going out ? How long do we have to search for a new job

What if everybody just ignores the 5-day RTO mandate? What exactly can they do if nobody shows up at the office? Fire us all? I'd like to see them try. I know we sadly can't get the majority to agree to this, but I truly believe this would be the best course of action in this situation.

The temperature could feel like as low as -4 F next week, and yet we still have to come to office and talk to people all over the world. But hey! our office is nice and warm right? My life is a beautiful dream. Thank you Robin!

I've noticed several people commenting about the need to be in the office 4 out of 6 weeks.

Don't managers get notified each week when someone isn't meeting the 3-day office requirement? How are people able to use the reporting period workaround?

I think the typical departments will get hit hard again - ISG, CSG, Sales, Engineering, and IT... but I also think Dell is going to start going after full remote employees.

Dell no longer allows remote positions (future positions that is) and all new roles/REQs MUST go to the office, meaning they want all employees to be local to an office, right? Well that won't/can't happen until all remote employees are either laid off or quit.. OR relocate on their own dime. They are going to have to start going after remotes sooner or later and I feel like it's gonna be sooner than later; after the RTO mandate. OR, they will tell remotes that they can either relocate and keep their job, or have bonus's/raises minimized + the already not eligble for promotions/internal movement.

I think a LOT of the engineers, PMs, Managers/directors who were very heavily involved in mav will be let go as well, considering the OG deadline was pushed back a quarter...

Just my guess.

Why don't they eliminate all of the satellite offices and remote employees first? There are some directors, senior directors and VPs that hide at home all the time, some that wear the same clothes days on end that are never in the office. They hide with background pictures of their office, and while their leadership knows it, leadership isn't strong enough to do anything about it. So just fire them. If you are not in one of the 3 campuses, then you should not have a job.

How is your RTO going?
I hear that all offices are packed and do not have enough space, not enough conference rooms, etc…. Certainly the case in Dallas and Atlanta!

I do go 3 times a week, but just badge in and go home right away.

Been trying to organize a badge-in service, but looks like all people are a bunch of pu----s…

Time to raise up and organize an insurrection against the IBM Execs!

All of these changes have made working at CVX a complete nightmare.
I'll be taking my CIP and looking elsewhere.

The worst thing is the gas lighting that HMP and Leadership throw at us: "Better together", "We benchmarked against Exxon - they are doing it!", "If it works for Google, it must be good"

Well for those fortunate enough to keep their jobs, hearing RTO 5 days a week is coming as part of the new strategy going forward. Gone are the Friday through Monday "4 day weekends" many have been enjoying. Covid is long over...time for everyone to get back in the saddle 5 days a week.

Generally curious if people have peaced out since RTO. I know of one person who gave notice after a week back in office. I’m guessing a number of people thought they would be let to in the last round but survived. I can definitely see more people leaving after bonuses are distributed.

Hello everybody many people today is stress out about RTO, layoffs, high maintenence customer, manager etc. Below are several things you can do to help feel #blessed no matter what the day throws your way

• for a healthy vegetable and fruit snack get you some fun onions and orange fanta from the vending machine

• tickle your tummy with a supersize Dr Pepper from the soda fountain

• unlock the next luxury level with a Lil Yachty Platinum Deluxe Variety Rap Snacks™️ Sampler Bundle with Zesty Ranch Upgrade

• Tantalize your taste buds with some fiesta chicken strips and a large fry

*.Upgrade your Snickers bar to a winter wonderland edition by coating it in a white blanket of sugar from the coffee station

• for a tropical fruit adventure get you some starburst and skittles and arrange them in fun patterns on a piece of printer paper before using it as a funnel to pour them in your mouth

These are just of a few of the temptations that await as you enjoy your day at the office. Please print this out and hang it in the elevators and break rooms. Thank you and God bless.

About 70% of my team will be gone before Feb 1. Two people called it quits today. They didn't even give a full day notice. We can't function as a team of 3 people when Feb 1 gets here. This isn't just hurting the remote employees. It's crushing the in-office staff as well. I don't mind being in office but not everyone has that viewpoint. Losing 2 people today was a wake up call because my workload just increased. We know there is no such thing as overtime at PNC, (just overwork and underpaid). I know I will not get compensated for the additional workload. I'm trying to remain optimistic. The RTO mandate is pushing away loyal talented employees and pushing away people looking for a job. It's a lose-lose situation. Losing talented employees and pi----g off the employees who are trying to stick it out.

This entire 5 day RTO mandate isn't going to go well at all, and no, it's not JUST about having to go in the office. It's about how this is clearly a blanket solution to solve 1 particular problem within the company. A "solution" which will undo decade(s) of progress seemingly overnight.

Before COVID, we thrived on our 2-3 days in-person. That flexibility is why many of us joined and stayed. During COVID, we continued to thrive on remote work. And again, that flexibility is why many of us stayed. In return, many of us (without additional compensation mind you) gave back to the company by being available virtually 24/7. Fast forward to this day in 2026 and that mutual contract is broken. What does that mean?

Mandating 5 days in the office while continuing to expect 24/7 availability from most employees isn't sustainable. It's a recipe for burnout and resentment. Furthermore, claiming we've always been in-person and have been suffering due to our current arrangements completely contradicts the recent earnings report for 2025.

Look, this isn't another post by someone yelling into the void. This is a post from someone who cares. Believe it or not many of us do, which is why the following needs to be said:

This decision will hurt the company. In more ways than just one. It will damage morale, push out amazing talent, and ki-l the very culture that made this place what it is today. Locals are upset, news channels are reporting, employees feel disrespected, the list goes on.

2025 net income $7 billion
$16.59 diluted EPS
2024 Q4 net income $2 billion and $4.88 diluted EPS

By virtually all measures 2025 was a successful year. Strong execution across all business lines resulted in record revenue.

Don't be fooled by Bill's remarks that we are lacking in performance. His RTO announcement is nothing more than a fear mongering power trip. We have proven quarter after quarter, year after year, that remote work - WORKS! Its 2026 for f**ks sake. Maybe if we follow Bill's logic we should eliminate PNC Online Banking (something we delivered during the pandemic) because "we work best together in person" (Bill's words). So eliminate Online Banking and have everyone use a physical branch. Oh you live an hour away from a branch? Sorry you must use your nearest branch.

What does it show? Does it breakdown hours by day? Or does just show average or a bucket you fall in(7+ hours)

Bonjour les amis.

Ever since the original post on 12/3 and the news attention that followed, there has been an influx of bad faith posters (executive leadership) on every subsequent post addressing the RTO situation. I wanted to take this opportunity to organize and present my fellow employees with some facts about PNC, its leadership, and the financial aspects of this move.

It is no secret that many large corporations have been enforcing RTO mandates as a "soft layoff," hoping that these no-exception policies reduce enough headcount to avoid the potential bad press of an actual RIF. With PNC specifically, there are some additional financial benefits they are kind enough to pass the cost off to you!

Out of the 55,000 people employed by PNC, 11,000 are local to Pittsburgh and its surrounding areas.

They own a large chunk of downtown Pittsburgh between Tower, One PNC, Two PNC, Three PNC (like a Dr. Seuss book of tax evasion!), and Firstside.

Additionally, they own many of the parking garages, which cost nearly $20/day or $180/month, and the food courts ($10 salads, yay!). PNC also receives a kickback due to its role as the primary bank of nearly every business in the area.

Simply put, there is a direct financial incentive for PNC to enforce an RTO mandate on all employees in the Pittsburgh region.

I mean, can you blame them? With the economy the way it is, they must be taking such a loss just supporting our poor souls.

In 2022, total revenue was $20.64 billion; $20.75 billion in 2023; and $20.77 billion in 2024– a 10.77% jump in Q4 of last year alone. Any "loss of productivity due to remote work" is a classroom rumor rather than anything based in fact.

Let's take a look at employee experience. We see a stagnant wage growth with 1-3.5% raises and pitiful bonuses, leaving us poorer year after year as we watch cost of living costs skyrocket; additional stipulations being put on employees to reduce rising through TSR levels; terrible health insurance that costs more out of pocket than any job I have worked in my life for the lowest high-deductible plan; and a worse 401k match and retirement plan than any other bank.

How are our fearless leaders doing? Well, in 2024 (public information disclosed by PNC filings)

William S. Demchak - 23.7 Million

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Robert Q. Reilly - 6.8 Million

Exec. VP and Chief Financial Officer

E. William Parsley, III - 7.8 Million

Exec. VP and Chief Operating Officer

Deborah Guild, Exec. - 5.4 Million

VP and Head of Technology

Alexander E. C. Overstrom - 5.3 Million dollars

Exec. VP and Head of Retail Banking

As you can see, they are also struggling to get by.

The question is posed: What is there to be done? Do we just shore up our resumes and start applying elsewhere?

If that is an option for you and it leads to a better life, absolutely. But for those of us that can't nor want to give PNC the satisfaction of a successful soft layoff to compliment their acquisition of First Bank, there is a better way.

Unionization is the only way we will ever take back any control over how this org treats us. Complaints to management fall on deaf ears because at a certain level those complaints will always be drowned out by another multi-million dollar stock option. HR is there to protect the company, not you. They will not give a damn about your life situation or even doctor-recommended accommodation to continue your WFH lifestyle.

Management is getting scared; they are avidly searching for people interacting with this site or posting about the RTO policy online. While you should protect yourself, remind yourself that this fear stems from the effectiveness of unions and the bargaining power that can be gained from a collective.

Don't suffer alone. Don’t fade off quietly as you watch what you have claimed back for yourself and your loved ones be su-ked away by a pointless commute. You do not live to work for these people. You work to live your life. The conversations that have taken place online over the last 2 months have gotten the attention of union organizers for Better Banks.

Copied from an earlier post:

"https://www.thelayoff.com/p/@1f9+1kbjhrba6
Comment: 1f9+1kbjhrba6"

Even for those that do not care about this mandate, I urge you to join your peers and take back the profit of your labor. You have nothing to lose but your chains.

Unionize now, solidarity forever.

I have been at 3 banks now, where I was hired fully remote and was eventually RTO5'd. All 3 happened after a large acquisition. Let me tell you, it's not fun. Here's the thing. Over the last 5+ years, these banks have hired great talent all over the country and have all done well. Look at PNC for example. YoY increase in profits, productivity, and stock price since being fully remote.
Here is what happens:
You drive ~1 hour round trip to commute (if you are lucky), with more expenses, less flexibility, and less sleep / mental well-being.
They haven't invested any money in the offices in years, so you sit in a run-down office with half of the amenities it may have once had.
You take team calls because your team and other teams you collaborate with are spread out all over the country, and do the same exact thing you did from home, but now from an office cubicle / open floor plan desk.
The objectively worse work environment + the lack of being able to take a mental break/reset eventually drives you mad.

This is not for collaboration or culture.
This is not going back to what it "used to be". As a matter of fact, most people in technology were hybrid long before Covid and NEVER worked 5 days in the office.
This is not "were going to see how this works out and maybe..."

Nope.

I don't know what the reason is. Maybe it's a soft layoff, and they want people to quit. Maybe it's from outside forces. Maybe it's because of the acquisition, and certain people want to continue to line their pockets more. It's probably all of the above.

Whatever it is, this is not what the employees wanted. Don't believe me? Check out the results from the end of year survey.

I am already hearing "this is what people wanted.", "The people who have already RTO have loved it.", "This is just an experiment, and no one knows what's going to be the outcome.", "People have been doing this for years before covid with no issues."
It's all BS.

What some of the downvoted comments on here have said are correct. If 5 days in isn't for you, then look for a new job or simply don't comply and get fired / inevitably laid off. Or suffer until one of the above happens.

I would really love to think that we the working people can do something to change this but it is painfully obvious that they do not care or have ulterior motives, so they are probably not going care about any counter efforts. They want some employees to stay and some employees to leave.
If the ones who they don't want to retain leave - great!
If the ones who they do want to retain leave - well, they can always be replaced.

We all want WFH just like we all want paid more, and how many companies have ever paid their employees more out of the kindness of their hearts?

They do not care about us and it's not just PNC it's 99% of all companies in this country.

This is what I would say…respectfully of course.

Your employees have stood behind you helping PNC stay successful. Without us, it could not be done. Every single one of us contributes in some way. You are getting a lot of heat regarding your decision. Is this the legacy that you want to be remembered by? A CEO who didn’t care about his employees? I know you have heart, Bill. I’ve seen it.

You were so upset about not being able to reach several direct reports. If your directs can’t be reached, I’d be upset too. But hold them individually accountable, not the entire bank.

Your children are grown, I believe. If I’m wrong, I apologize. This company has alot of single moms struggling to support their children. In most families with two parents, they both have to work. Trying to juggle getting them to school and back home, daycare costs and keeping food on the table has become more challenging than ever. Most of us don’t make enough money to hire a nanny. We want to have enough time with our children to raise them well. Our children are the future businessmen and women of this country. Nothing can replace that valuable time with our children to help them grow into successful adults, make good decisions and always be open to other people’s perspectives. To always be respectful to everyone, because you never know what they may be dealing with. And when you can help someone less fortunate, you should. Be loving, be kind, be supportive.

Those that are happy with the return to office decision are ones who can afford to do so. We aren’t pushing back because we’re lazy people or big babies! Maybe there is a very small percentage that seem to take advantage. Hold those people accountable, not the employees who produce and do their jobs effectively.

Put yourself in our shoes for 1 day. Partner with a single mom for a day and see the challenges. Having to choose between paying the gas bill or putting food on the table. Do you know what that feels like? The cost of commuting whether by bus or car 5 days a week is expensive.

You’ve said how successful we’ve been before & after covid, now all of a sudden it’s hurting the company to work from home. It’s contradictive. We know there are other reasons behind your decision.

I’m asking you to consider coming out and saying you have heard how your employees feel, and maybe have us come in 3 days a week. Inform your management team not everyone can’t wtf mondays and fridays. It should be well coordinated for coverage purposes. For department meetings, everyone in person. That little bit of flexibility will go along way, Bill. Going back on a decision doesn’t make you a weak leader, Bill. It shows everyone that you are a human being who cares about his employees. That you recognized after the fact, this decision was going to cause more hardships than you anticipated. I guarantee if you did that, your employees would be much happier and so appreciative. When employees are happy at work, they tend to go above and beyond more.

I overheard someone talking about how rto is going to change and it’ll be 2 days per week in office and up to the department(s) on which days you need to come in? Anyone know anything or know if this is something that’s going to be released?

Apparently has been put on hold . I was initially informed that I would be released at the start of the second quarter. However, today I was informed that this decision has been reversed. While I am grateful to retain my position, I must admit that I was looking forward to the relief of not having the threat of displacement looming over me, and I would prefer to receive a severance package should they decide to terminate my employment. I am now concerned that I might receive an IM or one of those unnecessary RTO reports, which they could potentially use as justification for my dismissal. This marks the third occasion on which I have experienced a similar situation.

To all the people on here complaining about RTO—you are wasting precious time and energy. Don’t waste your efforts whining on here to a group of people who, to be honest, 90 percent don’t give a damn about your problems and the other 10 percent is glad you got you got ‘em. Don't live with the dogma of other people's thinking. You decide what your limits are, or if you have any limits at all.

My cousin’s company issued an RTO mandate a while back. Do you think he took to an internet message board to complain and seek pity? Nope. Not a chance.

He mocked up a concept for a small mechanism for his desk. I think it was a printed circuit board with a slot for his work access badge, connected to a small remote radio unit (it was a cheap RRU from the web) and some kind of signal repeater with a diffuser which made the system think he was on site 24/7.

When they asked him about it, he played d-mb. Then instead of complaining, again he went and improved it with an integrated I/O switch, a battery backup unit with uninterrupted power supply (BBU/UPS), and a linear encoder so the signal output run time was limited to a max of ~65 hours weekly. He tweaked the battery size and a few other design features so that he only has to go into the office once a month for routine maintenance.

My point is sometimes it is better to tap into your creative side than it is to moan and whine on the internet. With the time and effort some of you guys have invested complaining and ruminating here, you could have had 2 or 3 prototypes assembled and tested.

Update: They made him a partner/principal at the firm about 2 years later.