By: Alex Berndt
May 27, 2025
It’s been five years since the first lockdown — prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic’s spread across the globe. After all these rounds of sitting at home, vaccinations, masking, and unmasking, large swaths of the federal workforce are being ordered back into office spaces with little regard for protocol or feasibility.
Given this fact, alongside the understanding that more companies have begun implementing minimum in-office days per week, this paints a confusing picture for those that may have embraced the prevailing narrative during those early days — that remote work would be the way of the future. So, for those about to embark on their own career paths… where do we stand?
What does Gen Z aim for, on the whole?
For those that hope to find work remotely, the benefits are clear. Fully remote workers can save thousands of dollars on expenses like transportation, lunches, and office clothing. Beyond this, the freedom that comes with remote work — being able to set up the perfect office space, the increased privacy, and the additional time gained by not needing to commute — is compelling enough that there have been large swaths of the workforce that simply refuse to return to the office.
On the other hand, humans are social creatures. Having lived through the isolation brought on by the pandemic, there are still many that prefer the interaction and community-building opportunities that an in-person environment can bring. For some, it can provide the accountability that they need to actually perform the work that has to be completed. For yet others, there are certain fields that simply cannot be worked from the comfort of home, such as skilled trades or food service.
When a company chooses between “fully remote” and “fully in-person,” it seems impossible to make everyone happy. There are always people who will work better when physically around others, and there are always people who will prefer to work (or are only able to work) from the comfort of their home.
The ultimate solution to this dilemma, therefore, should be to include and accommodate for these differences across as many industries as possible. Many companies have already begun adopting hybrid work models to meet these increasing demands for freedom and flexibility, but it has yet to become the true standard.
Generations of the past fought and won the five-day work week — the legal standard since the 1930s.
If Gen Z sticks to its principles, and demands the freedom to work how they want, where they want… who knows what we could accomplish?
Alex Berndt is a senior studying professional and public writing. Her passion for learning and sharing that gained knowledge is always close at hand. Apart from her studies, she co-runs a community built around collaborative storytelling in digital spaces.