New Study Finds Commuting Costs at Center of Dispute Over Return-to-Office Mandates

Sixty percent of U.S. professionals cite commuting expenses as the most crucial cost to have subsidized by their employer, according to a new poll.

A general view of commuters and heavy transport vehicles traveling on the M1 freeway in Melbourne, Australia, on Aug. 6, 2020. Asanka Ratnayake/Getty Images

Amid calls by corporations for workers to return to the office, a new study found that commuting costs are the biggest obstacle to achieving that goal.

A poll by global recruitment and staffing firm Robert Walters found that return-to-office mandates are creating a “travel rift” between employers and workers due to transportation costs, with 60 percent of U.S. professionals citing commuting expenses as the most crucial cost to have subsidized by their employers.

“A significant number of employees moved to more affordable homes in the suburbs during the pandemic,” California career coach Kyle Elliott told The Epoch Times. “With [return-to-office] mandates, they’re now asking themselves whether they want to make the lengthy—and costly—commute back into the city.”

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported that 8.93 million people relocated at the start of the pandemic in 2020, as one in three adults in the United States substituted some or all of their typical in-person job duties with remote work.

Now that the pandemic has drawn to a close, companies such as Amazon, AT&T, and Dell have mandated that employees return to the office five days per week, while others, such as IBM and Salesforce, have introduced return-to-office policies that require on-site appearances three or four days per week.

Meanwhile, the Trump administration’s return-to-office mandate for federal employees has been influential. President Donald Trump announced the end of federal remote work arrangements in a memorandum he signed on Jan. 20, just hours after his inauguration.

Pre-pandemic, commuting costs in the United States accounted for some 16 percent of total expenses, averaging $10,742 per year per household, according to Sean Puddle, North America managing director at Robert Walters. That’s compared to 17 percent in 2023 averaging $13,174 per household.

“While hybrid and remote work have reduced commuting for some, those who still commute regularly are now paying significantly more than they did pre-pandemic—due to factors such as gas prices, vehicle costs, and public transit costs,” Puddle told The Epoch Times.

According to Puddle, the number of “super commuters,” also known as professionals traveling at least 90 minutes to get to work, was about 4.6 million before the pandemic, representing only 3.1 percent of the U.S. workforce. But during and in the immediate aftermath of the pandemic, that number increased as hybrid working arrangements meant professionals could move out of major cities.

“Super commuters believed hybrid and remote work would be permanent due to company policies, productivity studies, and major investments in remote technology,” Puddle said. “Many relocated based on employer assurances and shifting workforce preferences.”

North Carolina career consultant Matthew Warzel told The Epoch Times that due to the commuting cost increase, “it’s understandable that workers are reluctant to make such a move.”

Hayden Cohen, CEO of Houston-based human resources company Hire With Near, said the more people companies have hired since going remote, the more difficult it will be to implement a return-to-office mandate.

“You’ll have fewer people who remember your office’s culture, and more people who live far enough from the office that commuting is a serious burden,” Cohen told The Epoch Times.

Commuters spent some $8,466 a year commuting in 2022, which was about 19 percent of their annual income, according to Clever Real Estate data.  Those costs include fuel, parking pass fees, tolls, and parking tickets.

“One approach worth considering is relocation stipends,” Cohen said. “Paying people to commute is an open-ended commitment, but a one-time payment to help them move closer to the office is much easier to swallow.”

Although the Robert Walters survey found that 88 percent of professionals don’t receive any incentives or support from employers with commutes, a 2024 Mercer study found that 18 percent of 721 responding employers with at least 500 employees offer commuting benefits or planned to do so last year. That’s compared to 21 percent for companies that employ more than 5,000 workers.

Warzel believes the cost of commuting is among the factors companies are starting to weigh along with the cost of maintaining office space, the impact on employee morale, and the long-term impact on recruitment and retention.

“Each company’s approach will depend on its unique business model and workforce needs,” he said. “Commuting stipends or subsidies where employers provide a set amount or cover specific expenses are very effective.”

Other incentives include tax deductions for transit costs in order to reduce the financial strain that public transport commuters experience as well as transportation vouchers or stipends.

“They could also explore partnerships with transport providers to get discounted rates for employees or offer flexible work options to reduce the number of days employees need to commute,” Warzel said.

According to the latest Resume Templates survey of 849 managers, 27 percent of businesses will have returned to the traditional five-days-per-week in-office practice by the end of 2025. Some 22 percent have already implemented such changes, and 5 percent plan to do so.

Meanwhile, the survey shows that only 6 percent of businesses expect to remain fully remote throughout 2025 leaving employees with a choice.

“With delays and cancellations adding extra minutes and sometimes hours onto commutes, those who moved out of cities initially may be coming to regret their decisions—now faced with either having to seek new positions closer to home or take longer journeys to work for an increasing number of days each week,” Puddle said.