New U.S. Labor Department data indicates a drop off in remote work in 2022, as reported in The Wall Street Journal.

“Some 72.5% of business establishments said their employees teleworked rarely or not at all last year, according to a Labor Department report released this week. That figure climbed from 60.1% in 2021. The survey showed about 21 million more workers on-site full time in 2022, compared with the prior year,” according to the article. “The new number is also close to the share of establishments—76.7%—that said they had no employees teleworking before the Covid-19 pandemic, and that were open in February 2020, the Labor Department said.”

“There’s a sense that innovation, creativity and collaboration can suffer when teams are apart,” said Mike Steinitz, senior executive director at Robert Half. A survey by the global recruitment firm found that 92% of managers prefer their teams to work on-site.“They believe employees are simply more productive in the office,” he said. “They also feel that it’s important for mentoring and training both new and existing employees.”

Several large companies have said they expect their employees to report in person, more often. Walt Disney Co. now pushes for four days a week on-site. Starbucks Corp. has asked office staff to come in more. This month, Meta Platforms Inc. Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg told employees at the Facebook parent that in-person time helps build relationships and get more done, according to the article