What’s Trending: Hybrid Creep
February 10, 2026
Share this post:
It has been no secret that business leaders and managers have been pushing for employees to make their way back to the office full-time. Few workplace trends have had workers trickle in now and then, such as coffee badging, but the overwhelming desire of companies to have bodies at workplace desks has given rise to a new trend: the hybrid creep.
Here’s what it is and what top publications are saying about it.
It may seem innocent enough. An in-office perk here and there, a harmless tactic to get more employees to make the trek back into the office. Is this an approach that’ll gain traction, or will workers continue to resist return-to-office (RTO) practices?
Caroline Castrillon, writing for Forbes, says companies are using this trend to regain control, and it could, in fact, achieve its desired outcome by “[reframing] the office as the center of professional and social life.”
“Instead of sweeping announcements, employers introduce small, incremental adjustments that gradually drive workers onsite, often without formally changing policy.”
What does this trend look like? Employees are developing a work environment that pays in advancement, involvement, and visibility that can only be gained in the office.
Perhaps the push for subtle RTO practices isn’t to lure current employees back to their desks, but instead to help push them out so new employees (ones willing to make the daily commute or desperate enough to forgo flexibility in general) can fill their spots.
Increasing the number of days employees are in the office is a power managers may currently have, since people aren’t exactly looking to give up job security. Job-hugging may be a trend paired well with the latest ramp-up of in-office days, but if not, that’s ok, because there’s bound to be a job-seeker that’ll fit the bill.
“It’s likely that employers going with a baby-step approach aren’t using stricter return-to-office mandates as a way to nudge workers to resign…“
The article from this publication, by Sarah E. Needleman, concludes that these baby steps are actually an inkling to a full workweek at the office, as a possible foreshadowing of the end of flexible work altogether.
Some workers have already made the transition to the 4-day work week. Isn’t that enough? Are employers ready for the potential increase of workslop just to placate in-office productivity demands, should they be shackled to their workplace desk instead of the comfort of their homes?
“As much as employers are hoping to slowly lead employees to a full-time return to in-person work, most employees aren’t willing to head in that direction just yet.”
Hybrid creeping may seem like an attractive approach to achieving the goal of having workers back at their in-office workstations, but the outcome may be a double-edged sword for productivity and retention.
On the one hand, managers will be able to more closely monitor workplace performance, but at the cost of potentially losing their employees’ trust. On the other hand, high performers who have proven themselves with flexible schedules may now be considering what greener grass looks like in a new opportunity that still honors those hybrid practices.
With a slow but deliberate push for RTO to any degree, there’s a conflict of interest between employers who want their employees to feel valued and employees who want to maintain their value to employers. Whatever the resistance to in-office work, it may be time for employees and their bosses to find a reasonable compromise to retain talent/gainful employment.
The hybrid creep is just one of many practices, like before and to come, that are aimed at controlling where work takes place. If the work is getting done, why the demand? Its policies and tactics, such as these that are often met with optimism by business leaders and resentment by workers.
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO FIND?
