The Washington Post has announced a return-to-office mandate for employees, signaling a shift from pandemic-era remote work practices. According to a recent memo issued by chief executive William Lewis, all staff are expected to resume in-office work five days a week by June 2, 2025 with managers required back by February 3 of next year. Lewis emphasized the benefits of in-person collaboration in his memo, stating, “We are really good when we are working together in person.”

This policy aligns with a similar directive from Amazon, where chief executive Andy Jassy highlighted how in-person work enhances speedy decision-making and cultural retention. Amazon, the e-commerce company headed by Jeff Bezos, who also owns The Washington Post, announced its return-to-office plans in September.

The policy shift at The Post arrives at a time of internal unrest. Jeff Bezos’s previous decision to cease presidential candidate endorsements by the paper led to a series of subscription cancellations and criticism from some of its journalists.

The response from The Washington Post Guild, the employee union, was swift and negative. The guild labeled the new office mandate as “inflexible and outdated,” expressing concerns over potential disruptions to work instead of improvements in productivity or collaboration. “Guild leadership sees this for what it is: a change that stands to further disrupt our work,” the union complained in a statement.

As many companies reassess their work policies post-pandemic, The Washington Post‘s decision to enforce a full return to the office reflects broader industry trends toward re-establishing pre-pandemic norms.