The Washington Post orders employees to return to the office five days a week

Washington Post CEO William Lewis informed employees Thursday that they will be required to work outside the newspaper’s offices five days a week starting in June.

Lewis made the news after thanking staffers for their “hard work and dedication” covering the 2024 presidential election.

“Thank you all so much for your hard work and dedication in this important week for America and the world,” Lewis wrote in a memo. “We produced great journalism for our clients and the office was a vibrant place to be.”

“I want that great office energy for us every day,” he added. “I’m certainly informed that’s how it was here before Covid and it’s important that we get that back.”

Lewis, who is also the newspaper’s publisher, ordered that managers return to the office full-time by February 3, 2025, and that all other employees begin coming in five days a week starting June 2, 2025.

“We know that for some people this change from three to five days in the office will be welcome and a straightforward transition,” he wrote. “For others, we know it will be an adjustment – ​​you may need to adjust routines and rediscover old ways of managing work-life balance.”

“That’s why we’re giving more than six months to many of our colleagues to sort it out,” Lewis added.

The Washington Post currently allows employees to work from home two days a week.

The union representing many of the publication’s workers said it was “saddened” to see the “work from home” memo, calling the policy “outdated”.

“Like many of you, we are concerned to learn that after four years of successful flexible working arrangements, The Post plans to introduce an inflexible and outdated telecommuting policy that does not reflect the reality of work or our life. ” the Washington Post Guild said in an email to members, obtained by the Washingtonian.

“The union’s leadership sees this for what it is: a change that stands to further disrupt our work rather than improve our productivity or cooperation,” the union said.

The decree from management comes weeks after Lewis canceled the paper’s planned endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris, a move that ruffled the feathers of some staffers and subscribers.

Jeff Bezos, the billionaire owner of the Washington Post, defended the decision not to endorse Harris — or any political candidate going forward — arguing that it would have no effect on the election and would only “create a perception of bias.”