Have employers won the RTO battle?

The majority of employees are looking elsewhere for jobs this year, yet the market seems poised to swing in employers' favor once again. What can job seekers and recruiters expect in 2025? The answer is anyone's guess. 

Hiring managers and candidates are navigating plenty of unknowns this year: Economic uncertainty, the emerging role of technology and changing workplace dynamics, like return to office mandates, are all transforming how work is getting done in 2025. Recruitment and advisory firm Career Group Companies dove into these trends for their annual report, revealing uncertainty across the board. Yet there are still perks and benefits that can set the bar high. 

Read more: 9 in 10 workers are looking for a new job

More than half of employees want to switch jobs this year, according to a survey by Resume Templates, and 27% have already started looking. Yet the search is long and laborious: Career Group's report found that more than a quarter of job seekers have spent 10-12 months looking for a new role, and more than half have gone through three to four rounds of interviews before being given an offer. 

RTO remains a sticking point

While recruiters are working hard to find the perfect candidates, whether they'll stay — and for how long — is another matter. Return to office remains a deciding factor for 44% of employees, who would decline a job offer with a lack of flexibility, and 22% of currently employed workers would switch jobs if their employer increased in-office expectations. Yet seekers will have a harder time finding remote-only roles, as 87% of employers plan to implement an RTO policy this year, according to Resume Builder. 

"For the first time in a while, it seems that employees are starting to realize that a majority of companies are trending toward RTO," says Emily Levine, executive vice president at Career Group Companies. "I've seen candidates who originally were quite firm in their search criteria for a remote position, slowly become amenable to hybrid and now on-site opportunities as they realized they were not receiving interview requests or offers for fully remote roles anymore." 

Read more: Leaders beware: Revenge quitting on the rise in 2025 

Yet it's in an employer's best interest to keep their current employees happy, while finding the right combination of work arrangements and benefits, too, Levine says. The Society of Human Resource Management estimates it costs six to nine months worth of an employee's salary to replace them when they quit, on costs related to recruiting, interviewing, hiring, training and lost productivity as they get up to speed. 

"Turnover is still expensive for companies, so it's in their best interest to treat their employees well and pay them competitively to keep retention high," Levine says. "Many employers are offering more generous vacation time, mental health support and flexible hours to meet employee expectations for a better work-life balance." 

Flexibility is key

One thing hiring managers and employees agreed on was the benefit of a flexible approach to work and the types of benefits that foster this arrangement. This year, Levine predicts hybrid work will remain a win-win, as 61% of job candidates listed this as an ideal work model. Flexible benefits like unlimited PTO are another perk that can set an employer apart. 

Read more: Why coworking spaces may be the best RTO strategy 

"The hybrid work model definitely attracts the most interest because candidates get the best of both worlds," Levine says. "They save time on their commute, they still get in-office collaboration and culture, but have a few days a week to work comfortably in their home."