I am not a SV-based or US-based employee, and unfortunately I have to consider myself pretty lucky to be working remotely, and am therefore more stuck in an otherwise terrible job simply because I can't give up remote work.
Outside SV or some US hubs, a lot of average workplaces seem to try hard to get people to come back into the office, regardless of the requirements of the job itself. It might have started with banks and governments, but recent incentives and pushes from cities and the real-estate market can sometimes push people to go back into offices "to save businesses".
The pandemic might have offered some profound shifts, but not fundamental ones unfortunately. So I stay at my workplace for the time being, trading away some mental health for the benefit of remote work - and I suspect that not only I am not alone in this, I am probably more privileged than many (most?) who didn't even have a choice.
Outside SV or some US hubs, a lot of average workplaces seem to try hard to get people to come back into the office, regardless of the requirements of the job itself. It might have started with banks and governments, but recent incentives and pushes from cities and the real-estate market can sometimes push people to go back into offices "to save businesses".
The pandemic might have offered some profound shifts, but not fundamental ones unfortunately. So I stay at my workplace for the time being, trading away some mental health for the benefit of remote work - and I suspect that not only I am not alone in this, I am probably more privileged than many (most?) who didn't even have a choice.