During the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic, a profound shift occurred in the world of work. The daily grind to the office was replaced by the short commute from bed to laptop. Living rooms transformed into conference halls, and for millions, the dream of work moulding around life, rather than the opposite, became a tangible reality. Remote work was heralded as the liberating 'new normal.'
The Quiet Withdrawal of a Promise
That promise, however, is being quietly rescinded. As major firms, including tech giant Instagram, instruct their workforces to prepare for a return to the office in 2025, a clear and uncomfortable trend is emerging. Remote work is no longer a broad-based offering but a sparingly granted privilege. Who receives this flexibility speaks volumes about their standing and value within an organisation.
Sander van ’t Noordende, the global CEO of Randstad, the planet's largest talent agency, has a unique vantage point on this global shift. His firm places nearly half a million people into jobs every week, giving him a real-time pulse on labour market dynamics beyond corporate policy documents. In a candid conversation with Fortune, he laid bare the new reality.
"You have to be very special to be able to demand a 100% remote job," van ’t Noordende stated. "You have to have very special technology skills or some expertise."
Flexibility as the New Marker of Value
For a time, workplace flexibility was portrayed as a cultural evolution, a sign of mutual trust between employers and employees. The post-pandemic labour market is brutally rewriting that narrative. Today, remote work is less about trust and more about scarcity and leverage. If your skills are difficult to replace, you retain negotiating power. If not, your office badge awaits.
This stratification even extends to the world of freelancing, often romanticised as the ultimate escape. Van ’t Noordende clarified that this path is not a universal solution. "The whole phenomenon of freelance work has been coming up... but that also requires special skills, good commercial skills, or networking skills, which not everybody has," he noted. True professional freedom, it seems, has always required an entry fee.
The Rise of the 'Hybrid Hierarchy'
This is not a complete return to the pre-2020 era. The rigid five-day office week is largely gone. Van ’t Noordende believes the pendulum has found its equilibrium. "Outside of a few sectors, particularly big-city banking, it’s generally a hybrid model, around three to four days, plus some work from home," he explained.
While hybrid work has survived, it has also created a new layer of workplace inequality. Researchers term this the "hybrid hierarchy." This academic-sounding concept has deeply personal implications for employees. Consulting firm Korn Ferry predicted this at the start of 2025, forecasting that flexibility would morph into a perk for the most valuable as office mandates strengthened.
Their report starkly declared: "2025’s haves and have-nots will be divided not by economics, but by talent and how much the company wants them." On one side are irreplaceable engineers, specialists, and technical experts. On the other are workers with less leverage, often in standardised or entry-level roles, for whom visibility in the office is now the expected norm.
This dynamic is not entirely new. Special arrangements have historically been reserved for top brass. The modern difference lies in its transparency and symbolism. Working from home is no longer just about convenience; it has become a potent signal of how much an employee is valued and, conversely, how replaceable they might be.
The Office Returns, But Trust is Redefined
Employers champion the office's return with talk of collaboration, culture, and renewed energy. Underneath this rhetoric lies a quieter, more divisive message: some employees are trusted to deliver results unseen, while others are not. The pandemic momentarily flattened the workplace, with everyone logging in from the same digital grid. Now, the layers are firmly back in place.
Remote work remains an option, but only for those with the clout to demand it. For the vast majority, the promise of flexibility has been replaced by a stark reminder of their place in the corporate pecking order. The workplace has recalibrated, and the rules of engagement have been permanently, and unequally, rewritten.
