Returning to the office is not seen as neutral. It is perceived as a cost, financially, logistically, and personally, and most people expect compensation to offset it.

RTO comes at a cost - of time, money and inconvenience. Most people expect compensation to offset it. When asked how much extra pay would be required to return to the office full time:

• 59.24% of respondents selected £5,000–£10,000
• 1.13% were willing to do it for nothing
• 17.74% said no amount of money would be enough.

People put a price on their flexibility, autonomy, and time - and employers need to be willing to pay it.

Among respondents earning £100k+, expectations were the highest:

• Over half (52%) said they would require £10,000 extra to return full time
• Fewer than 15% would return with no additional compensation
• The average required premium (excluding those who said they couldn’t be paid) was £7,222

For this group, flexibility is not a perk, it’s already baked into their perceived value of work. Time is money, and the preferences of this group prove it. The more money you have, the greater the value on your time - and the more you’ll charge for an hour spent trapped on a sweaty tube.

For respondents in the mid-salary band (£20k - £80K), the picture is similar, if slightly less extreme:

• 35% selected £10,000 extra
• 24% selected £5,000 extra
• Nearly 18% said you couldn’t pay me to return full time
• Average premium: £5,851

Structurally, this group sits at a friction point. They have graduated beyond the need for hand-holding, yet have not reached the executive level where rules become flexible. Consequently, they struggle with a desire for autonomy that clashes with strict adherence to policy.

Among those earning £0–£20k, responses split in two directions:
* 27% said they couldn’t be paid to return full time
* 23% would return for nothing

For lower earners, the office can represent both opportunity and burden, offering structure and access, while also imposing disproportionate costs in travel, time, and flexibility.

This tension is amplified by research suggesting UK employees could spend nearly £3.5k a year on commuting alone if required to be in the office five days a week. Therefore, for those earning under £20K, returning full time is no longer about preferences, but feasibility.

The sharp split in responses reflects this reality: for some, the office is a ladder; for others, an unaffordable tax on work itself.

If organisations want people back in the office full time, they have three choices:

1. Pay the premium: Accept that office presence has a market price and budget for it.
2. Reduce the perceived cost: Shorter weeks, genuine flexibility, better locations, or fewer mandated days.
3. Reframe the value exchange: Make the office meaningfully better than remote, not just mandatory.

What doesn’t work is pretending the premium doesn’t exist. The way organisations work is now a crucial part of companies EVP.

The return-to-office debate isn’t ideological. Flexibility now has real economic value.

Employees have run the numbers, and the verdict is clear: office attendance is no longer free. Whether through higher pay, greater flexibility, or better experiences, the cost has to be covered somewhere.

The real question for employers isn’t “Should we return to the office?”

It’s “Are we willing to pay the price?”