This is why, when possible, it's best to push the cost and timing of commuting onto the person or company requiring the commute. Some professions classify commu

This is why, when possible, it's best to push the cost and timing of commuting onto the person or company requiring the commute. Some professions classify commuting time as working time, but not all (nor is there a legal requirement for it). For a lot of companies, there's really no need for long-term fixed colocation, but the economy allows for it since they don't have to account for most of the externalities and 3rd+ degree costs associated with new buildings in ecosystems, construction long-term impacts, or even something as simple for the carbon output of making concrete, all the while reaping the rewards of employees working extra for free in a tightly-controlled environment. And when they inevitably move, there's no legal requirement to pay employees for relocation either. Additional corporate costs anywhere in this ecosystem would probably result in dramatic changes and even more work-from-home opportunities. Innovative remote-first companies are using the savings to only temporarily colocate their employees in interesting and rewarding ways for all (like all-hands meetups), plus reaping the benefits of naturally-increased written communications, creating a win-win situation for all from what I can tell. Put another way... the logistics/efficiencies/costs of everything is very different for those involved when individuals have to transport groceries to home (via cars, public transit, assistants, etc) vs a company like Amazon that connects warehousing, grocers, and delivery. Big box stores full of employees without a shred of product knowledge make less sense if people are no longer commuting by personal transport for basic goods because it's cheaper and easier to tap into a delivery network for the same thing. The years when oil was super expensive, economists noted how much less people were shopping (before online shopping was ubiquitous). It's already been uneconomical for a while now for most businesses to host the same bits their employees flip and/or related software in the same place as the employees (doesn't matter if you're writing software or ticking order-completed boxes after attaching printed shipping labels). The world is inherently more decentralized today than decades prior.