Considering that the topic has already been discussed ad nauseum, my best guess is that it's a sort of indirect effect of the never-ending struggle to influence

Considering that the topic has already been discussed ad nauseum, my best guess is that it's a sort of indirect effect of the never-ending struggle to influence culture. I'd guess it's related to the ongoing layoffs and the larger economic changes. RTO is often speculated as a way to force people to quit to avoid having to fire them (and I completely agree that it is.) This article just happens to be written to appeal more toward the worker, probably as a way to gain wider appeal and promote virality considering that the actual data is so weak. Granted, it does confirm my own biases so it's getting my upvote. I wonder what it would take to create a society where we could vote on things based on the objective truth rather than needing to vote based on what we would like the narrative to be