FROM large corporations calling employees back to business district skyscrapers to the return of lunchtime lines at salad bars: signs that workers are returning to New York's offices, albeit in "hybrid" mode for now, are multiplying.
Several companies emblematic of America's financial capital are preparing for a huge in-person return of staff after 14 months of widespread teleworking and a vigorous vaccination campaign.
JP Morgan Chase bank led the way at the end of April when it announced that it would bring all of its US staff back to the office on a "rotational" basis starting in early July.
Then last week, fellow New York financial giant Goldman Sachs sent employees a memo telling them to prepare to return to the office from June 14.
The instructions came around the same time that New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that most of New York's pandemic-era restrictions will be lifted on May 19 as COVID-19 positivity rates, now around two percent, continue to fall.
Local government is also making moves: city hall brought back 80,000 employees last Monday.
The announcements accelerate a return-to-work movement that was just getting under way in America's largest city. New York has taken a cautious approach to reopening after finding itself the early epicenter of the US's outbreak in spring 2020.
Just 16 percent of workers had returned to offices at the end of April, up from 13 percent in January, according to Kastle Systems, which specializes in building security.
"There's definitely an upward trend, but it is an incremental trend," Kastle Systems chairman Mark Ein told AFP. "It is a slowly building wave."
New York occupancy rates are below the US average but some insiders are predicting a sharp increase in the next two months.
"We've seen a dramatic shift," said Craig Deitelzweig, president of Marx Realty, a company managing seven buildings in Midtown and Wall Street.
Its occupancy rates passed 30 percent last week, against less than 20 percent previously.
"The tenants who weren't back were saying September and now we're hearing June or July, some even in May," he said.
- 'Optimism' -
Potential clients scouting out new offices have also picked up, he said, with many expressing a demand for outdoor spaces and windows that open not always the case in Manhattan skyscrapers.
"Before I would look through my window at the avenue and there would not be a single person on the sidewalk," said Robert Byrnes, president of the East Midtown Partnership, a business association.
"Now, it is still not packed, but I can see a few dozen people from my window. There's definitely a sense of optimism," he added.
Yet, many employees remain reluctant, especially when they have long commutes on public transport to get to their desks.
Nadjeda Estriplet, human resources manager at a financial technology company, returned to her office in Manhattan, an hour from her home in Brooklyn, for the first time Thursday.
But she's in no rush to return more regularly, especially since she prefers to wait until the summer before getting immunized to make sure there are no adverse reactions to the vaccines.
Her company, like many others, has surveyed its employees and is "leaning towards a hybrid" model from September, with two or three days a week of work in the office mandatory.
Jordan, 34, who works at a large financial firm, also hopes that he can continue to work from home at least two or three days a week and save himself two hours of commuting a day.
- Apprehensions -
"I sleep better when I work from home, and I also eat better healthier food when I make it myself," said Jordan, who declined to give his full name because he was not authorized to speak to the press.
So far, his employer hasn't "put on any pressure" to return to the office but he expects, with apprehension, new instructions soon.
Companies seem aware that some employees might have reservations about returning. In its memo, Goldman Sachs where young executives recently denounced endemic overwork said staff would have the opportunity to discuss their situation with their superiors.
Some 72 percent of American employers say they are open to a hybrid mode, but generally on the condition that staff are in the office for at least 20 hours a week, according to a study released in late April by Arizona State University and the Rockefeller Foundation.
The flexibility could be explained by the companies' reluctance to force staff to get vaccinated. Forty-four percent want to impose immunization on all their employees, while 32 percent preferred to "encourage" it, the study found.
ETX Studio
Wed May 12 2021
![New Yorkers start to return to offices, in hybrid mode for now New Yorkers start to return to offices, in hybrid mode for now](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2021-05/51620783949_NEWYORK.jpg)
People walk past the New York Stock Exchange on Wall Street in New York City. ETXStudiopic
![Keputusan kekalkan kerusi 6 bekas MP Bersatu tidak pelik, gambaran demokrasi berparlimen Keputusan kekalkan kerusi 6 bekas MP Bersatu tidak pelik, gambaran demokrasi berparlimen](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-06/61719654005_Bersatu.jpg)
Keputusan kekalkan kerusi 6 bekas MP Bersatu tidak pelik, gambaran demokrasi berparlimen
Keputusan itu juga adalah satu ujian kepada sistem demokrasi berparlimen di Malaysia.
![Op Pintas Mega: Remaja jadi buruh paksa diselamatkan, 47 pekerja asing ditahan Op Pintas Mega: Remaja jadi buruh paksa diselamatkan, 47 pekerja asing ditahan](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/71721253254_OpPintasMega.jpg)
Op Pintas Mega: Remaja jadi buruh paksa diselamatkan, 47 pekerja asing ditahan
Remaja terbabit disyaki dieksploitasi untuk menjadi buruh paksa di kilang memproses bahan kitar semula berkenaan sejak lebih setahun lalu.
![Kerjasama antarabangsa penting demin keadilan untuk mangsa tragedi MH17 - Schoof Kerjasama antarabangsa penting demin keadilan untuk mangsa tragedi MH17 - Schoof](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/81721252554_DickSchoof.jpg)
Kerjasama antarabangsa penting demin keadilan untuk mangsa tragedi MH17 - Schoof
Kesan tragedi nahas MH17 amat besar dan begitu dirasai di Belanda meskipun sudah sedekad berlalu.
![Sekatan unilateral AS tidak jejas nilai keseluruhan eksport negara - MITI Sekatan unilateral AS tidak jejas nilai keseluruhan eksport negara - MITI](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2023-07/71690209333_MITIMalaysia.jpg)
Sekatan unilateral AS tidak jejas nilai keseluruhan eksport negara - MITI
Syarikat terlibat kehilangan akses terhadap sistem kewangan, perdagangan dan perkhidmatan yang mempunyai pangkalan operasi di AS.
![Sarawak komited utamakan tenaga bersih bagi tangani ketidakkonsistenan tenaga boleh baharu Sarawak komited utamakan tenaga bersih bagi tangani ketidakkonsistenan tenaga boleh baharu](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/71721251255_MIDA.jpg)
Sarawak komited utamakan tenaga bersih bagi tangani ketidakkonsistenan tenaga boleh baharu
Abang Johari berkata terdapat peluang besar bagi pelabur untuk bekerjasama dengan Sarawak dan mengembangkan sektor penjanaan tenaga bersih kerana semua aktiviti ekonomi akan bergantung kepada tenaga.
![Gangguan kualiti air di Pasir Puteh bersifat sementara - AKSB Gangguan kualiti air di Pasir Puteh bersifat sementara - AKSB](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-04/41714212749_TBMASALAHAIRGEN.jpg)
Gangguan kualiti air di Pasir Puteh bersifat sementara - AKSB
AKSB Pasir Puteh akan melakukan aktiviti flushing di kawasan terlibat dan sekitar Selising agar bekalan kualiti air pulih untuk jangka masa segera.
![Suspek kes keropok beracun dibebaskan dengan jaminan polis Suspek kes keropok beracun dibebaskan dengan jaminan polis](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/81721107133_keropokberacunrem.jpg)
Suspek kes keropok beracun dibebaskan dengan jaminan polis
Suspek yang juga pekebun itu akan dilepaskan dengan jaminan polis sementara menunggu keputusan Timbalan Pendakwa Raya.
![ADB semak semula unjuran pertumbuhan 2024 bagi negara membangun Asia kepada 5 peratus ADB semak semula unjuran pertumbuhan 2024 bagi negara membangun Asia kepada 5 peratus](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2022-04/71649228054_TBADBBOX.jpg)
ADB semak semula unjuran pertumbuhan 2024 bagi negara membangun Asia kepada 5 peratus
ADB berkata permintaan domestik berdaya tahan, dengan eksport dan pembuatan yang meningkat, akan menyokong pertumbuhan tahun ini.
![Bank buku diwujudkan di perpustakaan awam negeri - Saraswathy Bank buku diwujudkan di perpustakaan awam negeri - Saraswathy](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-07/81721222006_SaraswathyKandasami.jpg)
Bank buku diwujudkan di perpustakaan awam negeri - Saraswathy
Setiap bahan bacaan itu akan ditapis terlebih dahulu bagi memastikan kandungannya bersesuaian untuk pelajar.
![Ahli Parlimen Machang mungkin digantung 6 bulan Ahli Parlimen Machang mungkin digantung 6 bulan](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-01/81705870474_WanAhmadFayhsalP.jpg)
Ahli Parlimen Machang mungkin digantung 6 bulan
Ahli Parlimen Machang, Wan Ahmad Fayshal Wan Ahmad Kamal berkemungkinan bakal digantung daripada menghadiri sidang Dewan Rakyat selama enam bulan.
![Musim panas landa AS, orang ramai cari lokasi sejuk Musim panas landa AS, orang ramai cari lokasi sejuk](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-06/41718846632_heatwave.jpg)
Musim panas landa AS, orang ramai cari lokasi sejuk
Aiskrim, tempat berteduh, dan kolam renang menjadi lokasi tumpuan apabila musim panas bermula dengan gelombang haba rekor di beberapa negeri di Amerika Syarikat.
![Pesawat peribadi ghaib selama 53 tahun ditemui di dasar tasik Pesawat peribadi ghaib selama 53 tahun ditemui di dasar tasik](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-06/41718442112_tbpesawatjetperiba.jpg)
Pesawat peribadi ghaib selama 53 tahun ditemui di dasar tasik
Serpihan sebuah pesawat jet peribadi yang hilang selama lebih 53 tahun selepas membawa lima lelaki berjaya ditemui di dasar Tasik Champlain.
![Justin Bieber, isteri umum berita kehamilan Justin Bieber, isteri umum berita kehamilan](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-05/81715304456_haileyjpg.jpg)
Justin Bieber, isteri umum berita kehamilan
Penyanyi Justin Bieber dan isterinya Hailey Bieber memuat naik berita kehamilan anak pertama mereka di akaun sosial media masing-masing.
![Pembaharuan fiskal kerajaan bantu perkukuhkan lagi keyakinan pelabur - MoF Pembaharuan fiskal kerajaan bantu perkukuhkan lagi keyakinan pelabur - MoF](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-04/81713348111_tbAmirHamzah.jpg)
Pembaharuan fiskal kerajaan bantu perkukuhkan lagi keyakinan pelabur - MoF
Pembaharuan fiskal yang dilaksanakan kerajaan telah membantu memperkukuh lagi keyakinan pelabur terhadap Malaysia, kata Kementerian Kewangan.
![Amir Hamzah ketuai delegasi ke mesyuarat bersama pelabur di New York Amir Hamzah ketuai delegasi ke mesyuarat bersama pelabur di New York](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-01/41706259218_TBAMIRHAMZAHAZIZ.jpg)
Amir Hamzah ketuai delegasi ke mesyuarat bersama pelabur di New York
Menteri Kewangan II Senator Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan mengetuai delegasi Malaysia ke mesyuarat bersama pelabur di New York, Amerika Syarikat dari 14 April hingga 16 April, 2024.
![Gempa bumi di New York, New Jersey: Kementerian Luar giat selaras usaha Gempa bumi di New York, New Jersey: Kementerian Luar giat selaras usaha](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-04/41712365260_earthquake.jpg)
Gempa bumi di New York, New Jersey: Kementerian Luar giat selaras usaha
Gegaran dirasai di seluruh kawasan Tri-State (New York, New Jersey, Connecticut) dan sejauh utara Massachusetts.
![Wanita tergamak ketuk kepala ibu dengan periuk sampai mati Wanita tergamak ketuk kepala ibu dengan periuk sampai mati](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-03/71711598590_mengetukibu.jpg)
Wanita tergamak ketuk kepala ibu dengan periuk sampai mati
Seorang wanita tergamak mengetuk ibunya dengan periuk masak hingga mati dan kemudian menelefon pihak kecemasan dengan mengakui melakukan pembunuhan kejam itu.
![Umat Islam di New York teruja sambut kedatangan Ramadan Umat Islam di New York teruja sambut kedatangan Ramadan](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-03/51710156439_tbTaraweehprayer.jpg)
Umat Islam di New York teruja sambut kedatangan Ramadan
Ribuan umat Islam di New York menyambut permulaan Ramadan pada Ahad, dengan berkumpul di Times Square yang simbolik.
![Pemilu 2024: Biarpun jauh di New York, Cinta Laura Kiehl tidak lepas tanggungjawab mengundi Pemilu 2024: Biarpun jauh di New York, Cinta Laura Kiehl tidak lepas tanggungjawab mengundi](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-02/61707708684_newyork.jpg)
Pemilu 2024: Biarpun jauh di New York, Cinta Laura Kiehl tidak lepas tanggungjawab mengundi
Biarpun Jauh Di New York, Cinta Laura Kiehl Tak Lepas Tanggungjawab Mengundi Sempena PEMILU 2024
![Final Piala Dunia 2026 di New York Final Piala Dunia 2026 di New York](https://resizer-awani.eco.astro.com.my/tr:w-177,h-100,q-100,f-auto/https://img.astroawani.com/2024-02/61707098988_TBPialaDunia.jpg)
Final Piala Dunia 2026 di New York
New York mengenepikan bidaan daripada Dallas untuk memastikan perlawanan final diadakan di bandar raya itu.