Apple Sets April 11 Deadline for U.S. Employees to Return to Office

Apple has set an April 11 deadline for corporate employees in the U.S. to return to offices like Apple Park, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman.

apple park drone june 2018 2
Apple is planning for a hybrid in-office and at-home work schedule going forward. The report states that Apple employees will be required to work from the office at least one day per week by April 11, at least two days per week by May 2, and at least three days per week by May 23. Those three days would be Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, with most employees having the option to work remotely on Wednesdays and Fridays.

"For many of you, I know that returning to the office represents a long-awaited milestone and a positive sign that we can engage more fully with the colleagues who play such an important role in our lives," said Apple CEO Tim Cook, in a memo to employees obtained by Bloomberg. "For others, it may also be an unsettling change."

Apple originally aimed for employees to return to the office in February, but the plans were delayed indefinitely due to rising COVID-19 cases. With reported cases having since declined in the U.S., Apple is once again attempting a return to in-person work.

Apple's corporate employees have largely been working from home since the start of the pandemic. Apple executives have routinely made it clear that employees would eventually need to return to the office once it is safer to do so, despite some employees objecting.

"For all that we've been able to achieve while many of us have been separated, the truth is that there has been something essential missing from this past year: each other," Cook said in a June 2021 memo to employees. "Video conference calling has narrowed the distance between us, to be sure, but there are things it simply cannot replicate."

Apple's decision comes just a few days after Google said that its employees would need to return to offices starting April 4.

Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Popular Stories

Whatsapp Feature

WhatsApp to Drop Support for These iPhones Starting May 2025

Monday December 2, 2024 2:57 am PST by
WhatsApp is set to end support for iOS versions older than iOS 15.1 from May next year, removing the chat platform's compatibility with several iPhone models in the process. From May 5, 2025, WhatsApp will no longer be compatible with iPhone 5s, iPhone 6, and iPhone 6 Plus models. Users with those devices won't be able to access the encrypted chat service after the specified date unless they ...
Apple AI Command Center Concept Mock 3

Apple Expected to Launch This All-New Device Next Year

Wednesday November 27, 2024 1:05 pm PST by
Apple is expected to kick off 2025 by launching an all-new smart home hub, also referred to as a "command center," as early as March. The hub is expected to feature around a six-inch display that can be attached to a tabletop base with a speaker, or mounted on a wall. The device is said to run a new "homeOS" operating system with a customizable widget-focused home screen, and it is expected...
New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

18 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Wednesday November 27, 2024 5:05 am PST by
Apple is set to release iOS 18.2 in early December, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. There are a handful of new non-AI related feature controls incoming as...
iphone 16 pro models 1

12 Reasons to Wait for Next Year's iPhone 17

Friday November 29, 2024 5:17 am PST by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we sometimes get rumored feature leaks so far ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different – already we have some idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you plan to skip...
airpods pro 2 gradient

AirPods Pro 3 Expected Next Year: Here's What We Know

Thursday November 28, 2024 3:30 am PST by
Despite being released over two years ago, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 continue to dominate the wireless earbud market. However, with the AirPods Pro 3 expected to launch sometime in 2025, anyone thinking of buying Apple's premium earbuds may be wondering if the next generation is worth holding out for. Apart from their audio and noise-canceling performance, which are generally regarded as...
Flip iPhone Thumb 1

Apple's 2026 Foldable iPhone Could Reinvigorate Stalling Market

Monday December 2, 2024 4:04 pm PST by
The foldable smartphone market has stalled with customer interest in foldables waning, but that could change when Apple debuts a foldable iPhone, according to display analyst Ross Young. In a report on the current foldable smartphone market, Young says that Apple is expected to "enter the foldable market" in the second half of 2026. Apple's "dominant position in flagship smartphones" could...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Rectangle Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Already Rumored to Have These 8 New Features

Wednesday November 27, 2024 12:19 pm PST by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch for 10 more months, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. An imaginative iPhone 17 Pro concept based on rumors Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models so far: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro ...

Top Rated Comments

Nick A Avatar
36 months ago
If the same work is capable of being completed remotely there’s absolutely no reason for staff to return to in-person work 100% of the time.

A hybrid work environment is the future and any company or business who doesn’t get on board is stuck in the past.
Score: 49 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MallardDuck Avatar
36 months ago
Regardless of feelings about the pandemic, this is a mistake from a recruiting strategy. flexible work in tech is becoming a must have in order to get the best talent, especially with people not wanting to live in high cost states. They're cutting themselves off from the bulk of the potential employee pool.
Score: 35 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jim Lahey Avatar
36 months ago
Good. Hopefully now the teams can start communicating again. There are so many poor and inconsistent design choices across their platforms it's getting beyond a joke. Why is 'Open in new tab' on Mac Safari now 'Open in background' on iPad? Just one tiny but irritating example. Of more immediate concern is the absolutely disastrous and user hostile sidebars in both versions. Maybe if people are actually banging heads together in real life then things might get done. Right now it feels like their developer teams are working on different sides of the galaxy from each other while their bosses are on the golf course in another universe.

ETA: Many thanks to @kalafalas for setting me straight on the open in new tab thing.
Score: 35 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Rudy69 Avatar
36 months ago
Pandemic or not for a lot of programmer working remotely is vastly superior. I've been working from home for 10 years and you couldn't pay me enough to go back to an office.
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AmazeSE Avatar
36 months ago

This is great news! I hope the date does not change again. I can't wait for Apple to hold its in-person Apple events later this year.
I kinda like the virtual events more. We get cool transitions and music and no applause every 10 mins.
Score: 20 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Kylo83 Avatar
36 months ago
Should of been ages ago
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)