Like many of us who worked in Philadelphia and around the country during March of 2020  —  suddenly and seemingly overnight  —  I was converted to remote work. Working as a network engineer for one of the region’s largest Healthcare Systems, my thought process echoed the concerns of other professionals that I knew about being productive working almost completely from the comfort of home.

I scrambled to ensure that I was setup to successfully complete my job from the house while carving out a dedicated work area  —  free of distractions (well ok  — free of as many distractions as possible.)

Back in 2022, my Center City Philadelphia-based company asked us to return on a hybrid schedule to the office. The flexible schedule allowed for a couple of days in the office, and the rest of the week as remote work (or work from home based upon which projects that you had going on at any one time.

Last month, Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judge Sierra L. Thomas-Street upheld Mayor Parker’s mandate for all Philadelphia city workers to return to the office five days a week on Monday, July 15th. Later, in an attempt to keep hybrid schedules for Philadelphia city employees, AFSCME District Council 47 (a coalition of nine unions) have filed a lawsuit against the Mayor for her policy of return-to-the-office which looks to end the Philadelphia City Covid Virtual Work Policy. About 4,700 workers would have been affected when the policy went into effect on July 15th. Previously on March 4th  —  cabinet members and City Officials returned five days a week to the office.

Philadelphians are too used to the flexibility. When we were all relegated to working from our homes in March of 2020, our work-life balance changed completely. Almost overnight, personal appointments and family commitments were able to be accomplished during the day while work hours for many of us became extended. According to a June 2023 Philadelphia Inquirer article, US major cities are seeing people re-locate for remote work and more easily accessible hybrid work.

For many suburbanites like me, commuting into the city even for five days a week is a huge investment of time. The I95 closures for projects such as the CAP construction as well as the threat of SEPTA strikes affecting regional rail lines, commuting into the city for even two days a week can be problematic, not to mention time that is unproductive.

An in-person policy for doesn’t bode well to attract workers to the city, a key to Philadelphia’s economic recruitment. If the policy extends to other key city positions, it will affect Philadelphia’s ability to attract top talent who may find hybrid or remote work attractive. In March, Mayor Parker’s staff were quoted as saying that they feared “mass departures” if this initiative is put into policy.

The desire of the mayor’s office to increase the city’s occupancy rate in offices is in fact working. Behind mid-town Manhattan, Philadelphia boasts one of the best office occupancy rates in the country at 80 percent. Philadelphia workers are returning to the office, many of whom are already enjoying the flexibility of a hybrid schedule while maintaining top productivity.

Rising costs are a huge consideration. Philadelphia metro area food prices are up 2.4 percent in 2024, and the cost of a five-day-per-week daycare is $1,093.00. The easiest way to help workers with the financial burden (you guessed it) a hybrid work schedule to help ease the cost.

Of course, an at-will employer can do anything that they like in setting workplace policy. To start out a new administration by mandating that workers flexibility is diminished by only offering completely onsite work isn’t just too archaic, Ms. Parker. Let’s keep your promise by producing a modern workforce for 2024. It starts with a modern, scalable work schedule known as hybrid.

And how did my hybrid IT team fare, thrust by the covid pandemic into completely remote work and transitioned into a hybrid schedule? Our productivity didn’t miss a beat.

Michael Thomas Leibrandt lives and works in Abington Township, Pa.