After backlash, AT&T CEO says 'WFO or quit' memo was a mistake

AT&T CEO John Stankey (Courtesy: Reuters file photo)

AT&T Chief Executive Officer John Stankey has acknowledged that an internal memo widely read as “work from office or quit” was a misstep, after it sparked sharp criticism from employees and outsiders.

Stankey revisited the directive he issued in August, saying he would handle the communication differently in hindsight. He argued that the company was trying to reset expectations around workplace presence and culture, but conceded the message came across as unnecessarily blunt. He also suggested the company had been too slow to address the cultural shift it wanted, and that the wider context should have been laid out more clearly.

The original note quickly became a flashpoint in the ongoing fight over post-pandemic work norms. Inside organisations, return-to-office rules often collide with the habits employees built over several years of remote or hybrid work. Outside the organisation, hard-line language can feed a broader narrative that companies are rolling back flexibility without offering a compelling reason.

Stankey’s comments are notable because they draw a distinction between the policy and the presentation. Reports indicate he did not reverse the return-to-office policy itself. Instead, he framed the controversy as a lesson in how culture change should be led and explained. That approach reflects a growing reality for large employers: even when leadership wants more in-person attendance, the method of getting there can either build trust or burn it.

Workplace culture specialists have long argued that phased transitions, clearer explanations of goals, and two-way communication tend to work better than ultimatums. When employees feel they are being talked at rather than talked with, resistance hardens, and the policy becomes the story instead of the business rationale behind it.

For corporate leaders, the episode is another reminder that return-to-office decisions now sit at the centre of employee relations. The debate is no longer only about where work happens, but about how leaders set expectations, listen to concerns, and persuade people that the trade-offs are worth it.