The impasse between employer expectations for staff working in the office and employee behavior eased in 2025, according to a CBRE sentiment survey of companies in the U.S., Canada and Latin America.
Seventy-two percent of organizations reported achieving attendance goals as of August 2025, up from 61% for the same period in 2024. Employers expect workers to show up an average of 3.2 days per week, and employees are showing up about 2.9 days, closing the gap.
“It’s actually a very big deal,” James Hodari, who runs building operations and experience at CBRE, told Globe Street. “We are much closer to a compromise.” CBRE highlighted these additional findings:
1. Utilization and attendance
Seventy-three percent of organizations said office utilization is effectively at capacity on peak attendance days. However, 34% of employers report that on average days, utilization is at lower capacity.
2. Policy enforcement
Among companies with fewer than 500 employees, nearly half said they enforce their policy. Companies with more than 10,000 employees reported the widest gap between expectations and show-up rates. Only 22% of this group said they enforce their attendance policy.
3. Number of required days
Companies expecting one to two days or five days per week in the office are more likely to achieve their goals than those requiring three to four days.
4. Space needs
A majority of occupiers (67%) expect to maintain or expand their space over the next three years. But almost half of all respondents noted they were concerned about finding good-quality, well-located space.