‘Hybrid creep’ is the latest trick bosses are using to get workers back in the office

“Hybrid creep” is emerging as the newest way employers are nudging remote workers back to their desks, one extra office day and perk at a time rather than through blunt mandates. Framed as flexibility and culture-building, the quiet shift is reshaping what “hybrid” really means in 2026.​

The phrase, which appears to have been coined by the UK-based videoconferencing software maker Owl Labs in its 2025 state of hybrid work report, describes a slow, often unspoken expansion of in‑office expectations...