Forget RTO: Fully remote workers report the highest well-being—and are less likely to quit, new study of 7,700 employees finds

A cheerful woman in yellow headphones waves at her laptop during a video call. (Credit: Maria Korneeva—Getty Images)

Business leaders, from JPMorgan’s CEO Jamie Dimon to Tesla’s Elon Musk, have argued that workers need to get back to the office in the name of productivity and collaboration. But a new study suggests the opposite may be better for employee well-being—and even company bottom lines.

Researchers tracked 7,704 employees at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center across three work arrangements: roughly one-fourth worked fully remotely, one-fourth worked hybrid, and about half worked entirely onsite.