Most office workers have been able to work from home if needed since the pandemic with it being more common.

However, instead of boosting productivity and making working conditions more flexible, one CEO says remote workers are 'selfish' and 'slowing down the economy'.

Nicole Duncan, who is CEO and Managing Director of CR Commercial Property Group in Sydney, Australia, called in to a commercial radio station recently to say long commutes were no excuse for staying home and working remotely.

READ MORE: Workers share their thoughts about how AI could impact future jobs

“This generation is just selfish,” Duncan told the 2GB Mornings program, according to news.com.au.

Nicole, who describes herself as “passionate about people returning to work,” spent years schlepping to the office on public transport as she believes millennials and Gen Z workers should do the same.

“In our younger days we caught trains, buses, ferries to get to work,” Duncan, who did not disclose her age, declared.

“Yes it did take two or three hours, but you’ve got to be in the office.”

She said the failure white-collar workers to come back to the office had been "disastrous" for Sydney’s metro area, although she didn’t provide stats to prove it was just young workers reluctant to return.

“Hotels are suffering… there’s less business travel, they do it all on (Microsoft) Teams… cleaners, people who make your coffee, lunches, all of those sorts of things,” she stated.

“We want a vibrant city for visitors to come to, and it needs to look busy, it needs to look vibrant, it doesn’t need to look as slow and rambling.”

Many companies around the world are having a hard time convincing employees of all ages to return to the workplace on a full-time basis.

Back in March, around 30,000 workers signed a petition begging Amazon CEO Andy Jassy to cancel his directive that most employees work on-site at least three days per week.

And it seems like employees may be on to something, as researchers from Stockholm University released a paper earlier this month claiming a return to the office could cause employees to gain weight, sleep less and drink more.

“A lengthy commute to work is associated with being less physically active, being overweight, and having sleep problems,” the scientists wrote.

“And, depending on where your office is located, you may also be more likely to drink in excess.”

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