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CEO applauds employee who sold dog following return-to-office mandate: report

James Clarke, the CEO of the technology and media company Clearlink, applauded an employee who sold his family’s dog following the company’s requirement that workers return to the office most of the week, Vice reported.

The outlet reported on Wednesday that Clarke held a virtual town hall meeting last week in which he accused some workers of quiet quitting, which refers to individuals who have become disengaged at work, and questioned the motivations of those who oppose the company’s recently mandated four days per week in-office policy.

At one point during the meeting, Clarke reportedly pointed to an employee who sold their dog as an example of the “sacrifices that are being made.”

Vice reported that the company’s decision to require in-office work surprised many employees as Clarke said in an email in October that he did not have any plans to require work in the office. He also reportedly said that some employees were hired understanding that the company was “remote-first.”

But Clearlink told its workers this month that its situation had changed as it manages an unstable economy and recently underwent a round of layoffs.

The outlet reported that Clarke sent employees an email on April 3 saying that workers who live within 50 miles of the company’s headquarters in Draper, Utah, would need to start coming into the office four days per week starting April 17.

Clearlink told The Hill in a statement that it recently announced the in-office policy for most of its employees based in the state to “help achieve our collective goals.”

“We look forward to having these team members join us at our new world-class Global Headquarters in Draper, Utah and appreciate the efforts of all of our committed team members–which includes those who work in office and those who will continue to work remotely–as we accomplish our best work together,” Clearlink said.

Vice reported that during the town hall Clarke said he believed 30 employees had not opened their laptops in a month, questioned if some employees were working multiple jobs and called on the company to increase productivity to “30 to 50 times our normal production.”

Clarke reportedly said he had seen enhanced productivity among workers who had come into the office and that the time had come for returning to the office with the country mostly resuming normal operations coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Labor Department reported last month that millions of Americans stopped working from home last year. More than 70 percent of private sector businesses reported in a survey that employees conducted little to no telework between August and September 2022, up from 60 percent from July to September 2021.

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