Office building owners and landlords who have been hoping for a post-Labor Day surge in occupancy levels were rewarded this week with a solid bump in Kastle’s weekly back-to-work barometer, which has hovered at around 43% since the middle of March.

Kastle’s 10-city average, based on a survey of entry card swipes, jumped to 47.5% in this week’s report from last week’s level of 43.4%, with all 10 markets posting solid gains—led by an 8.7% surge in New York City, which jumped to 46.6% from last week’s level of 38% in Kastle’s report.

Employees who returned to the office are probably spending far more compared to working from home. How much more? According to recently released data, working at the office can cost twice as much — adding up to an extra $5,000 a year — even if employees are only commuting a couple days a week.

A new survey from Owl Labs, a video conferencing solutions company, found that employees who go into the office at least part-time spent an average of $863 per month in work-related expenses. Employees working full-time remote jobs averaged less half that amount, spending $423 per month on internet, phone, meals, utilities and other expenses.

Major brands are increasingly providing a wide range of mental health support for employees that goes far beyond a wellness app subscription.

As global tech companies consider locations in top tech markets, finding the right place is just the start. From emerging tech to publicly traded, a tech company’s dynamic needs go beyond just location strategy and expand into the creation of workplace ecosystems that attract, engage and retain...

Simmonds’ talk at The Next Space: The Empathetic Workplace at Orgatec on 26 October will explain why co-creation is a major tool for the future of office design, and how to harness it.

Thanks to inflation, it’s even more expensive for workers to make the trek back into offices or physical workspaces.

Office phone booths have been reimagined as Zoom rooms, web rooms, focus rooms and chat rooms.

In the first part of “Work from Home Changes Both,” designer and educator Scott Klinker identifies five models for the relationship between “home” and “work.”

Here’s how people-centric workplace design is changing our definition of workplace performance.

WeWork is moving into the multifamily space with its first-ever agreement with a residential developer and a collaboration with building tech company Latch.

Steelcase Inc. on Wednesday said it planned to cut up to 180 salaried positions in the third quarter, citing a "recent volume decline in our incoming orders and lower-than-expected return-to-office trends in the Americas." The maker said the move was part of an effort to target around $20 million of annualized spending during the quarter. The positions to be eliminated were in Steelcase's core Americas business and corporate roles.

Born out of a desire to elevate domestic craftsmanship and creative collaboration in the contract furniture industry, Here Now is locally rooted in a broad worldview.

To coincide with the London Design Festival 2022 (17 – 25 September), Vitra unveils its new London showroom, with a renovation of the grade II-listed Tramshed. The building was originally designed in 1905 by Emmanuel Vincent Harris, and served as an electricity transformer station for the Eastern London Tramway.

A Winnetka, IL  mansion sold for $6.3 million last week, adding to the list of recent high-end sales in the affluent Chicago suburb that closed after price cuts. The 7,400-square-foot home at 1134 Taylorsport Lane was first listed by sellers Jennifer and Craig Niemann for $7.5 million in June 2021, before multiple discounts brought the ask down to $6.75 million earlier this summer. Jennifer Niemann is the CEO of Forward Space, a Steelcase office furniture dealership based in Chicago.

In part two of “Work from Home Changes Both,” designer and educator Scott Klinker explores conceptual tools for creating spatial hybrids.

If a hybrid work model is the new normal for office workers, how might different lighting conditions at home and in the office vary?

People who use flexible office spaces want to increase their usage there to comprise half of their workweek – an increase of 19% from current levels – while decreasing their remote working time by the same percentage, according to a report issued this week by Cushman & Wakefield in conjunction with WeWork.

With sentiments such as these, the argument for companies contemplating using flex office space has perhaps never been stronger.

Swiss industrial designer Benjamin Thut took the design of the classic bi-level toolbox, and turned it on its side to create this Tool Cabinet 490 mobile workstation. “Can be placed anywhere in the room and also cuts a fine figure in the office."

The four latest textiles continue Carnegie’s legacy of providing high-performance solutions without adverse environmental consequences.

Kirei, a manufacturer of iconic architectural design elements that improve the acoustics and functionality of any room, recently launched its newly expanded color options for its 24mm EchoPanel® and Embossed Panel Series.

As designer demand for linear sound-dampening fixtures and narrow aperture lighting grows, Acoustic Stratta and Acoustic Baffle answer the call with LightArt’s most slender and sophisticated design to date.

See all the honorees of Fast Company’s 2022 Innovation by Design Awards in the Workplace category.

Weighing time, activity, and the needs of the human body, this novel tool helped to create a wider variety of working spaces.

Nike’s Serena Williams Building by Skylab Architecture features a sustainable design including a rainwater capture and reuse system.

Bink Rabbit Goods launches with modern furniture built for pet rabbits but designed for the people that love them.

Find the best Contract Furniture Industry jobs and hire the best talent.