The post-pandemic debate over remote work and office attendance continues, and another major company has now made its move. Ford Motor Company is requiring the majority of its salaried, white-collar employees to return to the office four days a week. This announcement signals a huge shift away from the hybrid model that became common over the last few years.

Ford notified its global salaried workforce of the new policy on Wednesday, with the change set to take effect on September 1. In a statement, a company spokesperson explained the reasoning behind the decision, stating, “We believe working together in person on a day-to-day basis will help accelerate Ford’s transformation into a higher growth, higher margin, less cyclical and more dynamic company.” The company noted that many of its white-collar employees were already in the office three or more days a week, but this new policy formalizes and increases that expectation.

Ford’s decision is part of a larger trend across corporate America as businesses grapple with how much flexibility to allow their workers. Some companies, like JPMorgan and Amazon, have taken an even stricter stance, mandating a full five-day return to the office for their hybrid employees. The move also follows a similar, though less stringent, policy from Ford’s crosstown rival, General Motors (GM). GM faced some employee backlash in late 2022 when it called workers back for three days a week, a policy it fully implemented in 2023.

These decisions highlight a major challenge for the Detroit automakers. They are trying to instill a greater sense of urgency and adopt a high-performance culture to better compete with nimble electric vehicle companies like Tesla. At the same time, they are trying to woo top executive talent from Silicon Valley, a region where a more flexible working style is often the norm.

The new four-day-a-week mandate shows Ford is placing a high value on in-person collaboration as it deals with its future. For the automaker, it represents a balancing act between creating the intense, dynamic culture it believes is necessary to win while still competing for talent in a world where workplace flexibility has become a major consideration.