5 Signs Your Job's 'Hybrid Office' Policy Is Actually Toxic

Since the pandemic, flexible work has transformed from a nice perk to a must-have with a growing number of employees. According to Gallup’s latest survey of workers in the United States, over half of remote-capable employees expect and prefer to work in arrangements where they are both in-person and at home, otherwise known as a hybrid work.

Hybrid is here to stay in offices, but it’s still an open experiment. At its best, it can give employees and managers more autonomy over their days, which can make work more efficient and less stressful. But it can also come with a unique set of challenges ― and in some cases, not just frustrations but actual issues that can drive employees out of workplaces.

HuffPost asked career experts and professionals who have worked through hybrid job arrangements about the telltale signs that a hybrid work policy is going to be problematic for an employee’s well-being. Here are the common red flags:

1. Sick days are seen as days to work from home.

One of the biggest red flags that a hybrid arrangement has the potential to be toxic is when it blurs your work/life boundaries. Under this unclear policy, your flexible schedule becomes an excuse to keep you working longer, even when it would be a detriment to your health.

Brianna Doe, who is the co-founder for marketing company Verbatim, said she experienced this firsthand at a past hybrid job.

“When I took a sick day, the mindset that my manager met me with was like, ‘Well, the perk is that you get to stay home, you still have to work,’” she recalled. “In a healthy culture, whether you’re fully remote, or fully in-office, or a mix of both, work-life balance is still going to be available, you’re still going to be encouraged to take care of