Etsy has announced it is closing its Hudson, NY and San Francisco, CA offices in response to employees continuing to work remotely.
Companies of all sizes have been trying to adapt to the new normal brought about by the pandemic. Some have tried to return to the old way of doing things, requiring workers to be in the office, while others have embraced remote and hybrid workflows.
Etsay appears to be firmly in the latter camp, going so far as to close some of its offices as a result of remote work.
“Supported by Etsy’s robust hybrid framework, many who are currently remote have told us they do not plan to return to an office in the near future,” writes Kim Seymour, the company’s chief HR officer. “As a result, we are closing our offices in Hudson, NY and San Francisco, CA, where employee office utilization has been extremely low. One of our guiding principles is minimizing waste, and operating offices that go predominately unused is in direct opposition to that principle – wasting energy, capital and internal programming efforts. As part of our new Hub Strategy model, Etsy employees based out of those offices will be transitioning to the fully remote work mode. We’ll continue to ensure they are supported, able to work productively, and can effectively collaborate with colleagues, with our offices in Brooklyn HQ as their hub office.”
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Beyond this specific move, Etsy’s flexible work policies have significantly benefited the company and reduced employee churn, even in the midst of the “Great Resignation.”
“More than 80% view our policies on how and where we work favorably,” Seymour adds. “Beyond what our teams are saying, our flexible model has enabled Etsy to keep recruiting and retain talent across industries as we expand globally. We’ve grown our Etsy workforce by 50% since before the pandemic, and our attrition levels have consistently remained well below both industry benchmarks and our own expectations, even as a “Great Resignation” has dominated the market.”
Etsy clearly has figured out what works for the company and its employees, settling on a new normal that all parties are benefiting from.
