Manhattan Bosses Pull Back Expectations for Return-to-Office

(Bloomberg) -- New York’s technology and finance bosses are tempering their expectations for bringing people back to work.

Only 15% of office workers are projected to return by the end of this year, according to the Partnership for New York City, which surveyed major employers in Manhattan over the past two weeks. That’s down from an August estimate of 26%.

Tech employers see 49% of workers coming back by July 2021, compared with 74% in the August survey, while finance and insurance companies see 52%, down from 55%.

New York’s biggest landlords and finance executives have been vocal about bringing office workers back this fall, with some even calling it the patriotic thing to do to boost local businesses. But most companies remain cautious as the virus continues to spike in many places, and it’s unclear whether a vaccine will be widely available anytime soon.

So far, 10% of Manhattan workers have returned to the office, just slightly up from 8% in August, the survey showed.

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