Someone who has been working from home is refusing to accept promotion because it means coming back into the office. Can we force him to come back in?

 

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7. Someone who has been working from home is refusing to accept promotion because it means coming back into the office. Can we force him to come back in?

In theory, yes - unless you have given him a contract which says otherwise, or have reached a different agreement verbally, or have by your conduct given him reason to think he can work at home indefinitely. It is up to you as employer to decide where the work shall be performed. In practice, however, you have to ask yourself whether it is worth it. If your employee has decided that the ability to work from home is worth more to him than promotion, at best you are going to end up with someone who is unhappy in the job. You could alternatively aim for a compromise, under which he works two or three days a week in the office, or even better, leave it to him to organise his work in a way to guarantee your overall objectives.