Hello, Memo readers!
Private call booths. Libraries. Lounge areas. Dining and entertainment.
Would you think we’re describing an office? Maybe not yet, but businesses sure hope that’s how we will one day, because they’re betting big bucks on amenities to boost their return-to-office push.
That’s evident in the types of buildings companies are moving towards —they’re newer and “highly amenitized,” according to one real estate firm. But available space in offices that are less than 10 years old has fallen more than 14% since the end of 2022, with just 86 million square feet available in the U.S. — less than the amount of new space that was available on the market in 2019, despite national vacancy rates rising substantially from that time.
There just isn’t enough new office space to keep up with the demand for these amenities. Quartz’s Rocio Fabbro explains how businesses are navigating this.
Quotable: Work-life differences
“We are not very ambitious. I should be careful about talking about work-life balance, but the Americans just work harder.” — Nicolai Tangen, CEO of the $1.6 trillion Norges Bank Investment Management, in an interview last week with the Financial Times.
The chasm in work-life balance between the U.S. and European countries is wide. The European Union, for example, has a mandated four-week paid vacation period across all 27 of its countries. Some countries also require additional paid days off on top of that required period. Meanwhile, in the U.S., nearly one-third of employees say they don’t have any access to paid time off (PTO), according to a 2023 report.
Read more about the discrepancies, including the difference in hours worked in a year in the U.K. versus the U.S.
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👀 Moderna’s CEO wants employees to use ChatGPT at least 20 times a day
You got the Memo
Send questions, comments, and hours you think humans should work a year [email protected]. This edition of The Memo was written by Rocio Fabbro and Morgan Haefner.