TikTok has become the latest company to issue a strict return to work order to its employees and, in a move that has caused outrage, will use a mandatory app to track their office attendance.
US employees of the Chinese-owned social media giant were notified last week that its MyRTO app would track office badge swipes from October, when the company requires all workers to work from the office for at least three days a week, with some required back in the office full-time.
The New York Times, which received emails and screenshots about the plans from disgruntled employees, reported that a dashboard of attendance data will be visible to employees, their supervisors and human resources staff.
Workers have “expressed frustration and dismay” over the policy, which will require employees to explain any “deviations” if they are absent on days they are supposed to be in the office.
Employees were also warned that “any deliberate and consistent disregard may result in disciplinary action” and could “impact on performance reviews”.
“The ultimate goal of MyRTO is to provide greater clarity and context to both employees and leaders regarding their RTO (return to office) expectations and in-office schedules, and help foster more transparent communications,” TikTok spokeswoman Jodi Seth said.
Employees said they were “taken aback” by the tone of the return to office messaging, as well as the use of a monitoring app.
It is not clear whether the return to office edict, and the use of the MyRTO app, extends to other TikTok employees globally, including those in Australia.
News.com.au has contacted TikTok for comment.
The move follows other return to office mandates from the big tech companies.
In August, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy issued a stark warning to staff who refuse to go to the office at least three days a week, saying: “It’s probably not going to work out for you”.
It came after some employees continued to defy its return to office mandate, announced in February and enacted in May.
The Amazon move was met with a petition of signatures from around 30,000 employees unhappy with the company’s return to work policy.
Meta, the tech giant behind Facebook and Instagram has also introduced a three day a week office attendance edict, which began on September 5.
Meta, which is headed by COE Mark Zuckerberg, revealed it is also using employee badge swipes to track attendance.
“Managers will review badge and Status Tool information on a monthly basis and follow up with those who didn’t meet the requirement, subject to local law and works council requirements,” Meta’s head of people Lori Goler said in the memo obtained by Business Insider.
The LGBTQ dating app Grindr lost half its staff after the company required them to relocate to a hub office and work onsite two days per week, according to The New York Post.
The crackdown on working from home comes after employers have expressed concerns about productivity when employees are away from the office.
In Australia, Suzie Cheikho was controversially fired from Insurance Australia Group (IAG) earlier this year for missing deadlines, meetings, being absent and uncontactable, and failing to complete work while at home.
It emerged that the insurance giant had been monitoring her keystroke activity, or the number of times she physically pressed her keyboard while working from home.
Ms Cheikho brought an unfair dismissal case against IAG, which was rejected by the Fair Work Commission.