Maybe going into the office isn't so bad?

Summary

Marketplace Morning Report

Episode Title: Maybe going into the office isn't so bad?
Date: December 24, 2025
Host: Sabri Benishour (in for David Brancaccio)

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Episode Overview

This episode explores the renewed trend of returning to physical office spaces in 2025, particularly in industries like finance and tech. The episode highlights the benefits that office environments offer, especially for younger workers, through both research findings and a personal story from the field. It also covers key economic news: U.S. industrial production statistics, falling manufacturing, supply chain issues, and the impact of tariffs. The show briefly discusses a San Francisco incident with Waymo self-driving taxis and closes with international news about U.S. visa denials for European officials involved in tech regulation.

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Main Discussion: The Upside of Office Work

Timestamps: [01:01] – [04:13]

Key Points

• The 2025 Return to Office Trend

  • Companies like JP Morgan, Amazon, AT&T, and Dell have reinstituted five days a week in-person work.
  • Economists at the New York Fed and universities report office attendance benefits, especially for younger workers.

• Younger Workers Want Office Time

  • Many younger professionals view office attendance as an opportunity, not a burden.

Interview: Sky Atondo, Event Coordinator at Milk Studios, LA

• What Sky Does ([01:53])

  • “Primarily like Milk Studios, we are a hub for anything to create a space for you to have an event on the back end... my job is basically to protect space and then at the end of the day just make sure the client's happy.” — Sky Atondo

• Hybrid/Full Office Work Experience ([02:22])

  • Sky is fully online until events, but always in the office: “Up until the event, I’m… fully online but I’m always in office.” — Sky Atondo

• Loving the Office ([02:31])

  • Sky enthusiastically prefers office work: “I love it. I jokingly always say it’s like it gives you a reason, like to put a fit on.” — Sky Atondo

• The Social Side of Office Life ([02:45])

  • “I love the kiki with the boys and girls.” — Sky Atondo, on enjoying being with colleagues

• Career Upsides: Mentorship and Growth ([03:00])

  • “I don’t think without being in person, I would have got the mentorship I got from a lot of these guys within my industry that just take me under the wing. And honestly, it’s like the nuance of send an email. You’re not necessarily getting my personality or what’s necessarily going on, you know.” — Sky Atondo

• Commute and Context ([03:21])

  • Sky’s commute: “Like six minutes…” — Sky Atondo, acknowledging that it makes office attendance easier

• Remote Experience vs. In-Person ([03:37])

  • “Majority of my job is emailing, but at the end of the day, I want to see the person behind it... Like, I really like to just be a part of it rather than outside looking in.” — Sky Atondo

• Job Enjoyment ([03:59])

  • “Honestly, I’m so blessed to say I enjoy what I do because very rarely do we get to do things where we get to make other people happy.” — Sky Atondo

Memorable Moments

• The light-hearted tone about enjoying “putting a fit on” for work and the social aspect of “the kiki with the boys and girls” injects personality into the larger discussion about office culture.
• Insights on mentorship and career opportunity highlight research-backed benefits of in-person work.

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U.S. Manufacturing and Industrial Production Update

Timestamps: [04:14] – [05:55]

Key Points

• Industrial Production Stats

  • November saw a 2.1% increase, but mainly due to mining; manufacturing was flat, construction/utilities down.
  • Manufacturing output remains unchanged since July.

• Expert Analysis

  • “US Manufacturing is in no growth mode and has been for months.” — Bradley Saunders, Capital Economics ([04:40])
  • Factory employment has declined since the year's start.
  • Tariffs intended to boost domestic industry are instead raising costs for manufacturers who rely on imported parts.
  • “We’re seeing industrial production bounce along the bottom as manufacturing continues to adjust downward in light of US Trade conflict.” — Joe Bruceuelis, RSM ([04:55])

• AI as an Exception

  • “Outside of the AI buildout, manufacturing should generally struggle as businesses try to adapt their supply chains and figure out what production can be cost effectively reshored back to the U.S.” — Mitchell Hartman ([05:40])

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Waymo Self-Driving Taxis Cause San Francisco Gridlock

Timestamps: [05:55] – [06:36]

Key Points

• After a power outage, Waymo vehicles were immobilized, with blinkers flashing, in the middle of San Francisco streets.
• Waymo claims to have instructed cars to pull over, and is “making changes to how self-driving cars work when infrastructure fails.”

Memorable Moment

• The visualization of “hordes of Waymo self driving taxis just stopped in the middle of traffic blinkers on not moving,” capturing a key challenge for self-driving technology.

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U.S. Visa Denials for European Tech Officials

Timestamps: [07:06] – [08:13]

Key Points

• The U.S. State Department will deny visas to five Europeans, including former EU tech regulator Thierry Breton.
• Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused them of attempting to coerce American social media platforms to censor U.S. viewpoints.
• The dispute revolves around the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA), seen by some U.S. conservatives as a censorship tool, an accusation strongly denied by the EU.

Notable Quote

• “The DSA has become a bitter rallying point for US conservatives who see it as a weapon of censorship against right wing thought, an accusation the EU furiously denies.” — Richard Hamilton, BBC ([07:29])

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Episode Recap

• Office Return: The show foregrounds the career and social benefits of returning to the office, especially for younger workers, illustrating the point with real-world anecdotes and personal perspectives.
• Economy: Industrial production remains sluggish, and U.S. tariffs are complicating manufacturing’s recovery.
• Technology: Self-driving cars face real-world challenges in urban infrastructure outages.
• International Policy: The U.S. and EU tech regulation face a transatlantic showdown over digital free speech and governance.

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Transcript

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[Sabri Benishour]

Maybe going into the office isn't so bad. From Marketplace, I'm Sabri Benishour in for David Brancaccio. In 2025, we saw more and more workers dragged back to the office, at least part time, but often full time, especially in finance and tech. JP Morgan, Amazon AT&T Dell, they're all back to five days a week in person. But according to research from economists at the New York Fed and several universities, being in the office at least some of the time has real upsides, particularly for younger workers. And many of them want more time in the office. They see it as an opportunity. One Such worker is 29 year old sky Atondo. He is an event coordinator for Milk Studios based in Los Angeles. Sky, welcome.

[Interviewer/Host]

Good morning.

[Sabri Benishour]

So can you tell me a little bit about what you do for work.

[Sky Atondo]

Primarily like Milk Studios, we are a hub for anything to create a space for you to have an event on the back end. It's bringing everyone in and next day we have a shoot, right. So it's like we have to make it look like as if an event was never there. So my job is basically to protect space and then at the end of the day just make sure the client's happy.

[Sabri Benishour]

So does that mean that you are mostly in person, entirely in person or remote? How does that work, work for you?

[Sky Atondo]

Up until the event? I'm, I'm fully online but I'm always in office.

[Sabri Benishour]

How do you feel about that? Do you prefer that to working remote or how do you feel?

[Sky Atondo]

I love it. I jokingly always say it's like it gives you a reason, like to put a fit on.

[Sabri Benishour]

I do know of people, certain people who would absolutely die if they had to go into the office every day. But you like it? Why do you like it?

[Sky Atondo]

I love the kiki with the boys and girls.

[Sabri Benishour]

You know, there is research that shows that people who work remotely full time, they get less training, fewer chances to move up or do new work. Does that resonate with your experience?

[Sky Atondo]

Oh, for sure. I don't think without being in person, I would have got the mentorship I got from a lot of these guys within my industry that just take me under the wing. And honestly, it's like the nuance of send an email. You're not necessarily getting my personality or what's necessarily going on, you know.

[Sabri Benishour]

Out of curiosity, what is your commute?

[Sky Atondo]

Like six minutes.

[Sabri Benishour]

Okay, so. So that probably helps.

[Sky Atondo]

Well, I mean, yeah, especially in Los Angeles. It's one way in, one way out. It's make my life a little easier.

[Sabri Benishour]

You have worked in your career remote before, right?

[Sky Atondo]

Oh, my gosh, yes. I think it's primarily. Majority of my job is emailing, but at the end of the day, I want to see the person behind it and then actually get to know them. Like, even if it's security or if it's a director or producer, like, I really like to just be a part of it rather than outside looking in.

[Sabri Benishour]

Well, it sounds like you have a lot of fun at your job, which is great.

[Sky Atondo]

Honestly, I'm so blessed to say I enjoy what I do because very rarely do we get to do things where we get to make other people happy.

[Sabri Benishour]

Sky Atondo, event coordinator for Milk Studios. Thank you so much.

[Sky Atondo]

Thank you for having me.

[Sabri Benishour]

Every month, the Federal Reserve reports on how the country's industrial production is doing. So think manufacturing, mining, gas and electric utilities. It's not looking so good. After falling a tenth of a percent in October, industrial production was up 2.10percent in November. But that was mostly from mining. Construction and utilities were down. Manufacturing was flat. Marketplace's Mitchell Hartman has more.

[Mitchell Hartman]

US Manufacturing is in no growth mode and has been for months, says Bradley Saunders at Capital Economics.

[Interviewer/Host]

The level of manufacturing output now is no higher than it was in July.

[Mitchell Hartman]

Factory employment has actually fallen since the beginning of the year.

[Sky Atondo]

We're seeing industrial production bounce along the bottom as manufacturing continues to adjust downward in light of US Trade conflict.

[Mitchell Hartman]

That's economist Joe Bruceuelis at consulting firm rsm, and he's talking about the Trump administration's tariffs designed to make imported goods more expensive and boost domestic producers. But it's not working that way, says Saunders. Take auto manufacturing.

[Interviewer/Host]

It's fallen in five of the last six months, which of course is not what anybody want to see in the Trump administration when it was listed, you know, as one of the main industries they were looking to supplement with tariffs.

[Mitchell Hartman]

The problem is most domestic manufacturers use imported parts and materials, which tariffs are driving up in price, hurting profitability for.

[Interviewer/Host]

The next couple of years. Outside of the AI buildout, manufacturing should generally struggle as businesses try to adapt.

[Mitchell Hartman]

Their supply chains and figure out what production can be cost effectively reshored Back to the U.S. i'm Mitchell Hartman for Marketplace.

[Sabri Benishour]

You might have seen videos of this when the power went out in parts of San Francisco over the weekend, stoplights and traffic signals went out too and as a result hordes of Waymo self driving taxis just stopped in the middle of traffic blinkers on not moving. Adding to the chaos. Waymo says it had instructed the cars to pull over and park and says it is making changes to how the self driving cars work when infrastructure fails.

[Grainger Commercial Announcer]

If you're an H vac technician and a call comes in, Grainger knows that you need a partner that helps you find the right product fast and hassle free. And you know that when the first problem of the day is a clanking blower motor, there's no need to break a sweat. With Grainger's easy to use website and product details, you're confident you'll soon have everything humming right along. Call 1-800-granger. Click granger.com or just stop by Granger for the ones who get it done.

[Sabri Benishour]

The State Department says it'll deny visas to five European citizens, including a former top EU official. Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused them of leading, quote, organized efforts to coerce American social media platforms to censor, demonetize and suppress American viewpoints they oppose. The BBC's Richard Hamilton has this report.

[Richard Hamilton]

Top of the list of the five Europeans is Thierry Breton, the former tech regulator at the European Commission who's often clashed with tycoons such as Elon Musk over their obligations to follow EU rules. Mr. Breton has been described by the State Department as the mastermind of the Digital Services Act, a major piece of legislation that imposes content, moderation and and other standards on social media platforms operating in Europe. The DSA has become a bitter rallying point for US conservatives who see it as a weapon of censorship against right wing thought, an accusation the EU furiously denies.

[Sabri Benishour]

That's Richard Hamilton there with our news partners at the BBC in New York. I'm Sabri Benishore with the Marketplace Morning.

[Maria]

Report.

[Sabri Benishour]

From APM American Public Media.

[Maria]

Hey everyone. You already listened to Marketplace podcasts, so you know that it's important to understand how economic forces shape our lives. And that feels especially important now as we're all trying to make sense of the latest headlines. I'm Maria, host of Marketplaces. This is Uncomfortable, a show that explores how money bumps up against our relationships, our choices in the parts of life we don't always say aloud. And starting January 15th, we are back every single week. New stories, new questions, and the kind of conversations that make you feel less alone in this quickly changing economy. We're tackling questions like should I turn my hobby into a money making side hustle? How do I deal with layoff anxiety? Or what do we owe our parents financially? Don't miss an episode. Subscribe to this is Uncomfortable from Marketplace. Wherever you get your podcasts.