PublicSource, with Technical.ly, is exploring the landscape of work in Pittsburgh — famed for its industriousness and intense union-management conflict and collaboration — as it is pressure-tested by changes in governmental policy, technology and economics.
Everything changed five years ago next month. And while some people in power want to largely terminate the remote and hybrid work that emerged in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, a sample of Pittsburgh professionals told PublicSource that they hope it’s here to stay.
Last week, as we launched the Pittsburgh at Work series, we asked audience members to tell us how their employment has evolved since 2020.
Our callout came as President Donald Trump and his ally billionaire Elon Musk doubled down on bids to force federal workers to uniformly return to the office.
Respondents — who were invited, but not required to provide basic identifying information — said they treasure the flexibility of online working arrangements. Edited for length and clarity, here’s what workers told PublicSource.
Stacey, 45, Morningside
Regulatory compliance for a university in another state
“In January 2020, I was part of a pilot program for my department at one of the local universities to allow two work-from-home days a week. Then from March 2020 through December 2024 I was almost entirely remote, with an in-office meeting monthly-ish. I recently started a new job for another university. Now I am fully remote and will travel to another state a couple of times a year for team meetings. My actual job is fairly similar, other than a standard amount of job progression in responsibility and payment for the elapsed years; my overall career trajectory hasn’t changed. My random workday interruptions now come from cats instead of coworkers, but are otherwise similar!”
Kyle, 42, Lawrenceville
General counsel for a national affordable housing provider
“My job title and field are the same, but I went from working for a local company in a Downtown office to a national company from a home office/co-working space.”
Name not provided, 40, Downtown
Tech contractor at a major local corporation
“My circumstances are vastly different as my expectations have changed. I have over 15 years working in technology roles; I do not and will not accept working in an office five days a week just to sit on Teams calls with remote team members. My expectations have shifted toward employers understanding that I have a life and that my life doesn’t revolve around the workplace. Many managers, to their credit, seem to understand, agree and practice this work-life paradigm themselves.”
Alicia, 36, Bellevue
Art director for an advertising agency
“In 2020, I worked fully remote as a graphic designer. The [chief officer] at the time believed in a work-from-anywhere-at-any-time model. She believed that if deadlines were hit and meetings were attended, it didn’t really matter how, when or where the work got done. When I accepted [my current job] in spring 2022, the company offered two flex remote work weeks per year and Fridays off in the summer — both policies have since been rescinded. … [The company] expects in-office attendance Monday through Thursday. We work remotely on Fridays. Overall, it seems like companies in general just want more control over their staff.”
Jonathan, 40, South Hills
Part-time gig worker in the real estate industry, and stay-at-home dad
“I previously worked in corporate finance until 2021. A move back home to Pittsburgh in 2021 and arrival of a second child allowed me the opportunity to step back from previous work and focus on family.”
Sam, 29, East Liberty
Program administrator for nonprofit that mediates between landlords and tenants
“In January 2020, I managed a five-suite bed and breakfast attached to the private university. Fully in person with weekend on-call demands. Now I’m fully remote.”
Nonie, 64, Monroeville
GIS Specialist
“Right after the pandemic began, around March of 2020, my company encouraged everyone who could work from home to do so. It must have been pretty successful because even after restrictions were lifted, we stayed working remotely. At some point, they went 100% permanently remote for every employee who was able to and wanted to. (Of course, there are some people who prefer to work in an office setting, and spaces were set aside for them in the plant.) At a town hall meeting, our CEO said that one benefit to the company was the ability to recruit talented employees from anywhere, instead of being limited to a radius around the headquarters. I have coworkers all over the country and people in my immediate team are in three different states.”
Rich Lord is the managing editor at PublicSource and can be reached at rich@publicsource.org.
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