Does a return to normal mean the end of the hybrid work model?

NEW YORK -- After two years of the pandemic, some things are getting back to normal.

Many employees are back in the office, so what does that mean for the hybrid work model?

As the pandemic wanes, offices are filling back up. Many corporate employees have returned at least a few days a week.

"Part time. We are still working hybrid, like some of it at home," said Muhammad Zahid, who works in IT support.

He told CBS2's Nick Caloway he likes the flexibility of the hybrid model.

"Maybe they will ask us to come back to the office. But yeah, I like this way," he said.

Companies small and large are encouraging people to come back to the office.

Banking giant Goldman Sachs brought employees back full time in June of last year, saying in a statement, "Bringing our employees safely back to the office is core to our apprenticeship culture and client centric business. What's clear through the process is that we are better together than apart, especially as an employer of choice for those in the beginning stage of their career."

Goldman is not alone.

"Companies that bring their talent back, that's the right way to go, and we're going to find that companies are going to start doing that more and more," said Carl Gould, founder of the growth advisory firm 7 Stage Advisors.

He said some employers are looking at virtually outsourcing jobs overseas, so employees should go back to the office and show how indispensable they are.

"And so that same employee right now that's fighting for Monday and Friday off all the time is going to have to look for another job because they've been replaced," Gould said.

Even with the push back to the office, many employees are hoping to hold onto the hybrid model.

David Lewis runs OperationsInc, an H.R. consulting firm. He said many are reluctant to return five days a week and are willing to quit if necessary.

"It is very clear that people are voting with their resignation letters in the form of saying, 'I am not going to come back, if that's what you require me to do. And I am going to go to some place that's going to allow me to maintain this newfound freedom of work-life balance,'" Lewis said.

Experts agree that the hybrid approach will linger for some time, a shift in workplace culture that will stick around even after the pandemic is behind us.