The workplace triple threat: Disengagement, RTOs, and Fake AI Applicants

This week, we're diving into three concerning workplace trends: First, employee engagement is declining sharply, with managers under 35 and female managers leading this downward slide—potentially because they're caught in middle management roles with high responsibility but little decision-making power. Meanwhile, BNY Mellon is increasing its office mandate from three to four days weekly by September 2025, again bringing up the question of if RTOs are actually solving the challenges businesses are having. Finally, tech CEOs are raising alarms about candidates using AI to fake their way through remote job interviews—with Gartner projecting that by 2028, one in four global job applicants will be using AI-generated profiles, posing serious security risks beyond simple resume fraud. Connect: With Lee Rubin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rubinl/ With Stacey Nordwall on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/staceynordwall/ Articles: Employee Engagement is Dropping and Managers are leading the slide BNY asks employees to return to office four days a week by September Fake job seekers are flooding U.S. companies that are hiring for remote positions, tech CEOs say