The cruelest irony of adulthood is that, even after nearly three decades of working through the summer, I still get back-to-school anxiety in August. It’s like having wrinkles and acne at the same time.
Column by Karla L. Miller
Even so, the number of workers showing up in D.C. offices the week after Labor Day saw its biggest spike since the pandemic began, according to security firm Kastle Systems — still a smaller share than in New York, Dallas and Austin, but more than in San Francisco, San Jose and Philadelphia.
What I’m curious about is the vibe behind those numbers. Are workers, as they catch whiffs of a cooling job market, rushing to build up stores of face time and badge swipes in case of a lean winter?
Have they spent so much time on “break” with their families that they are desperate for a change of scenery and conversation?
Is it simply the presidential election season and the return of lawmakers to Capitol Hill drawing everyone back to the hive?
Or is it possible D.C. professionals are feeling galvanized by something more positive? Are they capitalizing on what Kate Warwick, founder of British content services firm Word Savvy, calls “the new notebook, sharpened pencil feel of early September?” And will this in-office surge continue or drop off, the way my color-coded Trapper Keeper filing system always collapsed into loose-leaf chaos by mid-October?
In Europe — where six weeks of vacation annually is the norm and many people take most of August off — that vibe is captured by the French term “la rentrée.” It means return or reentry but implies a time of renewal and recommitment, an awakening after the summer slump. It’s like our back-to-school and back-to-work and Fall Fashion Week and the New York Times fall book list and the new season of must-see TV and pumpkin spice everything, everywhere, all at once.
And the rentrée tradition seems to be spreading as more societies rethink their relationship to work. In London, “August has become the new Christmas [break],” says Julia Hobsbawm, author of “Working Assumptions: What We Thought We Knew About Work Before Covid and Generative AI — And What We Know Now.”
August in Britain “never used to be as shut down as it’s become” since the pandemic, Hobsbawm said. Out-of-office messages flourished last month in London, she said, a sign of the growing “cultural acceptability of being away for long periods of time.” With expanded flexible working rules that took effect in 2024, and the newly elected Labour government’s plans to implement right-to-disconnect laws, Hobsbawm expects these trends to continue.
Is it possible Americans are starting to follow these vacationing trends? There are media reports of more U.S. employers shutting down the entire company for as long as a week around major holidays, such as July 4, so everyone is off at the same time. Is it just to save on air-conditioning and prevent quiet vacationing, or are we starting to normalize extended, fully detached summer breaks as the new standard? And are those breaks possibly shifting some end-of-summer mindsets? Or am I just high on ragweed-allergy meds?
I’d be curious to hear about your post-Labor Day transition. Did you come back to work full of that “new season” excitement, or last season’s ennui? Are you spending more time in the office? Please let me know at karla.miller@washpost.com.
If you’re having trouble getting back into the groove, consider taking a tip from the Europeans on celebrating reentry. Pace yourself and plan some rewards for getting through your first few days or weeks: a random weekday off, a meetup with friends after work, your next getaway. Small treats count, too: Pumpkin spice lattes are popular for a reason.
Or, if you had just enough time away to realize you’ve worn through your job like last fall’s loafers, it might be time to start looking for something that fits you better.
And one reminder: While some of us were squeezing in last-minute leisure time, others spent Labor Day honoring its true origins: celebrating and protecting workers. Ten thousand hotel workers at major chains across the United States went on strike over Labor Day weekend — and are still ongoing in San Diego as I’m writing this — to demand better pay and improved staffing. Staff and service cuts implemented during the pandemic have increased workloads on hospitality professionals as travel has resumed, and many are not being paid enough to make ends meet in the popular travel destinations where they work and live. So if you’re lucky enough to be preparing for an upcoming trip, pack some cash to properly thank the people who are making sure you enjoy yourself.
