John Thornton, an Amalgamated Life veteran, is seeing some supplier shrinkage but also signs of stability.

Nineteen states and the District of Columbia allege that the restructuring violates the Administrative Procedure Act and the Constitution because the agency has no authority to restructure itself and fire its employees.

"Even though we've seen RTO efforts and some high-profile remote work rollbacks, most workers say they haven't been brought back into the office full time," said Toni Frana, career expert manager at FlexJobs.

A Paragon Institute analyst calls the idea of "cost-shifting" from government plans to employer plans a myth.