Headed back to the office? Corporate America is trying to decide when and how to bring employees back — if ever

As vaccination efforts pick up, companies and states are struggling to chart the new normal. And as many Fortune 500 companies and their employees are finding out, the old normal might not be coming back.

Microsoft employees will have the option to return to their Washington offices starting next week. Deere's first phase to return in-person to offices will begin in early April — but factory workers have been reporting in for months. For about 200,000 Wells Fargo employees working remotely, the shift won't begin until at least May. At Amazon, employees working from home will head in no earlier than July. Google, Kraft Heinz and American Express are eyeing September. Starbucks headquarters is looking at October. And even as companies eye guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention about safely returning, many employees never want to head back to the office. A survey by the Society for Human Resource Management found 52% of Americans would choose to work from home permanently given the option. Two-thirds of those who want to work permanently at home, said they would do so even if the U.S. reached herd immunity.