Workers grapple with returning to the office, some eager to get back into the workplace We're talking with Michigan workers about what they think now that the state is approaching a return to the office for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic began. and last updated 2021-05-11 19:14:06-04 DETROIT (WXYZ) â "It was optional but I just wanted to get out of the house," said Jonathan Mallard who works in downtown Detroit where the lunchtime crowds are nowhere near what they used to be pre-COVID. "It looks pretty dead down here," said Mallard's colleague, Aaron Thomas, after the two picked up lunch at a food truck where there was no wait to place an order.