My company just had an in-person meeting that everyone (a few thousand people) was required to attend. Well, everyone except the CEO, apparently. He was allowed to video conference in… but he didn't even do that.
The first 3rd of the meeting was the COO bragging on how our production is up this year, even though last year was intentionally planned to be a low-production year while we upgraded and replaced a bunch of equipment and processes.
The second 3rd of the meeting was all about vehicle safety with talks from multiple people who were victims of or witnessed serious traffic wrecks on their way to and from work.
The last 3rd of the meeting was an “open” discussion on the lack of available seating due to hiring more people than we've ever had before COVID. Fortunately we have a lot of admin work that doesn't need done on site, so about half of our employees are teleworking each day (I only go in like 2 days a month).
Not even 1 hour after the meeting, the CEO sends a mass email saying from now on, everyone needs to be on site at least 2 days a week, 2-4 people will be sharing each tiny cubicle, and there will be no additional compensation for those who are making the unnecessary commute (45-60 minutes one way from my home).
What a hypocrite for making us attend this meeting, and what a coward for refusing to give us this news directly.