There's no doubt Martha Stewart works hard: the 81-year-old has built a media empire as a self-taught chef, television personality and bestselling author, and shows no signs of slowing down. The woman was even a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition cover star last month, for God's sake.
Yet despite her extensive lifestyle brand - spanning cookbooks, homeware lines, and television shows - being built upon the foundations of homemaking and domesticity, Stewart wants us all out of our homes and into the office, declaring that America will "go down the drain" if remote work continues.
Speaking to magazine Footwear News recently, the domestic goddess herself claimed that the trend towards remote or hybrid work models post-pandemic was putting the US economy at risk, claiming it could see The Land of the Free turn into France - in her words, "a not very thriving country".
This is despite the fact that the convicted criminal opened her catering business from her own kitchen.
"You can't possibly get everything done working three days a week in the office and two days remotely. Look at the success of France with their stupid... you know, off for August, blah blah blah. That's not a very thriving country," she told the outlet.
"Should America go down the drain because people don't want to go back to work?"
She added to the magazine that she is on a "rampage" to get Americans away from their cosy at-home desks, in the car, on a commute, to their corporate offices - where they'll likely get the same amount of work done as they would at home.
She then doubled-down on her comments in an interview with Today, this time specifically taking aim at the recent post-pandemic rise of hybrid work models, where employees will work a three-days-in-the-office, two-days-at-home configuration.
"It's frightening. If you read the economic news, a three-day workday [sic] doesn't get the work done, it doesn't get the productivity up, it doesn't help with the economy," she said.
"I just don't agree with it, I don't."
Stewart's stance has not been universally well-received, with many pointing out that based on the ethos of her brand, the comments were dripping with hypocrisy.
"How about you spend 2-3 hours commuting every day, in a car *you* drive (not your limousine) or strap-hanging on a smelly, crowded train, for a week, and then see if your opinions about remote work being unproductive have changed?" one clapped back on Instagram.
"Martha Stewart is asserting America will 'go down the drain' if companies continue to allow its employees to work from home. Correct me if I'm wrong, but hasn't Martha spent the majority of her career [essentially] working from home?" said another on Twitter, while another weighed in: "Sorry Martha. In MY job, I get MORE done at home, work more overtime (unpaid) and don't have a 40-minute commute. So, sit in your ivory tower and let us live our lives. It's a 'good thing'."
