Electric vehicle manufacturers have realized that the prices of their cars are making it more difficult for many of them to compete against makers of lower-priced internal combustion engine vehicles.

Tesla saw its third quarter deliveries fall below market estimates, prompting Elon Musk's company in early October to lower the list price of the Model 3 from $40,240 to $38,990 and its industry leading seller Model Y has recently fallen from $47,740 to $43,990.

Related: Tesla Japanese rivals debut concept vehicles in latest challenge

Tesla top rival Ford already cut the price of its all-electric Mustang Mach-E by up to $4,000 in May and its F-150 Lightning by about $10,000 in July.

Stellantis revealing entry-level electric cars

Stellantis  (STLA) - Get Free Report has been busy revealing low-priced entry-level electric vehicles that it plans to begin selling in 2024 to compete with French automaker Renault in Europe as well as Chinese EV companies. The company in August said it would unveil a second new entry-level Fiat-branded electric vehicle in July 2024 that will be priced less than €25,000 or about $27,390. The company, however, didn't say when the vehicle might be sold in the U.S.

The company said in June that it will deliver the new Citroën e-C3 electric car to Europe in early 2024. The Citroën e-C3 was expected to have a range of 186 miles on a charge and would be among lowest priced EVs on the market. Stellantis had already said it would bring Fiat's best-selling EV, the Fiat 500e, to the U.S. market in 2024 to compete against Tesla and the growing U.S. EV market.

Big Three automaker unveils its low-priced electric vehicles

Stellantis on Oct. 17 revealed its updated all-new, all-electric Citroën e-C3, which is its first European-designed, European-built B-segment, or subcompact, EV hatchback. The new vehicle is now estimated to have a 199-mile range, charging 20% to 80% of capacity in as little as 26 minutes. The EV accelerates 0 to 62 mph in 11 seconds with a provisional top speed of 84 mph for everyday driving and traffic in urban and suburban areas.

The company estimates that the vehicle will be priced below £23,000 ($27,900) in the UK. No word yet if the Citroën e-C3 will roll out in the U.S.

In 2025, Stellantis will offer a Citroën e-C3 with a 200 km- or 124-mile range and priced at €19,990 or $21,068, the company said. That price would be lower than any new EV sold in the U.S. today. General Motors  (GM) - Get Free Report Chevy Bolt's lowest manufacturer suggest retail price is $26,500, while the 2024 Nissan  (NSANY) - Get Free Report Leaf has a starting price of $28,140.

The new Citroën e-C3 will be available in three versions You, Plus and Max. The You version's standard equipment includes LED headlights, Citroën Advanced Comfort Suspension, Active Safety Brake, the new Citroën Head Up Display, ‘My Citroen Play with Smartphone Station’ for infotainment, electric door mirrors, auto lighting, rear parking radar, rear spoiler, cruise control, manual air conditioning, and six airbags.

Plus vehicles include 17-inch alloy wheels, Citroën’s two-tone paint with contrasting roof, decorative roof rails, front and rear skid plates, the 10.25-inch color touchscreen with smartphone mirroring, Citroën Advanced Comfort Seats, auto wipers, power-folding and heated door mirrors, leather-effect steering wheel, 60/40 folding second-row seat, and driver seat adjustment.

The premium Max version additionally has LED rear lights, rear privacy glass, enhanced seat textiles, automatic air conditioning, 3D navigation, wireless charging, rear camera, electrochrome rear-view mirror, and rear power windows.

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Covid-era alternative work solutions have come under fire as businesses increasingly deploy a carrot-and-stick approach to convincing employees to return to offices.

Technology titan Meta Platforms  (META) - Get Free Report, which owns Facebook, threatened poor performance reviews if workers failed to attend offices three times weekly. JP Morgan Chase  (JPM) - Get Free Report CEO Jamie Dimon recently suggested workers uncomfortable with returning to offices should look for employment elsewhere.

Workers don’t like the idea of giving up the flexibility afforded by remote work, but a recent survey shows that these workers may face an uphill battle if they hope to continue working from home.

Remote work loses its luster

Companies big and small rushed to offer flexible alternative work schedules like remote and hybrid work during Covid. Remote work quickly became a key benefit used to fill jobs created by those who took early retirement and newly created positions in response to demand growth fueled by easy-money policies.

Related: Facebook issues more tough-luck news to workers

Remote work initially appeared to be a win/win for companies and employees. It allowed businesses to source job candidates nationally rather than locally and sometimes save money by closing expensive offices. Meanwhile, workers could live in the suburbs rather than crowded cities and save money by eliminating expensive childcare costs.

Unfortunately, the love affair with remote work has soured over the past year.

Businesses, from technology to financial services, have rolled back remote work, citing a need for increased collaboration and greater productivity. Many companies have likely sought to reduce the number of remote workers as part of layoff plans or to fill otherwise vacant office spaces.

Businesses are winning the return-to-office battle

Worker surveys suggest employees prefer remote work. However, they’re losing the battle with employers demanding more office face time.

The Census Bureau’s latest Household Pulse Survey shows remote work has reached a new post-pandemic low, with declines seen in all 50 states, reports Bloomberg.

More Jobs:

• Amazon issues a hard-nosed warning to workers
• General Motors delivers hard-nosed message to UAW workers
• Wall Street bankers want to take away your favorite work perk

The survey showed that fewer than 26% of households include someone who works remotely at least one day weekly. That’s a significant drop-off from the high of 37% in 2021. A total of 31 states had remote work rates above 33% at the peak. Now, only seven states exceed that hurdle.

States with the highest percentages of remote workers are typically Democratic states, mainly on the east and west coasts. Middle America and the South boast some of the lowest rates of remote work.

There’s also a more significant push for a return to office (RTO) in major metro markets where office building valuations are tumbling because of empty offices. During its recent quarterly conference call, Goldman Sachs  (GS) - Get Free Report told investors that it reduced valuations on office properties in its portfolio by 50%.

The impact of lower valuations on financial companies could contribute to the stricter return to office demands. Big banks like JP Morgan have been among the most vocal in demanding RTO, and they’re also heavily exposed to commercial real estate.

For instance, in addition to loans held on commercial properties, JP Morgan is building a new multibillion-dollar headquarters in New York City.

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