to think some people think WFH should be a constant nose to the grindstone?

I think people who don't work in offices think an office job is pretty cushty anyway, so with the complaining of having to go back hasn't done any favours as wfh is even cushtier!

The posts which gloat about minimum effort, naps, no commute, looking after kids at the same time, household chores, school runs etc further reinforces the stigma. Therein lies the problem, even when meant to be a joke it doesn't do it any favours.

I know plenty who work hard from home, longer hours even, also some who take the piss. Like any job, but in other sectors it's much harder to shirk. Xx

Call me whatever you like.
The OP also says she meets all her targets. As do many others on here.
I agree with pps that those who are vehemently against WFH are probably those who know that they wouldn't be able to organise their work and their day well enough to do it successfully.

Why, though?

The "Its jealousy" response makes me laugh.
I don't really care what you do at home as long as you get the job done when its needs to be done.
Most of my
wfh colleagues are 'there' when needed and if they are not 'there' are available through chat (yes, even in meetings).
The ones that cause the grief are the ones that aren't available to do their jobs.

Yes I'm jealous from a chronically understaffed NHS ward 🤣

🥱

I think it's because it's new to some people so some people feel you must be extra good because you have been "allowed" to work from home. Like being on best behaviour because you've been given a special treat.

Back in reality, plenty of people in offices have breaks! Also plenty of other people have been working flexibly forever, got the work done and not obsessed about optics.

Agree. I'm on a very high salary but have loads of flexibility in my working week and very rarely work over my contracted hours. I'm paid so well because I have a niche area of expertise that directly contributes to the revenue and profit of my company and this doesn't correlate to hard hours worked.

Sometimes I can do a short piece of work that pays for itself ten fold.

Yes I'm available if needed during my working hours and am more often than not kept busy, but on the days I'm not I have no qualms about having some down time.

I'm fully remote and go into the office maybe 6 times a year max. I genuinely can't believe how unproductive the office is - people might be there 8 hours but they definitely aren't working for all that time. Last time I went there was a twenty minute conversation about what lunches everyone was ordering, then someone went out to pick them up. Then the 'lunch hour ' started. About an hour after that someone popped out to do a cake run 🤣

Some days I work over my hours, some under. No one cares as long as the results are good. I'm moving jobs soon (handing in my notice tomorrow) and I was very clear at interview that I want to maintain my work life balance and the reply was that my time would be my own to manage as I see fit, as long as the job gets done. Not every job requires constantly being logged on.

I predominantly wfh, one of my reports wfh and we both have high output even with popping the laundry on or whatever. We have busy and quiet periods plus flexible hours and as adults we manage it. I've also worked 12 hour days, taken calls on days off and met every deadline set.

I've seen people in the office spend all day chatting, wandering around, making personal calls and doing nothing they are paid for.

It's not wfh that's the problem, it's piss poor time management. If someone takes the piss at home they'll do it in an office setting. But that doesn't make a good headline.

Everyone should be back in the office by now. WFH allows you the casual lazy breaks that a day in the office wouldn’t allow. About time the Gov clamped down on this loophole.

There are no absolutes in this. I am retired now but when I was working I HATED working from home. It was isolating and some things are always easier to sort out if you can speak to people face-to-face. I did work my hours, though, and was as productive as when I was in the office.

The people taking the piss are not always the ones you expect and not the ones that management would expect. I also knew of colleagues who worked from 9am until 7pm with 20 minutes for lunch and valued WFH because they got more done.

I encourage you to read the OP properly before commenting. She clearly says she works on her side business. Another poster says she looks after her child. So I'm not "making shit up" as you so eloquently put it (may I call you Oscar Wilde?) And it might take only 7 minutes to peg out the laundry but the OP, along with many other posters, are not just doing that are they?

Well, as long as the line manager is happy? I'm assuming it's all monitored. We've had some tales on these wfh threads, several women claiming they look after babies/toddlers, others that they do another job on the side? Who knows. It's up to the employer to sort them out.

The sad fact is that lots of people are stuck in shit jobs with few rights, and there are lots of jobsworth micromanagers about as well, who can't bear the thought of losing control of their minions, or who have fully gulped down the corporate koolaid.

Those of us in flexible WFH roles are usually more senior and / or highly qualified, doing jobs that require our specific skillset or experience. There's plenty that annoys me about my job, but I have worked long and hard to get to this level of autonomy. Damn right I'm going to hang the bloody washing out if I want to!

I wfh 2 days a week. But they're often longer days reflecting that I'm not commuting so I don't see any issue with taking a few minutes to do personal tasks. Today I worked 7am to 5pm and the only real break I took was an hour when I took DS to the orthodontist and ate my lunch. I've still worked two hours unpaid overtime. I might also do a Pilates class on some days but I'm still working over what is contractually required, meeting my objectives and a break often focuses the mind.

I think it’s fine to take a short break to hang out your washing but what I don’t think is good is when people take a longer time off during working hours (eg to do an exercise class) because if you have to contact them urgently they are no where to be seen and it delays your work. Obviously this isn’t true of everyone’s set up but I come across it a lot. Eg I needed an answer about something urgently from one of my direct reports and I had to call him in the end because he didn’t respond to emails and he said ‘sorry, I was having tea in the garden with my wife’s parents’. It wasn’t a regular issue so I didn’t make a big deal out of it but I did think WTF.

I reckon it's a mix of jealousy and ignorance.

I work for myself now, so set my own hours and pick my own clients, but when I worked on site, I often would take 10 minutes to chat with someone while making coffee, or I'd spend longer than necessary up in the office or the stock room just to get a breather. I'd volunteer to nip to the shops or the bank and go via another shop on my way to stretch the time out.

As long as the work is getting done, who has the energy to care that Jane hangs the washing out or Steve does the school run?

You pay a decorator to paint a room, not by the hour. They often leave early!! Or they say it will be three days and they do it in two. You pay the same price. Your analogy disproves your point and supports the OP’s point.

I think a lot of it is jealousy. Who wouldn't want that sort of set up.
My view is as long as targets being met on or before deadlines, do what you want with the rest of your time

I think it depends on the job, doesn't it? Some don't require full concentration.
There was a woman on another thread who said she changed her child's nappy while on work calls!
(could explain the shite advice I got from my insurance company, though..)

No one has said they look after their toddler or do a side hustle; you're making shit up.
I think we can safely assume too that, when people talk about going to the gym or for a walk, they're doing this for about the same amount of time as a lunch break from the office would be (it's certainly the case for me). And 'life admin', done in, say, two bursts of 15 minutes in between calls or whatever, equates to two 15-minute tea breaks, which is hardly unusual in an office.

I know you were being facetious with the comment about pegging out the laundry in an office, but someone has said pegging out the laundry while WFH takes them 7 minutes, less than your '10 minute chat with a colleague in the tea room'.

I probably do a similar amount of non-work in the office as at home In the office, I’d be having coffee with pal-colleagues, extending lunches for yoga sessions, finishing early to go to the pub and (genuinely) nipping across the road for Botox. Now I whack on a load of washing when someone ‘gives me 5 minutes back’ because a meeting has finished early. Oh the glamour!

It is pure jealousy. I WFH. When my work is complete I can do what I want. As do the other members of my team and management. It isn't about "targets" We just keep on top of what comes in and nothing is overly time sensitive. I clean the house, keep on top of washing, go food shopping, gym, dog walking all in work hours without it effecting work. Management know and encourage us to make the most of down time. People on here are so catty about wfh it is hilarious.

I have a job where I am deadline driven so as long as the work gets done for the deadline then I can use my time how I like. Constricting people in these kind or roles to specific hours will not get the best out of them.
I do my best work in the evenings when kids are asleep.
It's as usual a total lack of thinking outside of the box/understanding people work differently