To be so glad WFH became a thing (and to absolutely hate anyone who tries to curtail its availability)

WFH is why I was made redundant. Office facilities management ceased to be necessary so I was made redundant so no, I don’t see it as being wonderful like the majority on this post.

Yes agree, it has saved me a needless 2 hour commute everyday.

Agree. I’m a teacher so couldn’t WFH unless I changed jobs. But my partner fully wfh and it’s great. He (happily) gets so many jobs done during the day, which frees up our out of work time. He starts at 9am (I’m out the door at 7.30) so usually after his shower and his breakfast he uses 8.30-9am to spend his “commute time” as we jokingly call it, putting laundry on and emptying the dishwasher from the night before. On his hour lunch break, as well as eating and having some chill time, he preps all the veg for our evening meal and hangs the laundry. He finishes at 4.30 and whilst he waits for me to come home he might hoover or similar sort of job. We both agree it’s perfect as if he was in the office and we were both out all day, we’d have to come home to all these jobs. Which I know a lot of people who don’t wfh have to do, but it works nicely for us.

I'm a teacher so can't do the bulk of my work from home, but I can absolutely see how productivity can be amazing WFH. I do 2-3 hours WFH in the evenings after DC have gone to sleep every night, and I get so much done that would be hard to achieve if I tried to do the same at school after the pupils have gone home. WFH at weekends is trickier as the family are around, but needs must. Would be nice if the WFH hours were billable though.

Agree. I’m a teacher so couldn’t WFH unless I changed jobs. But my partner fully wfh and it’s great. He (happily) gets so many jobs done during the day, which frees up our out of work time. He starts at 9am (I’m out the door at 7.30) so usually after his shower and his breakfast he uses 8.30-9am to spend his “commute time” as we jokingly call it, putting laundry on and emptying the dishwasher from the night before. On his hour lunch break, as well as eating and having some chill time, he preps all the veg for our evening meal and hangs the laundry. He finishes at 4.30 and whilst he waits for me to come home he might hoover or similar sort of job. We both agree it’s perfect as if he was in the office and we were both out all day, we’d have to come home to all these jobs. Which I know a lot of people who don’t wfh have to do, but it works nicely for us.

‘No one does their washing whilst working’…really?!

I can’t do my job from home but on occasions where I’m doing training, that’s possible and I have always put washing on, put the dinner in etc etc

My DH WFH every day and often does things like this, I find it bizarre to think people wouldn’t!

I agree @Designless I returned to work last year after a long break and I honestly don't think I could've returned to FT in the office. I get a balance between WFH, office and site work and it's great, but if I had to commute every day and sit the office I just don't think I could've stuck with it. I used to do it five days a week, but now? <shudder>

I find it so funny when people get irate about people doing their washing, nipping out to a nail appointment.
A. Not every call i am on requires me to be on camera or take notes, or even contribute for the most part, and my company issues a wireless headset as standard so of course im going to put my washing on.
B. Its called flexible working, which a lot of people who get upset about wfh also get irate about...

Should add I now WFH and it is such a doddle compared to being in my previous job. Such a better work life balance

Of course people do their washing while working! It’s not an issue but it loads do.

I've friends who get their weekly shop in work time too.

This doesn’t mean it should stop as they are still working hard but don’t pretend these things don’t happen!!!

It's brilliant, I don't think I could ever go back to being in the office full time again. I find the office far too noisy and I hate the dirty kitchen & bathrooms. I'm still on teams calls for part of the day anyway, just with added distractions.

The money I would have spent on travel and additional childcare, I now spend in the town I live in (coffees, shopping, gym, nails etc).

I’m hybrid and I think it’s the best of both worlds. Still connect with my team but get time to get stuff done in the quiet and less commuting. Everyone in my work seems to have a much better work life balance than when we had to be in the office full time.

I get people’s concerns for new people into the workforce, but let’s remember these are the generation who live their life online anyway. So for them it’s normal, most of them wouldn’t want to be in the office full time like some of us were at the start of their career.

As someone who is 95% office based, I have benefitted hugely from so may people
working from home. My London commute time is reduced by about 50 % when driving as there a fewer cars on the road. If I’m on public transport I mostly find a seat.

We've been wfh since Mar 2020, it has saved the company a fortune in rent, rates and utilities and we've been given perks and payrises that the cashflow now allows and the Work/ life is incredible.

However our business is commercial property ownership, so get back in the office everyone!! We want employees in offices whilst not doing it ourselves 🤨, do I sound like a certain Clacton MP?

Hybrid since Covid has been life changing. I have suspected since then that I am autistic, but no more noisy office, no stinks of other people’s lunch, no shared toilets, fewer office clothes to sort out, no sad damp commute, more sleep, no Typhoid Mary forced to show up in person... all of the above is now at a bearable level only going in twice a week. It’s improved everything for me.

@Shinyandnew1 "I presume Farage is so upset about it because people are spending less on coffees, lunches and office rents!?!"

That may be part of it but it's just as likely to be that it's part of a divide and conquer policy that works well for them in the polls - if people are getting angry at people working from home they aren't noticing and gettign angry about the people with millions and billions in the bank created by the work of the average worker.

I say that as someone who works from the office 95% of the time.

I can’t work from home and never have. I don’t have particular feelings about it either way. I can see some benefits but I also think that for some jobs in particular, it must be hard when you first start out and you might miss out on aspects of office working.

So?

I always try to take the equivalent of five minutes from the computer screen every hour regardless of if I'm in the office or not. Generally it will be making a phone call or refreshing my to-do list, but I will never understand why people get their knickers in a twist that at home that might involve standing at my own back door in the sunshine instead of standing in the work kitchen under florescent strip lights making tea and chatting.

The people who bitch about it are envious.

I will never return to working in an office again

wfh has enabled me to get a very well paid senior role that would have previously required me to relocate to London.

it’s a geographic equaliser

Why do you hate it? How does it affect you?

I bloody hate it. It serves a small section of society only.

Being expected to pointlessly commute to keep pointless businesses running is just transferring resource from individuals to businesses. It’s not victimless it’s ripping us off. I eat better healthier food when I’m not forced to buy a greasy over priced city centre sandwich. How is it not obvious that it’s only in the interests of a few to force us to do that?

Yep. If it doesn't work for other people then I support their ability to go into an office or look for work that gives them what they need. Why some of those people can't afford me the same, I don't know. Why they think they know my job and my team and my organisation and what works best for us, I don't know that either.

WFH has been genuinely life changing for me. It allowed me to move from a city to a remote place on a Scottish island, which had been our dream for many years. Local jobs here are generally seasonal/low paid. We couldn't afford to live here if I wasn't able to WFH.