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No more WFH or flexible working

659 replies

Lizzie523 · 17/05/2021 20:39

Been WFH for a year now - about 6 months ago the company MD said we had done brilliantly, was thrilled by how we had risen to the challenge etc. We were then told the future would likely be hybrid working & we all had to complete detailed consultations about our preferences RE this. Personally ive been more productive overall & I feel a mix would work well.

Imagine our shock to now be told we are all to go back to full time at the office 5 days a week. They said they would no longer consider the results of the consultations and wished they hadn't done it - many of us tried to appeal this but were just told 'no'.

I moved during the pandemic which means I am just far enough away that 5 days a week in the office is going to be a hassle (not to mention awful for the environment).

We work with a few people with young kids and it obviously isn't inclusive for disabled people either. Our main competitors have already confirmed their commitment to remote working.

Is everyone else headed back to the office or am I right in thinking most places are being more flexible now?

OP posts:
GnomeDePlume · 19/05/2021 05:59

I have noticed a few excitable posts about London weighting. When I was London based it was around £3000 so the loss of it when I moved to being remote based was more than offset by the saving on commute cost.

Reduced sick leave may be explained by people working through heavy colds etc when they can stay at home. This also means they aren't coming into the office and spreading their contagion.

TeddingtonTrashbag · 19/05/2021 06:22

Even i office based could still work from home with heavy colds not a valid reason for blanket permanent working from home .

londonscalling · 19/05/2021 06:30

[quote castemary]@londonscalling are you in your nineties? I ask because your attitude sounds so old fashioned. As if people working from home are not working. I used to encounter attitudes like that thirty years ago, but not now.[/quote]
Ha ha. So saying "is this a wind up. Get back to work" makes me sound like I'm in my nineties?

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Stakhanovite · 19/05/2021 06:48

Ha ha. So saying "is this a wind up. Get back to work" makes me sound like I'm in my nineties?

Frankly it does a bit, @londonscalling. Do you really think it's not work if your bum's not in contact with an office chair?

TinyGlassOwl · 19/05/2021 07:54

@londonscalling

Have I missed something? You were originally employed to work in an office five days a week? Because of a pandemic we've all been told to stay home whilst still getting paid? Now the pandemic is improving we are all asked to go back to work? Despite being still paid you decided to move away from your job?

Is this a wind up? Get back to work!

I think you have missed something, yes.

Do you understand the difference between WFH and furlough? Do you understand what 'remote working' means?

Everyone on this thread who has been WFH has been paid because they are still working.

We can't 'get back to work' because we are already at work.

Sternschnuppe · 19/05/2021 08:05

I'll be starting a new job in June, which is a complete remote position, 5 days a week wfh.

I think the company would know if I was slacking as I have monthly targets to achieve.

Bluesheep8 · 19/05/2021 08:22

Have I missed something? You were originally employed to work in an office five days a week? Because of a pandemic we've all been told to stay home whilst still getting paid?

Eh? I think I've missed something - the part where I'm being paid to stay at home (?) I'm being paid to do exactly the same work, just from a desk in my house as opposed to an office.

FakeColinCaterpillar · 19/05/2021 08:41

Just because OP works better working from home doesn’t mean everyone else does. I think it’s easier for companies to drag everyone in rather than address these issues.

When I worked for a local authority we had to do a work place assessment every year. What happens to that when people are WFH?

I have a friend who works for a small company they are all being furloughed on a rota to make money even though the work hasn’t reduced. Apparently the CEO is complaining about lack of productivity and blaming the staff.

yetmorewaiting · 19/05/2021 08:45

Organisation I work for rents office space from a bigger organisation that have chosen to close down that building so we're stuck wfh for the foreseeable while we try and find another space buy the new space will have a few key desks for admin / back office staff mainly working in an office and a few desks for others as needed so very much a hybrid model but forced upon us. Personally I miss working in an office and have really struggled with the attitude of some colleagues when the kids have been around and I've but with closed schools and limited wrap round care available since returning, it's an unfortunate side effect of the pandemic that employers and colleagues have to understand. Many an evening I've worked til 9pm to get things finished to make up for school runs and interruptions, that doesn't get seen. But I still have a job unlike a LOT of people so am thankful for that.

IrmaFayLear · 19/05/2021 08:51

I think people are all comparing apples with pears.

Of course many jobs can be done from home just fine. But there are also ones where it is not optimal for various reasons - client satisfaction, training and assimilation of new employees and creativity and productivity.

The problem comes when people whose jobs which are more suited to close interaction are demanding to wfh.

In the OP’s case I think she was daft to jump the gun and move far from the office on her own assumption that wfh would be permanent. Get a contract in your (virtual) hand first.

TheKeatingFive · 19/05/2021 08:57

In the OP’s case I think she was daft to jump the gun and move far from the office on her own assumption that wfh would be permanent. Get a contract in your (virtual) hand first..

This. I’m staggered anyone would make life changes without a contract in place.

HaveringWavering · 19/05/2021 09:03

@TheKeatingFive

In the OP’s case I think she was daft to jump the gun and move far from the office on her own assumption that wfh would be permanent. Get a contract in your (virtual) hand first..

This. I’m staggered anyone would make life changes without a contract in place.

She’s said that she would have made the same move if she had been working in the office the whole way through. She’d just have sucked up the longer commute because she wanted to buy and further away was the only place where she could do so. However now she has got a taste of life with no commute so the longer one seems like a real pain.
TheKeatingFive · 19/05/2021 09:07

She’s said that she would have made the same move if she had been working in the office the whole way through

Ah ok

However now she has got a taste of life with no commute so the longer one seems like a real pain.

I guess she knew that was the risk she was running

IsAnybodyListening · 19/05/2021 09:26

I work for a company that employs tens of thousands in the UK. We will not be going back full time in the office.

A hybrid model is being looked at so for me maybe once/twice a week in the office and bookable desks should be in place I have been told by November. However my direct manager has already said as I prefer WFH full time that can be accommodated-Like wise a close colleague wants to be in the office full time, so that will be accommodated also.

As MANY posters have already said-WFH is working, and not furlough. Yes WFH doesn't suit everyone, but the genie so to speak is out of the bottle now. Any sociologist will tell you how societies adapt and change over time, as such the economic fall out from COVID needs innovative solutions.

looptheloopinahulahoop · 19/05/2021 09:56

Have I missed something? You were originally employed to work in an office five days a week? Because of a pandemic we've all been told to stay home whilst still getting paid

This poster definitely misunderstands the difference between furlough and working remotely.

HaveringWavering · 19/05/2021 10:06

But John, whose wife is a sahm who’s got used to not having to walk. Both ends of the school day, with no flexibility from his side if I need to put something in the calendar at 9 or 3. Younger kids around all day and interrupting.

@PinkTonic I keep looking at this and I still can’t work out what you mean about John. Why does his wife not wanting to walk the school run affect his availability? If she is a SAHM why are his kids interrupting? I’m baffled!

LittleCatDog · 19/05/2021 10:40

OP have you considered putting in an official flexible working request? 1-2 days from home for childcare / school run reasons? If you have worked very well from home for a year or so your employer will find it hard to come up with a legitimate excuse to refuse your request. They must legally be reasonable and give a reason, so at least if they do decline it you will know the 'real' reason. I recently attended a webinar run by employment lawyers who said flex working requests are on the rise and with successful wfh it's difficult for employers to decline a request now.

QueenPaw · 19/05/2021 10:58

I'll be going back to work eventually but in contact centre work, there is nowhere to hide
My boss knows how many calls I take, when I'm sending an email, if I'm making a brew, when I log in and out, if I'm 30 seconds late off lunch... calls are audio and screen recorded. There is no putting a wash on or cleaning or answering the door, it's at a desk for 9hrs

changename7634 · 19/05/2021 11:15

@QueenPaw that sounds horrendous, how suffocating. I can't imagine not being trusted to that degree.

emilyfrost · 19/05/2021 11:20

@QueenPaw

I'll be going back to work eventually but in contact centre work, there is nowhere to hide My boss knows how many calls I take, when I'm sending an email, if I'm making a brew, when I log in and out, if I'm 30 seconds late off lunch... calls are audio and screen recorded. There is no putting a wash on or cleaning or answering the door, it's at a desk for 9hrs
Well yes of course Confused If your job is to be at your desk for X number of hours then it’s absolutely right that they expect that of you.

It’s not okay to go about doing housework just because you’re at home. Some WFH employees really do take the piss.

QueenPaw · 19/05/2021 11:32

@emilyfrost of course, I'm just pointing out when people say call centres are skiving, we aren't!

TabbyM · 19/05/2021 11:35

I feel your pain, we are told we can continue to wfh part-time but then that this will be one day a fortnight...

Hope there are better options elsewhere.

QueenPaw · 19/05/2021 11:37

@changename7634 I'm used to it TBH, it's not that we aren't trusted, it's how our performance is measured. My job is to take calls so I can't not do it by not being at my desk

MiddleParking · 19/05/2021 11:48

How bad at your job do you have to be that putting a wash on would dent your productivity?!

UserAtRandom · 19/05/2021 11:55

If you have a job that requires you to be available between x hour and y hour (with scheduled breaks) then you have to be available between those hours. You can (presumably) put a wash on during your breaks.

A large part of my day is attending virtual meetings. I can't choose to be 10 minutes late because I've decided to do some housework (well, I could, but it would be very unprofessional).

If your job is just to do certain tasks with no particular time constraints or impact on anyone else, then presumably it doesn't necessarily matter whether you do them at 10am, or take an extended coffee break and do them in the evening instead.

Different people have different jobs. Hopefully people are trusted to do their job in a professional way.