Are the days of WFH over?

[MerryMarigold]

Dh been working from home since Covid. Been 1 FtF meeting a week/ fortnight for past year.

Work have said everyone needs to be in work in central London for 3 days per week after Easter.

Not too bad for us, we live in the same place we lived before. Still a 1.5hr commute each way (plus associated costs). Not so good for others who live in the middle of nowhere.

Is this a trend or just his global company?

I’m talking about the ones who take the piss with childcare/household chores/ never turn their camera on

They want it all their way and still want to keep their job

That's a management failure, not a WFH failure.

Managers need to manage performance and if people are not doing their jobs (no matter where they are located) then they need to be disciplined or dismissed.

Eg We actually do have a disabled member of staff who is able to wfh. He could if he wanted to wfh everyday, although his (adjusted role) is one of the only positions in the organisation where that is possible, but he chooses to come in when he's able because being disabled is isolating enough.

It would be "easier" for him to stay at home but he recognises that's not always good for him.

I think this is a good way of putting it.

And also the hassles it causes now are more visible than the hassles the pre 2020 model caused, because people who did badly out of the sudden move to wfh are more visible than people who were structurally excluded from workplaces and opportunities before it. It's going to take some time for us as a society to get our heads round all this.

No not at all, I'm not for forcing everyone to wfh if they don't want to, I'm answering someone who wanted no wfh at all

It's not surprising, no normal person would want to wfh full time unless they're a extreme introvert, or have no interest in work at all (in which case they choose a role which doesn't require working with others, like data entry or telemarketing)

I work purely from home.

That's probably why they're strangers to you, because you make no effort. I have so many close friends who I've met through work, some friendships now for 20+ years. Work is fun when you become friends with the people you work with (hasn't happened for me at all workplaces, but usually gain a few close friends at each organisation I've worked in)

I dunno, I've made one of my best and longest lasting friendships through work but the job was still so awful that I ended up leaving due to the stress. I'd rather have a crap job with people I liked than people I didn't, but having friends at work isn't a panacea, even for those of us who actually want them.

Exactly.

Its shown that in some businesses (a lot) a blanket rule of no wfh isn’t necessary, and sometimes isn’t actually beneficial to employer or employee.

Atm because it’s so new the level of “fairness” is a big issue. People who all worked in the office before are quite split often into the “wfh forever” and “all back all the time” camps.

In time the fact that Dave works from the office 5 days, Mary 3 and no-one actually knows what Irene does as she’s wfh full-time won’t be as big an issue. Atm it is because it feels like Irene is taking the piss because she’s “dodging” fares/travel time etc. once it’s more standard to apply for certain jobs and be asked “how many days do you want to wfh and how many from the office?” it’ll stop being so much of an issue.

I do think a massive part of the problem is the number of very poor managers that there are in all industries. One of the big problems is that people who were allowed to skive and coast in the office are doing so even more so from home. The reluctance to actually manage (and the lack of management skills in so many managers) leads to blunt decisions and that causes problems.
If Sarah’s skiving is a problem then companies need to start managing Sarah. Not just saying “right no more wfh for anyone”.

I think it’ll all settle into patterns of normal in the next couple of years.

Couldn't be further from the truth. I'm very outgoing and am always on friendly terms with colleagues past and present. But I still prefer my family 🤷‍♀️Work is just work for me. Sorry if some people think that we should give blood to the businesses we work for. I only work because I need the money, so anything to improve my work/life balance in "life"'s favour is a bonus for me. It's the same for the vast majority of people.

That's great but you can't expect us all to come in to the office to keep you company

If that's how rude you are in person I wouldn't want you to.

Everyone's happy then! 😁

I do think a massive part of the problem is the number of very poor managers that there are in all industries. One of the big problems is that people who were allowed to skive and coast in the office are doing so even more so from home. The reluctance to actually manage (and the lack of management skills in so many managers) leads to blunt decisions and that causes problems. If Sarah’s skiving is a problem then companies need to start managing Sarah. Not just saying “right no more wfh for anyone”.

There's that, and I think also some of the complaints people have are about problems that actually stem from other things. People upthread were talking about longer waiting times on the phone, for example, and I'm sure we've all experienced that. But how many call centre type companies have the same number of staff as they had in late 2019? There are fewer workers than there used to be and companies are also trying to cut corners. This is the same in a lot of organisations.

I have sympathy with some managers because actually, sometimes they're recognising that they don't have a better option than the staff they currently have. Knowing that you're hard to replace does empower some people to take the piss more. That would still be the case if we were in offices in the same number as we were in February 2020, it would just take place in a different location.

What a ridiculous statement . I picked fully working from home because it suited me better and I can have more time for the kids including extra time to take them to activities and socialise more . It also permitted me to move rurally ( and 500 miles away from the office ) . It has in no way affected my work , in fact I had a big promotion since . I do work wit a team of 9 and it has in no way affected my leadership to them either . This was prior to covid too , so wfh was not the norm .
I think people like you are so used to seeing traditional offices and work places they cannot think outside the box . Some of my tema work from home, others hybrid others in the office ( only one now ) . None of my team are what I would consider introverts or hate their job .

@Whenharrymetsmelly

It's not surprising, no normal person would want to wfh full time unless they're a extreme introvert, or have no interest in work at all

That's just goady codswhallop

It is goady codswhallop! I would probably like to go into the office sometimes if I had no commitments (if I wanted to be a dick like you @Whenharrymetsmelly I would say "if I had no life") as I actually do like my team and going to the office, but I WFH fully because it suits me as I spend more time with my kids and much more time with my partner. Commuting to the office would outweigh the benefits I gain from being around for my DC, being able to do school runs etc.

I love wfh and I feel I'm more productive, like others have said, without all the aimless chat, coffee breaks, interruptions.

I go in about once every 6 weeks .... time it with a night out in London 😀

Oh I've just read some more of this! I'm not an introvert and have a great interest in my work , what an odd thing to say.

WFH means I have more time to socialise in the evenings in the week without a commute.

I was amazed when covid hit, that so many companies (often huge well known ones), hadn't already got a wfh system in place. I've worked from home at least one or two days for about a decade so when lockdown arrived we all slipped seamlessly into it as we all had our own laptops and access to the systems at home.

While I suspect the recent comment about wfh meaning no human contact may have been made to try and start a bunfight, it's interesting how many people genuinely do come from the perspective that the relationships with colleagues are somehow more important and deserving of priority than the other human contact that wfh might allow a person to engage in. It's very pervasive and I don't think people even realise they're doing it sometimes.

Really it's a bit tragically capitalist to assume the most important connections are the ones with people who do their wage labour for the same organisation as you. I'm not anticapitalist, we still don't appear to have come up with a better alternative, but you don't have to let it inside your head.

Because you know every person in every industry who wfh? Such a lazy comment.

Noooo I was hoping to find a WFH role because I can't find a job in my location due to record unemployment here :(

I've been applying for remote jobs on LinkedIn and can't get anywhere with it and I was going to come here and ask for tips to get noticed amongst 200 other applicants!

(Marketing Exec!) 😭

I'm so fed up with being unemployed I might cry. I'm so lonely it's humiliating

I will resist all attempts to get me back into the office

My closest office none of my team are also assigned to so no point going in as it’s not benefiting me in any meaningful way

Also the benefits are great from my perspective. I go off to the gym over my lunch hour (often overrunning but nobody notices because I’m not in an office with my manager about), I get laundry done, do cleaning or life admin when work is quiet. Play video games or watch series.

Are you only applying for permanent jobs? Because I found applying for fixed-term or locum/temporary type jobs makes it easier. What sort of jobs/level are you looking at?

@XelaM I've been applying for Marketing Exec and Digital Marketing Exec roles. Permanent.

But I'll go and have a look at temporary / contract roles too!

Thanks for the tip!