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 don't know why anyone ever thought it would last indefinitely.

Even if you believe homeworkers are more productive on the their own dedicated tasks, they can't possibly be contributing effectively to the "team". Where are all the soft contributions coming from, the chance conversation that results in a great idea, the trainee learning by being in the room when business is done etc?

I think it's great that people are sometimes able to work from home. I don't think doing it full time is good for business and actually, I think there are very few people it's very good for personally. I know loads of people who are miserable wfh but don't want to go back because of the cost, for example.

It seems to vary a great deal between companies. Whether or not you regard it as a perk, it will become a competitive advantage for companies who can offer the right level to attract and keep people in certain jobs.

I have too much work to spend time commuting (an hour each way) more than one day a week…..

Is that happened in your workplace

This is a valid point of course, but also how are the new staff learning if all the experienced staff are at home more often than not?

My large company is allowing people to choose what works for them. I chose to wfh full time, and for the most part I enjoy it. I do miss office chit chat sometimes, but I think wfh really works for me. I think possibly because I’m a bit older now, so I have my friends and don’t need the social interaction with work colleagues which younger people enjoy.

Been WFH for almost 12y along with my whole company (about 50mph people) in a tech business. We’ve never had an office and it works well.

Used to work in central London and commute 3-4 hours a day, it was HELLISH and stupidly fucking expensive. No thanks!

3 days a week as standard for ages now. Days of 5 days not coming back for us

I think your husband works where I work

but yes , we are expected twice a week and it’s still flexible. It’s not possible for all of us to be in everyday as there isn’t the space anymore

@Instagramearworms would you mind saying what you do?

my role will be redundant next year & I want to start looking for remote jobs.

I think WFH will continue in many industries/employers. My employer has closed offices, with another to go as footfall was too low, and our contracts have been changed to office & home. So no going back. My team go in approx once per week, though some people less. One of the justifications is that it has increased the recruitment pool in areas where it is difficult to recruit

DH works from home 5 days a week-he rarely goes in at all now. He used to go in 2 days a week before Covid but just doesn’t need to.

I wouldn't necessarily see a home working model as providing competitive advantage. If you want to attract the best young graduates or staff from overseas, or example, they're unlikely to want to work in their poky flat rather than in a vibrant city office. Even where there's a choice, they won't want to work where there's no one to learn from because the experience is at home.

The firm my husband works for, sold their huge offices, as did mine. Our house is now wrecked with rooms being used as offices, our electricity bills are huge, but that offsets the fuel we would have used I guess.

Officially in the city of London footfall is back up to 70% of pre covid levels but only on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Fridays is absolutely dead. Monday is a lot of breathing room on the tube but a bit more lively than Friday. My company is 3 days in but most people manage 2. I love going in, feel like what is the point of life if you’re only staring at your apartment walls, I found I got very close to depression during the 100% remote working phase. Hybrid is best!

All the job adverts I see in my field are 3/2 hybrid. My office want people in and currently do Week on week off (we are short in office space). In reality the few times I’ve been in there are less than 1/4 of staff in the office and as my team is in another country I don’t go in at all, zero point.

There are people who will take the piss and people who won’t.

A team member has just handed in her notice because we wouldn’t let her work in an utterly bonkers way.

She’s highly qualified but utterly unrealistic and is having real trouble getting another job which in paper should be an absolute walk in the park for her.

I think she’d be the type of person who would always be pushing the boundaries of what’s acceptable.

Why weren't they asking managers?

I did a lot of temping when I was 19/20. It's a really good thing to do in terms of learning how to get going when you're faced with a new place every week.

I work in data, there's a big demand in data at the moment and its work that's often best done at home with no distractions so people can concentrate better

There are loads of courses to get into data if its something you are interested in

It's killing mine. Comes up with new ways of 'spying' on me every day. Completely unable to manage by output. Teams is apparently not a communications tool but a surveillance device. Her manager, in turn, is also an inveterate micromanager but she likes the convenience for herself of wfh.

Have been wfh for 3 years now and prefer it. I do attend on-site meetings which breaks it up a little. It was a long time coming - should have been more widely practised years ago. I've no desire to spend a disproportionate part of my day stuck in fume-ridden traffic. Commute downstairs suits me just great! Much less stupid small talk to people who don't interest me and who aren't interested in me in turn either.

We have taken on multiple graduates and apprentices over the last couple of years, most of whom live in london and are absolutely some of the best and brightest of their year. We came into the office for them when we normally wfh and we made a big effort and without exception every one of them prefers to wfh rather than our city office

Myself and DP are now both working for employers who are remote first. I choose to go in one or two days a week. DP has to go in periodically. Neither employer is likely to change tack soon. Partly because of cost overhead savings

Not for me. I have worked at home since long before the pandemic and will continue to do so until I retire. There isn't even an office for me to go back to!

I hope it’s over. It’s gone too far.

It’s going to vary massively from industry to industry but hybrid seems to be the way forward for most companies.

I am far more productive WFH than I am in an office but did notice the clients who love a bit of presenteeism also wanted me to work the same hours as I would when WFH and not losing 3 hours to commuting.
Situations like this will always throw up people who take the piss on both sides.