to think my colleague may be taking the p*ss slightly with regards to working from home?

[ceebeegeebies]

My company is flexible about people working from home occasionally (for example, I am working from home tomorrow morning as the washing machine repair man is coming to fix my machine).

However, my colleague (we do the same job, share an office but do not have the same manager) uses working from home when she needs to be at home to look after her DC when school is closed unexpectedly/they are sick.

The type of work we do can be quite reactive at times, rather than planned, and when we are at home, we are only contactable by e-mail (no mobile phones), obviously cannot print anything off and there are a couple of IT systems which we use regularly that are not accessible from home.

My colleague had a week working from home when the schools were closed due to snow last year - this was out of the blue so there is no way she could have planned her work to take a week's worth home (and anyone would struggle to find a week's worth of work to do at home) so I have no idea what she did for that week. This week one of her DC is sick and off school so she has been working from home for the last couple of days - again, out of the blue so what has she got to do? We don't routinely take work home just in case...

In her defence, her DC are older than mine (12/13ish) and obviously aren't going to be demanding of time etc that my 2 under 5's would be but AIBU to think that this is not in the spirit of working from home and that she should be using annual leave instead?

I am a little bit that her manager just seems to let her without question because I know my manager would be about it.

[Rebeccaruby]

12 and 13 and she took time off for snow days ? I would expect them to cope by themselves. Just leave some food and tell them how to work the microwave. As far as taking time off if they are sick, obviously if they are very ill and she is worried about them or thinks she might need to call a doctor then fine, but if they are just a bit fluey, or recovering, then I'm not sure at 13 I would have expected my Mum to stay all day with me. That would have felt a bit babyish.

Bumblequeen, it is perfectly possible to work from home if you are sick. Probably not best if you are really ill with a raging temperature, and it shouldn't be expected, but if you are feeling too ill to struggle in on public transport and run around an office giving everybody else your germs, you might be able to work on a laptop in bed.

[FanillaFudge]

You're allowed holiday? Well then definately YABU.

[StealthPolarBear]

care to respond to that Fanilla?

[FanillaFudge]

Well then it will only be a matter of time before she's given the boot, surely?

[ceebeegeebies]

Fanilla you need to know your facts before you start making statements like that I am actually on holiday today - not that that is any of your business tbh.

[FanillaFudge]

Stealth - possibly don't know enough facts. OP could have been with the company only a matter of months, her collegue may have been there years... lots of factors that may account for different treatment, not least the fact they have different managers.

[ceebeegeebies]

Fanilla if only that was the case She has real (acknowledged by her) time management issues and I have to listen to the managers she provides a service for her moan about how she gets nothing done....

And, besides, I am actually very good at my job thank you

[FanillaFudge]

I think the fact that the OP is MNing during working hours, but has the cheek to complain about a collegues work productivity is enough on it's own to warrant a YABU.

[StealthPolarBear]

"Maybe she's better at her job than you are? Sorry to be blunt."
Still think it is unfair to have visibly different treatment - very bad for staff morale

[ceebeegeebies]

Lol, I read the local paper instead whilst having lunch

I am now meant to be doing a shopping list and going shopping but keep getting dragged back here

[StealthPolarBear]

you mean you don't MN while having lunch?
YABU

[positivesteps]

I really think the op should take her issues out with her own manager not this woman. What's it got to do with the woman? She's been told its okay by her manager so why concentrate on her and get all bitter about it woth her? And start saying I'm not going to do this job as it might help her its ridiculous and very unkind. Op take it up with your manager if you want the same treatment as her. If its just you don't agree with the time she has off that's not your problem. Your not their to assess whether she is right or wrong to do so your their to do your job. Your not her manager or own the company!

[FanillaFudge]

Maybe she's better at her job than you are? Sorry to be blunt.

It's really down to her manager to assess her productivity, not you.

[StealthPolarBear]

Fair enough Bumble :)

[Gooseberrybushes]

yanbu, yes she is

[ceebeegeebies]

Ormirian see my last post - yes, actually I do have to use my leave to look after sick kids - she doesn't....whilst it may not be directly affecting me, it clearly is not fair or consistent.

[ceebeegeebies]

Stealth thanks for arguing my case for me whilst I was having lunch

Fanilla agree that it is to do with me actually - we work for the same company, same pay but different managers but treated differently.

I agree with yes it's great she is showing commitment etc but I am about how much work she is actually producing. I know our roles inside out and know that it cannot be done at home - as Stealth said earlier, 2 days maximum and that would be pushing it and that would need to be planned in advance. Her manager will not be e-mailing her loads of stuff to do because there isn't that much stuff that can be done at home

So, as I see it, in the same situation, I would have to use up my holiday and she doesn't and (I believe) that she is also not very productive and me and my colleague are dealing with all her queries whilst she is off - how is that fair?

[Ormirian]

I am doing exactly that today. DS2 has chicken pox. DH was off with yesterday but he's a teacher so harder for him to be off work. I have an IPhone and a landline and email. My work is reactive in the sense there might be a problem at any time but generally it can be fixed remotely.

The alternative is what? That I take all my leave to care for sick kids? It's not up to you to regulate what your colleague does unless she's affecting you.

[StealthPolarBear]

Fanilla she works in the same place but is treated less favourably, and is expected to pick up the slack from her colleague wfh.
Don't see why it isn't to do with her, tbh

[FanillaFudge]

Don't see what it had to do with you actually, so YABU

[Bumply]

I work at home when my kids are off sick. I work in IT and have full access to my work when at home. My boys are 9 and 13, so they're not too much of a distraction to getting work done. I can catch up in the evening if I've had to take them to the Dr or similar.

Sometimes the distraction factor does get too much, or the work I'm supposed to be doing is more difficult without the ease of having a quick chat with a colleague (online chat isn't the same thing) so I've sometimes taken a half day holiday to compensate.

I still have to be seen to be getting my work done, so my line manager knows I'm not skiving.

When DS2 was in hospital with asthma I had the choice of taking unpaid leave or using up holidays, as I obviously wasn't able to do any work when keeping him company in a hospital ward.

This flexibility is one of the reasons I've stayed in this job for 10+ years.

[StealthPolarBear]

Bumble, that all sounds awful, except I agree with 3 - I'm guessing your problem was with how they said that / that they felt the need to say that at all?

[SnowieBear]

"One colleague wfh for two weeks when we had heavy snow a few years ago. Apparantley she was 'snowed in'. We all knew she was taking liberties, even brought her laptop home in preparation!"

Bumblequeen, when the winter weather turns and there's even a remote possibility of the roads being too dangerous to travel in the mornings, I do as a matter of course, take my laptop home in the evenings with me. In my case, it is foresight - I know my director would have questions for me if I were to phone him in the morning claiming it was too dangerous to travel and unable to do any work remotely! Luckily, most days I'm able to trudge in, laptop in tow.

More specific to the OP - the key of the matter is whether any actual work can be done from home, isn't it? If it cannot, your colleague may call it "working from home", but it isn't. If that's the case, and from what you say it is mostly the case for you, you've got a manager that actually understands what your job involves and your colleague doesn't (or doesn't care). Unfair.