Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Protection built in.

Meet the Other Phone.
Protection built in.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

If you are able to work from home

147 replies

Beansprout30 · 29/04/2020 23:04

Can I ask what you do for a living? I’m school admin and I’m able to do most of my job from a laptop but I can’t get my head around how many jobs can be done from home?!

OP posts:
Tabithha · 29/04/2020 23:28

Financial analyst

Moo31 · 29/04/2020 23:30

I'm an accountant mostly managing audits of public sector bodies and charities. Team of approx 30 of which 10 have been furloughed. Apart from meetings with clients I was largely office based anyway so wfh isn't much different (except trying to look after a 2 year old at the same time!). Team are finding it v different (and slower) auditing remotely rather than on client sites.

LellyMcKelly · 29/04/2020 23:30

I’m a lecturer. I’ve done Zoom lectures, dissertation supervisions, and tutorials. Most of the teaching would be drawing to a close now anyway, and a very heavy month of marking is about to kick off, but that can be done online. I’ve written two consultancy reports and a funding bid, and I’ve got two new modules to write for next year. I used to hate working from home, but I moved my desk into my cosy lounge and I’m enjoying it. I intend to write the new units to support a blended learning approach so they can be done face to face or online, and I intend to spend more time working from home when all this is over. It’s better for my pocket, the environment, and my productivity. I work in an open plan office and it’s just a talking shop all day every day. So much time gets wasted,

wejammin · 29/04/2020 23:32

Family solicitor. Client appointments by phone and zoom or Skype. Paperwork and emails are fine. Court hearings are all taking place remotely, although lots have been adjourned.

undercoveraessedai · 29/04/2020 23:36

Self employed photographer and business mentor - easy to work from home although am doing different types of photography (usually brand, business, headshots and portraits, currently products and stock photography).

My previous job was in marketing at a university and could all be done from home easily provided I had reasonable broadband and all the right security & systems access. My old manager hated any of us working from home ever though, I'm not sure how she's coping with the current situation!

Crossfitwidow · 29/04/2020 23:38

Civil servant. I used to work from home 1 day a week anyway but after this I can see me working from home much more.

HundredMilesAnHour · 29/04/2020 23:39

I'm a management consultant working for a global financial institution. I was actually hired during the lockdown so I was onboarded remotely and I've only ever been in my employer's office for my interviews.

Being new and working from home isn't easy. It's doable though, just makes things a little harder.

NoProblem123 · 29/04/2020 23:41

Also school admin.

Asked ages ago if I could wfh sometimes, was told no it wouldn’t work.

Clearly works fine. Like I said it would.

jackstini · 29/04/2020 23:41

Sales director. Lots of calls, emails etc.
Preparing Presentations, pricing, proposals, promotions...

Can't visit customers' offices and most of the time 3/4 of my work is from home anyway

SarahAndQuack · 29/04/2020 23:47

I'm an academic, currently in a research-only role. Working from home is my normal life.

ImNotShpanishImEgyptshun · 29/04/2020 23:48

Software developer / agile delivery lead. Worked from home twice a week anyway, and everyone in our department and team can easily WFH.

Casualbride · 29/04/2020 23:50

Basically these days anyone who works at a desk in an office should be able to do that from home.

Electrical · 29/04/2020 23:51

I don’t know what half of these jobs are though, like, what is it you all do ? Does it require a soul crushing 3 year qualification? Does it take 8+ hours of your life, five days a week? Ughh, the industry I work in will not survive this, so I’m going to have to do something or starve to death.

OutOntheTilez · 29/04/2020 23:51

I work for a publishing company.

luckylips · 29/04/2020 23:52

Marketing for a property firm.

StylishMummy · 29/04/2020 23:55

I'm an ombudsman now, but used to be self employed mortgage adviser. Both can mostly be done from home

Threeflyingducks · 29/04/2020 23:59

Social worker and quantity surveyor in our house. Both currently being done from home, via a lot of video conferencing meetings, though only doable on a temporary basis. Like others have mentioned it's not an optimal way for doing some jobs but it's better than noone doing the job.

For social work any safeguarding concerns are dealt with in person, it's the routine visits and meetings that being done remotely. It's not very personal so cant be long term but it's balancing risk for the time being.

SarahAndQuack · 30/04/2020 00:00

I don’t know what half of these jobs are though, like, what is it you all do ? Does it require a soul crushing 3 year qualification? Does it take 8+ hours of your life, five days a week?

Sorry!

I'm an academic, which means I'm working in Higher Education (but I don't have a snazzy title like lecturer or professor because I am still quite junior). It requires a not-so-soul-crushing three year degree, then (usually) four or more years of postgrad degrees (but you can get funding and it's quite nice), then you spend 2-10 years in short-term contracts. Then sometime in your 30s or later you might get a permanent job.

On the plus side, it is the best job for flexibility.

fia101 · 30/04/2020 00:01

Lawyer - I review contracts mainly so all paper based and email. Zoom meetings to advise. Can arrange for docs to be signed electronically. No need to move from my desk at alll.

bridgetreilly · 30/04/2020 00:09

Many jobs can't be done from home, OP. That's why a lot of people are still going out to work or being furloughed because their place of work has shut.

ErrolTheDragon · 30/04/2020 00:11

I write scientific software. I've been entirely WFH for the last 25 years.

I don’t know what half of these jobs are though, like, what is it you all do ? Does it require a soul crushing 3 year qualification? Does it take 8+ hours of your life, five days a week?

Well... the entry level for my type of role is a PhD, so more than 6 years but not 'soul crushing'. I dropped to half time when DD started school in 2004. The solution to a tricky problem may reveal itself to my subconscious when I'm pruning a shrub or making soup, I don't need to sit chained to my computer. OTOH as the rest of the team is in California a few meetings happen in the evening.

Mine's another contender for best flexibilityGrin

WriteronaMission · 30/04/2020 00:13

My husband is a manager at an opticians and manages to do one day at home. He catches up on invoices and other paperwork that day while answering emails that come in. The other 4 days a week he has to go in. His one day gives me one day just to focus on work and not work and the kids.

I'm a freelance writer so all my work has always been done from home anyway. Not much change for me except the kids are here doing my bloody head in all the time. (I love them but they're tiring.)

Darkbendis · 30/04/2020 00:20

Interpreter. WFH over the phone. Very busy these days.

TigerQueenie · 30/04/2020 00:23

I'm an electrical engineer specialising in explosive atmospheres and major incident prevention. A big chunk of my work is design work and quoting. I tend to have meetings via video anyway where possible as I dislike travelling.

WyfOfBathe · 30/04/2020 00:31

DH and I are both teachers. I'm currently in 2 days/week, WFH the other days. DH is completely WFH.

Obviously in normal times it can't all be done from home, but I do generally leave shortly after the students leave and do most of my marking/planning from home.

Swipe left for the next trending thread