Working from home

[alwaysfiltered]

I'm after a little perspective from the outside.

We are an office of 18; 12 of us could do our jobs from home. Most people were chomping at the bit to come back in so when we reopened I said (I'm CEO) the option was entirely theirs.

17 people came back FT; 2 split work between WFH and the office and one is WFH full time.

Following today's announcement I called a meeting and asked the people who technically can WFH to do that. 3 are happy to full time, the rest have said they find they are more productive at home and as a group got quite upset. A few have approached me independently saying they emphatically don't want to WFH due to anxiety. I have asked them to email me any concerns they have.

What do I do? I don't want to break any guidelines and the office is as Covid safe as we can make it but really it's never going to be bulletproof is it. The three that are happy are now going to WFH but I'm quite lost what to do from here.

It may be relevant to note the team is all under 35 in a creative industry, they openly say they enjoy the social aspect of work and motivate each other

Hot DESKING not dealing!

Do both some come in and some wfh .
If some are happy wfh then there will be less in the office so ok .
We are doing that , I prefer to come in the office too but we are doing it on a rota basis .

Reading so many posts from women who work from home but who are still expected by their husband/partner to do all the wife work/parenting because his penis makes his job ‘more important’, I can imagine some of your workers are having similar issues. I think you should implement a timetable, of working from home and having turns working from the office. My son’s workplace implemented an every other day system. If they are using a lap top to work from home, then surely they should be able to use it in the workplace, so they don’t have to swap between the two.

@OuiOuiKitty

A lot of people prefer to work from home. Is there something about the way that your company is implementing it that is making people anxious about it? To have so little take up would to me suggest that there is something making people hesitant.

Just because a lot of people like to WFH doesn't mean everyone does. It could be space, mental health issues, separation of home and work life or any number of reasons... I hate working from home. I hate the intrusion that it is. I much prefer to go into my office

You say in your OP that 12 can WFH so you've already answered your own question to some extent I'm afraid.

The guidance no longer says you can work in an office if it's Covid secure etc so rotas etc aren't relevant. If you are the only one in the office BUT you could have worked from home then that is against the guidelines.

So, as an employer, you need to demonstrate - and I would suggest that this is done via a risk assessment - that there are some individuals who can't work from home for mental safety reasons.

A rota system is risky under your obligations to ensure your premises are Covid secure, you need to go on the Health and Safety website to update your risk assessment.

They really should work from home, do you communicate via teams or zoom to ensure everyone is still having the face to face interaction, although I hate them it does help especially if they are light hearted.

There are specialist law firms offering advice on Covid HR matters.

Why can't they all just carry on in the office as they are? It's just a guideline, if your employees are going to be badly affected by WFH (and I sympathise with them, I'm staying in the office too) then surely they can keep coming in.

Do your employees use Microsoft Teams? It's not a fix all, but it has the instant messaging and video chat options which can be promoted amongst colleagues.

If your staff know it's ok to video call one another for support or advice or even just a catch up.

No, it's way to risky as an employer. They can meet up although not all together somewhere outside the workplace but you can't knowingly break guidelines or want your entire workforce coming down with it all at once. Long covid isn't being talked about enough and I have employees that caught it in April that still can't get back to normal despite being young, fit and healthy. The mental health element is a concern and I'm spending a lot of my day doing general chit chat type calls so people don't feel isolated so you have to be creative and adapt using the tools at your disposal.

Teams is shite. Video calls are shite and a poor substitute for face to face interaction.

It’s not just the chat and the office banter, it’s getting outside in the fresh air as you go to work. It’s the separation of work and home.

If you can ensure you are spaced out enough in the office (2 metres apart) then I think that's adequate isn't it? Just out people on a rota or ask those who want to wfh to wfh and those that don't can stay in the office.

I've worked throughout the pandemic in an office and never been given the opportunity to wfh (even though it's possible) but we are more or less spaced out adequately. NHS admin here!

I am not sure anyone would be able to prove they caught covid from the workplace anyway, you can get it from the supermarket.

We have a 25% of workforce only rule and you will be seated with at least 2m distance so not on your normal desk if a close colleague is there as well.

We have to apply 2 working days in advance and preference is given to people who struggle at home for various reasons like space, noise (I got a space thanks to building work), IT issues or children not in childcare (less since schools are open again).

I must admit the set up at work is better than at home even with additional monitors so I can understand people wanting to go back.

Remember, it is a guideline but I would speak to each one individually and try to find out If there are underlying problems.

The idea of enforced socialising makes me shudder, I like my colleagues and we chat during the day but that would drive us crazy.

Boris' announcement made me open a bottle of wine and all I wanna do is cry. I loved wfh for a short period. Long term I find it isolating, I find I'm not learning as much, I hate spending my whole life in the same room 24/7, I really miss people. I was a model employee in the beginning, I'm turning into a really mediocre one. I just don't care anymore. I'll log in, do the tasks, nothing more, I just don't care anymore. I have nothing to look forward to, nothing to give me structure. I can completely understand your employees and I think you should take their concerns seriously.

MN loves WFH but the average age is a lot older than your employees so a lot of people here won't understand.

Video chat is so shit and forced, that's no replacement for face to face interaction.

It's a guideline not a law.

The effects of long term isolation that comes with wfh is massively underrated. Mental health matters too.

Also not everyone has a proper office set up at home. The physical effects of sitting in the wrong chair for hours or on the edge of your bed hunched over a laptop because you have nowhere else to work can be back breaking.

I'd let them decide. Just make sure everyone sits apart, hand washes regularly, hand sanitizer on entering the office etc.

The guidance has changed and you’re the boss.

LOADS of us don’t like WFH full time longer term but there’s a fucking pandemic on, so my personal preferences aren’t at the top of anyone’s list right now.

If 12/18 can work from home they should, unless you have carried out a formal risk assessment that has shown there is a greater risk to them WFH then in the office.

We’re all having to make sacrifices.

It sounds as if you have a really motivated workforce that has bonded well. It’s a credit to you. You’ve obviously done a lot of things right in the past and I’m sure you’ll find a good solution to this.

@hammeringinmyhead

If lots of them are younger they may be in house or flat shares, working from their bedrooms. I must admit I am a bit confused on what "WFH if you can" means. Physically equipped to and can access everything you need, or is "can" and "can't" covered by mental health?

That's what I'm thinking. WFH is great if you have a large spacious house. Not so good for someone in a flatshare or tiny studio flat. It's probably quite isolating too for younger people. They're less likely to have a spouse or partner or children. Work is a major part of their social life and interaction.

I agree a rota is the way to go here. Also emphasise it's only temporary and they'll be back in as normal once we've got through the necessary coronavirus restrictions.

What a shame we didn't do what Australia and NZ did. This wouldn't be an issue.

As far as I can see, the guidance for office COVID safe workplaces, which includes the detail on who should work from home, hasn’t been updated yet so not sure how so many people referring to the guidance?

All that’s been released is one paragraph:
“To help contain the virus, office workers who can work effectively from home should do so over the winter. Where an employer, in consultation with their employee, judges an employee can carry out their normal duties from home they should do so” . Also, Boris responded to a question about those who need to work in the office for MH/well-being reasons.

So it’s not entirely clear yet whether this will be be allowed? I suspect many businesses (and in your case employees) will seize on the word “effectively” as a reason why people can’t wfh.

Feeling anxious is not a disability. So unless they can demonstrate they've an accompanying mental health issue such as depression or GAD, they need to work from home and alternative supports introduced to tackle the isolation.

As someone that suffers anxiety (tho not currently related with wfh) thanKs for listening and thinking about your employees and their necessities.

We had almost identical conversations today. 5 out of 11 employees asked, some begged, to be able to come into the office at least one day a week.

All of those 5 are young people living in shared houses or at home with parents OR living alone who find they are miserable WFH. Those who are happy to WFH are doing so effective immediately and will be doing so until March. Those who really feel their mental health will suffer are going to be allowed to come in on a rota of no more than 3 in the office each week, max of 2 days each, and then switch the next week after a deep clean to the other 2. It's not perfect, but it's the plan for now.

I completely disagree that Teams is shite. I’ll call my colleagues daily for a chat sometimes we’ll have a couple at a time. We also had well-being days where we had bingo, quizzes and even a yoga class. High hilarity from all. Just takes a bit of organising. We all look after each other, well the ones you like i .I always video call the ones that have had a tough week on Fridays afternoon. Teams makes us all feel connected

Bojo said people should still come into work if they needed to for practical reasons, or to maintain their mental health or wellbeing.

Let them work in the office if they want to.

Section 6 www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-outbreak-faqs-what-you-can-and-cant-do/coronavirus-outbreak-faqs-what-you-can-and-cant-do?fbclid=IwAR0Q8PJz9Be19b4YuEMgmEKz7-d1TDqtqtNNOTsrr6jfUE-2O0DoUcr-zsM