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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Working from home - or not!

105 replies

DELIGHTFULLY78 · 04/12/2020 07:28

Is anyone spending their WFH days mainly dossing and actually not feeling guilty about it (thinking about all the times stayed late in office and didn't take lunch break because of crazy workload)? AIBU to think this is acceptable?

OP posts:
Ginfordinner · 04/12/2020 08:08

Same here @Roominmyhouse. There isn't really much else to do. I walk, do pilates, shop for food once a week, cook from scratch, keep the house clean, do washing, read and watch TV, but those aren't full time occupations.

I have zero interest in crafting/sewing/kinitting etc, and in the summer I spend a lot of time in the garden, but there isn't a lot going on in the gardening calendar right now. I find that doing my job is fulfilling and good for my mental health.

Obviously if there isn't much to do workwise then you can't magic up stuff to do, but we are really busy at work (thank goodness).

Tellmetruth4 · 04/12/2020 08:09

Nope I’m super busy as is DH. I’m working more hours than when I was in the office. Surely you have objectives to meet? Can’t your mangers see you’re not producing anything? I’m sure they’re aware and that you’re in for a nasty surprise soon.

Atrixie · 04/12/2020 08:10

No. I have the odd day where I’m a bit more slack just as I did in the office. However 3 out of my 4 working days I pretty much have back to back meetings and am lucky to manage a slice of toast for lunch.

cologne4711 · 04/12/2020 08:11

Occasionally I have an unproductive day but generally I am busy. My role is very flexible (and part-time), so if I need to take a long lunchbreak and work later in the day, I can. So for example on Wednesday I got my hair cut and went for a run with a friend at lunchtime, and worked afterwards. I don't have set hours though, I just have a role and I do work that fits that role.

You can certainly be more flexible at home. I don't mind the fact that work bleeds into home life, because it works both ways, as in the examples I've given above.

CodenameVillanelle · 04/12/2020 08:12

No, because then my work wouldn't get done Confused

Etinox · 04/12/2020 08:15

I’m working less intensely and using the time to do other things. I’m paid to work half a day today. So far I’ve sent a couple of emails, checked what meetings I need to attend and scheduled hosting a meeting at 4. I’ll do a few hours late morning (writing a document which I’ll get approved and circulated on Monday) and check and reply to emails throughout the day via my phone as I’m out running messages. Different way of working.

IsAnybodyListening · 04/12/2020 08:17

Nope. Both DP and I WFH. My job is insane, something my family have now seen (work for a bank). Looking forward to 6pm xmas eve when I get a whole 5 days off in a row. I take a 30 min lunch break each day which is me doing a bit of housework, and I eat a sandwich whilst I work at my PC.

gurglebelly · 04/12/2020 08:20

Ha ha, I wish. It's been super busy all year and the whole team are on their knees. It would be felt very quickly if someone wasn't pulling their weight

DoTheNextRightThing · 04/12/2020 08:31

No. I have work to do, and they would notice if I'm not doing it.

RizzleDrizzle · 04/12/2020 08:38

we're all working from home and no one will be made redundant as we're public sector, so yes i can doss and not feel guilty about it

Wow just because your public sector doesn’t mean no one will be made redundant in fact if the crash is as bad as being expected I suspect there will be a lot of public sector jobs that go. Councils etc just won’t have the money.

LST · 04/12/2020 08:46

No. I am way more productive at home. Have been wfh since March

Squirrelblanket · 04/12/2020 08:51

I've been busier than ever this year. I am way more productive at home though, so I usually manage to get everything done early afternoon and then I can relax. Currently I'm watching a Christmas film each afternoon. Grin

notdaddycool · 04/12/2020 08:52

Not dossing, but finding it hard to keep focus and do find myself getting a bit to drawn into twitter, reading a few more message boards than I should and not making the progress I'd want to. I feel really guilty but I've been a procrastinator since school. Honestly can't wait to get back to the office a couple of days a week, but hopefully not much more than that. Strangely I'm getting the productive areas of my job done and due to outside factors I can only do that at the rate I'm doing, the other stuff that I should be doing if I was firing on all cylinders is not likely to be very productive, so actually I'm not losing that much.

drspouse · 04/12/2020 08:54

I'm also slammed though the odd child sick/SEN child doesn't want to go in etc does not help. I have an immovable hour's meeting today which is my day off but as DS came home with a sore tummy on Monday I'm behind anyway.

beela · 04/12/2020 08:57

and no one will be made redundant as we're public sector

I work as an accountant in the public sector, and I can confirm that you are wrong about that.

NekoShiro · 04/12/2020 08:57

My partner was like this, he used all the extra spare time to work on creating a video game, the demo is gonna come out soon, his company had nothing for him to do in his role, theyre now liquidating though so there were reasons why he had no work and no one questioned him.

BiddyPop · 04/12/2020 09:08

I am at the same level of dossing (if not less as I don’t watch YouTube on work pc anymore) than in the office.

I work hard and get my work done, but I do tend to be fits and starts at time, and spending time in MN etc some of the time. But I am at my desk on my work pc not downstairs baking or watching tv.

And some days I am upstairs working until late into the evenings to get something urgent or that I’ve got stuck into done.

I did slack off for a couple of weeks recently as I was pissed off about a decision on pay and I’ve been doing too much this year so am close to burn out - but I’ve been back to long hours and stuck in this week.

Except when enjoying my morning coffee before getting started...

Florelei · 04/12/2020 09:10

Nope, I’m busier than I can ever remember being. I work for a local authority and we are really trying to keep services going.

gillianan · 04/12/2020 09:11

I work in the public sector and we've had 112 redundancies since March .. I wouldn't assume you're immune. if anything, huge saving need to be made everywhere and most employers will be looking for cost saving measures.

thepeopleversuswork · 04/12/2020 09:14

No, definitely not. I work far harder WFH than I did in an office. The time which would previously have been spent commuting is now work time and there is no delineation between work and home time so I regularly work into the evening.

Who are these mythical people who are able to "doss" working from home? In my experience people who are lucky enough to have kept their jobs this year are working exponentially harder than they were before.

Ilovesugar · 04/12/2020 09:15

@BlackboardMonitorVimes thanks for the chuckle, I loved reading that as pubic and it turned a bit dirty in my head. Working from home hey? 😂

ZenNudist · 04/12/2020 09:16

Sat here mumsnetting at 9.15 but that's because I am fed up. I work all day, on my dats off, through tea time, can't read stories to my dc at bedtime and just scream at them to get in the shower. I work til 10pm. Stay up til midnight then get up at 7.30 to walk dc to school. I am exhausted.

So no I dont usually doss. Even in the office I often start at 9.30.

AddisonM · 04/12/2020 09:18

We are very busy but I’m having real issues with my sleep just now. sometimes at lunchtime I’ll close my eyes for half an hour and I feel like that makes a massive difference to my productivity (I’ll usually work late into the evening so still way over abs above my core hours). It’s also nice to be able to chuck on a wash etc

AddisonM · 04/12/2020 09:19

(I’m on annual leave today)

LadyCatStark · 04/12/2020 09:24

I’m public sector and I’m trying to be busy but my computer is so shit it won’t even turn on and load up properly 😡

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