To refuse to go back to the office

[tillytalks]

I’m currently on mat leave and due back to work on the 15th March.

I work in an office with 12 other people.
At present everyone is in the office.

There is no reason why people can’t work from
home, and I’m pretty sure the reason is that management are the type that wouldn’t trust staff to work at home.
It’s a family run business and the owners are quite precious.

I’m really careful, I don’t mix, I follow the rules to the letter.

I’m 34, have mild asthma and I also have a high BMI (more than 30 but less than 40)
I’m working out and eating well so I’m hoping this will reduce.

Even still, I just don’t feel comfortable sitting in an office all day with 12 other people.
The office isn’t big. It’s a long room, and although we can distance, I feel like it would still be crowded.

I know that I wouldn’t be given any preferential treatment to work from home, but I haven’t asked so can’t be too sure.

I’ll be working 3 days per week and my son (who will be 13m) will be in a nursery.

I’m also aware that my son being in nursery puts me at risk which is something else I’ve been thinking over.

AIBU to not want to return?

GP don’t write letters, they write FIT notes about what can be done,what accommodations are safe
The op isn’t in the extremely clinical vulnerable group so no the GP won’t write a letter to get her out of work
GP are clinicians who’ll take an holistic over view of op and her health and on that basis make a judgement

@HeelsHandbagPerfumeCoffee

Thanks for reply What COVID measures have they implemented? Broadly what sector are you in? Don’t obv post anything identifying

@HeelsHandbagPerfumeCoffee

Thanks for reply
What COVID measures have they implemented?
Broadly what sector are you in? Don’t obv post anything identifying

Desks 2m apart, no use of canteen, no leaving the building.
I work in IT.

I find it incredible how the amount of companies with 300+ employees have managed to adapt to allow WFH but smaller one office workforce's can't because they're scared of "decreased productivity"

It can often happen that very large employers are able to absorb some loss of productivity if it occurs - 10x so if it's a publicly funded one and doesn't have to worry about where the money's coming from

Which isn't always the case with smaller ones ...

[quote XelaM]@TitsOot4Xmas Your comments on this thread actually confirm my overall experience over the years that Human Resources ironically employ the least human people.

I am a solicitor working for a large law firm dealing with highly confidential material and guess what.. we all manage to work at home with no problems whatsoever. Your company would not be one I would ever want to work for.[/quote]
As I’ve already said, I work for the NHS. UK’s biggest employer.

Wanna try to workforce planning to keep a service going, man field hospitals, set up new vaccination programmes, keep patient letters and records flowing when everyone and their dog wants to work from home, be my guest.

The human bit is important. But being only about the human will see a lot of the population unable to access healthcare and a hell of a lot more will die. Your choice.

I’ve had CEV staff beg to come to work because discussing patients’ terminal diagnoses and pathways from their kitchen table is too difficult.

Wherever there is a genuine need we’ve found solutions both ways. Enabled staff to stay home if they have a shielding family member etc. But ultimately NHS digital systems are decades behind and the point stands that most people need to spend at least some of their working week at work.

@Moondust001

What you are happy to do is irrelevant. If your employer wants you in the office, then you go to the office. If you don't want to, then you resign or get fired.

Are you in a union? If so, ask them for guidance. Also, check if you have any legal cover related to insurance that you have - sometimes it is part of house contents or buildings insurance, weirdly. That would enable you to consult an employment lawyer. You either need union support or legal advice in a situation like this. The people on here love to throw out dubious advice with an air of total authority, usually unwarranted.

@HeelsHandbagPerfumeCoffee

GP don’t write letters

Mine does - more than happy to write letters when needed for multiple purposes.

@TitsOot4Xmas Glad that is sorted with the definitions.

GP duty of care is to their patient.

Occ health would be involved if a fit note came in suggesting WFH in these circs.

@TitsOot4Xmas Your comments on this thread actually confirm my overall experience over the years that Human Resources ironically employ the least human people.

agreed. I read all of Titsoots posts in Mrs Trunchbulls voice

Thé 15th March is over 2 months away.

A lot can happen in that time.I'd hang tight and see how things are closer to your return date.

Why don't you ask them if you can work from home as per the guidelines? You can hardly moan if you have not even asked the question.

[quote Chipsandchesses]@TitsOot4Xmas Your comments on this thread actually confirm my overall experience over the years that Human Resources ironically employ the least human people.

agreed. I read all of Titsoots posts in Mrs Trunchbulls voice[/quote]
It means our locals are getting their life-extending cancer treatment. Would you rather it all stopped as it has elsewhere?

What’s the contentious issue with @TitsOot4Xmas posts.? By all means disagree but it’s a bit pissy to directly attack her

What happens if somebody has to isolate? What do they do then? Or if you get a mild cold? What would they expect you to do?

They are breaking the law. It isn't guidance - it is law. You must work from home unless you cannot reasonably do your job from home. Employers are required under law to do everything they can to ensure their employees can work from home. That is currently the case and the laws are in place until 31 March 2021. I am a lawyer and have also advised my company on the opening of our office. They shouldn't have anyone in the office unless they are performing critical tasks which can't be done from home (e.g. maintenance, IT critical maintenance).

Odd. I was reading TitsOot’s posts and thinking it sounded like good HR. Each to their own, eh?

@tillytalks no this is incorrect there is a stay at home order! The law clearly states you must work from home unless you can’t do your job from home. NOT you can do a job which could technically be done from home as long as a business makes necessary covid secure provisions. The latter was the ‘guidance’ pre lockdown now we are in lockdown and it is law, not guidance that you must stay at home. An office job can be done at home. Get them reported.

I think titsoot is being the pissy one

OP has genuine concerns and has stated her job could be done from home. Unless she’s lying about that then she SHOULD work from home assuming the guidelines are the same in March.

My company CEO has admitted that pre lockdown they didn’t trust us to work from home but employee productivity and engagement is actually higher now.

Some companies/bosses are stuck in the wrong mindset and they shouldn’t be forcing employees to mix in the office

Titsoot - great, that’s good news obviously. However I don’t see what that has to do with the OP having to work from an office when her work could be done at home

You must work from home unless you cannot reasonably do your job from home
So,presumably the test will be reasonableness To ascertain what reasonably cannot be undertaken in a domestic setting
There’s not a blanket universal entitlement to wfh

I am a lawyer and have also advised my company on the opening of our office. They shouldn't have anyone in the office unless they are performing critical tasks which can't be done from home (e.g. maintenance, IT critical maintenance).

The problem is that different people define critical task differently. In one organisation the employer will probably think ‘I don’t want to be the test case to find out what is critical - I’ll do whatever is safest’. Another employer will think ‘I’m certain I’m right and I can pay for a good lawyer’.

Op would say her job can be done at home,because she doesn’t want to go in. Her subjective preference is strongly to stay home
Her employer has assessed she can go in

Clearly there is a disparity

Heelshandbags - implying the OPs reasons are disingenuous isn’t helpful. If we are taking the OP at face value, she’s stated her job CAN be done from home then she should wfh - the fact that she’d prefer to wfh doesn’t really matter

Of course if this isn’t actually the case then she should go to work.

An office job can be done at home.

Unless the government releases guidance that says that, many employers will disagree.

I’m not disingenuous in least it’s obvious op has reservations
However other posters are making guesses and negative assumptions about op employers