To feel sad that the world of work as we knew it has gone forever?

[Youngatheart00]

My work confirmed today we are moving to 100% remote working and will only get together a few times a year for team meetings. I find this so sad. I loved my working life - I know realise so much of that was down to the people. Now all I do all day is stare at screens and give myself a migraine.

They are justifying it by saying ‘most people’ want this despite me never seeing any such survey. It’s a blatant cost cutting exercise.

Anyone else fed up and lonely?

@Pbur

YANBU! I would be so sad if my work announced that too. I like working from home for a few days a week but absolutely hate it full time - I just don’t understand how a work culture can survive completely remotely? I find myself so much more socially anxious in the wfh life as well - all those mini social interactions that would assure you that all was well with your colleagues are gone now, everyone’s stressed and much ruder over email, team cohesion is fraying, let alone cross team collaboration which seems almost impossible now. I can’t wait to go back! Hoping for 3 days in office 2 at home. Fingers crossed. Easier said than done of course but OP hopefully a mix will be the norm and you will be in a position to change company you work for soon x

you sum this up perfectly - our teams and working relationships have fallen apart, what you said about anxiety is spot on. All projects take forever because you can't get a quick answer off anyone or generate ideas together.

I've spent a lot of time, effort money to become highly qualified but I don't want to go on working like this any more. I feel like I've wasted a quarter of my adult life studying for nothing. It is miserable.

And when I think about how important it was for me to learn from more experienced colleagues, I have no idea how new graduates will learn all the nuances and soft skills of my profession, never mind the challenges of their work environment. It's shit for them.

@MobyDicksTinyCanoe

The number of mainly low paid workers that are going to be jobless as a result of all this is frightening........ All the cleaners, janitors and shop workers will be the ones suffering the most.

Yes I feel so sad for the little city centre cafes, sandwich shops, dry cleaners, taxi drivers, office cleaners, newsagents.

@freezingmarch I’m a graduate... just a bout (managed 6 months in the office before Covid).
I do feel quite sad every time I look at all the shiny new clothes I bought for work 😂 at least I did indeed manage to meet my OH and spent lockdown with him

I get it OP. We are never going back to the office as it used to be either and I'm gutted. I like wfh but would have liked a balance of a day or so in the office per week.

Sounds crap tbh. In time you may get a routine with meeting colleagues/friends etc for lunch etc.

Will they fund you a desk in a co-working space? Do they contribute anything for people's electricity bills etc?

@AgnesNaismith - I get office anxiety too. It’s good to hear I’m not the only one as HR clearly didn’t believe me when I cited anxiety in a request to wfh a few days a week! I haven’t exactly enjoyed never seeing colleagues in person over the last year, as it’s not them I dislike, but I have been so much happier overall not being in the stifling office environment.

Op - I really don’t think 100% remote working is going to become the norm for most companies, so if I were you I’d start looking around. In fact, despite my own feelings about home working, I think I’d be suspicious if my company suddenly said there was no alternative to fulltime home working as it would tell me they weren’t bothered about MH. Find yourself a better fit.

I currently work one day in the office only the allow distancing. I would love a mix of office and WFH going forward but we will all have to be back in full time even though other departments in the same organisation will be 50/50. I think there will be a lot of shifting around of jobs after COVID as people look for the best fit for them.

If my employer did that, I'd be looking for a new job. Do they expect everyone to have decent space to work from home?

I miss that amazing Friday afternoon feeling - when you finally leave the office behind for the weekend... but wait, you love your colleagues so much you’re going to drag a few of them with you for that extra hour to celebrate the end of the week with a drink... and I’m not even an extrovert!
Sigh.
I’m with you OP. Work from home 100% of the time would be a deal breaker for me.

It may very well be true that a good number of your colleagues are quite happy to wfh forever.

Even for new graduates, not all of them like the pressure to join the post-work pub scene. I don’t feel like we have had any real difficulty with training new hires, but of course they may have a different perspective.

Given time, this may all self-sort and maybe everyone will be happier. For so long people like me who hated the office environment had to suffer. For a bit, people who hate wfh are having to suffer. In the long run, maybe we will get a better mix of available jobs and people can self-select their preferred type of employment.

The first couple of weeks of wfh I loved it but after that I really struggled mentally. I need the routine of getting up and going to the place of work and seeing people and being tired when I come home.

I guess if people are working just as efficiently from home then it saves them money. I would think about looking for another job.

The number of mainly low paid workers that are going to be jobless as a result of all this is frightening........ All the cleaners, janitors and shop workers will be the ones suffering the most.

I hadn’t even considered this. I have many family members who are cleaners mostly in offices so they would be out of jobs too.

One of my friends has started renting a desk in a shared office. So she's still working out of the house, other people around, but not at the actual workplace.

I couldn't do that because I don't get paid enough!! But might consider it if there was an office share close by and it wasn't too expensive. I hate working from my kid's bedroom (DH works from our bedroom).

I'm finding it awful. Sat in my tiny office all day staring at a screen and distracted by banal group chat. Seriously depressing.

@JackieWeaverHandforthCouncil

The demographic of this website will mean that a large number of respondents will think you’ve hit the jackpot. If you were to post this exact same situation on 20somethingsnet or newlygradsnet you’d get many ‘poor you’ responses.

To be honest I’d start looking for a new job if I was told my company were going to a 100% WFH model even though I have 2 young kids. I’ve been doing a day a week WFH for a few years (as has DH) and I like it but prefer to be majority office based.

Well, exactly. Can you imagine starting a new job and never actually meeting a single work colleague?

Or trying to meet people for socialising and dating through work and after work, but having to do it all online instead?

I hate WFH and I loathe Zoom meetings. I feel healthier getting out of the house for work and keeping my home sacrosanct from work.

It's shit as a customer. I don't like calling up and being unable to get through speak to the right person, or hearing family/animal noises in the background. Particularly when it's private or financial matters being discussed.

It's not official but we're expecting to be wfh permanently, with probably occasional days in the office and space you can book but PDRs and suchlike.

I'm lucky that I have a spare room so I can at least shut the door on the office at the end of the day. Its easier when DC are at school, that gives the day more structure so hopefully they're back permanently now. It'll definitely be better once lockdown ends and evening and weekends social activities start again.

Do companies just assume everyone has the space at home to create a suitable working environment? And one that doesn't impact on the rest of the household?

What if you don't?

Thanks for the comments and solidarity. Also for the opinions from those who have disagreed but haven’t been rude and nasty!

We’re not all the same - I get that.

Not much hope of meeting colleagues for lunch / coffee as it’s a central London job (well it was) so everyone was commuting in. I don’t know of any colleagues who live locally.

It’s just a shame that they’ve assumed that what’s worked during an emergency situation (covid) should now be the permanent normal. It will be interesting to see what happens to productivity and creativity after a while. (Yes my industry isn’t the most creative but I do work in a reasonable creative part of it!). Also the culture of a workplace - how does that come across without f2f.

My work did a lot of ‘zoom drinks’ and ‘zoom quizzes’ for the first 6 months, then everyone got sick of them, so there’s been nothing for ages. Not even anything at Christmas.

YANBU. I was made redundant last March and didn't find a new job until July when things were relatively normal, so I only WFH from December, but I went back in as soon as I was allowed (last week). I'm also financial services. It was awful being relatively new. You can't ask a quick question, or pick up new bits and bobs, or make friends. A couple of staff called me once a week for a chat and I was so pathetically grateful!

I've worked from home with very occasional office visits for over 15 years, so well pre-covid. When my DC were very young, it definitely had its advantages but after all these years, I know its really not good for mental health or work/life balance (even though it may seem that way at first) and over the years I've seen lots of colleagues struggle with it. I suspect a lot of people who are happy WFH now will feel differently in a year or two.
Also, again from experience, it can be time consuming and difficult to manage staff who WFH with it taking longer to recognise and resolve issues with people.

But for so many, the chance to work more from home is life changing.

This is the point. It’s life changing. For every employee that sees it as a positive there’s an employee that sees it as a negative. Lots of companies are taking the opportunity to force this change on people, not all will welcome it.

OP I have exactly the same view as you. I do have children but my career is still a massive part of who I am and for me, working will become a lot less appealing if I don’t actually get to go to work and interact with clients and colleagues, many of whom I consider close friends. Add on that lots of my other friends are scattered all over London/the commuter belt, we all worked in the city or west end so would mainly meet after work.

I’m gutted but I’ll be ok. I may well give up work though. I didn’t continue working after having kids to stare at a screen all day.

I’ll cope but I am genuinely worried about the impact on the mental health of many of my team. The thought of going back to the office is all that’s keeping some of them going.

DP worked from home mainly but still had to go in once a week.
Been told he can work remotely from now on and is really pleased. Will save money on travelling and wraparound childcare.
It's great for him but I appreciate not for others.

@Youngatheart00 I completely get you. I’m a teacher now and obviously can’t wfh, but I said to my dh the other day that I would have been lost without the office in my previous job. I bloody hated the occasional day I had wfh - I was bored and lonely.

I desperately feel for all those who want to go back to the office and can’t.

YANBU I can’t wait to get back to the office OP.
I don’t my home to also be my work place. I need separation. If my company decided remote working forever I would be updating my CV.