To resign because my job suddenly requires me in 3 days a week?

[Earlyflash]

We got told on Friday that we would be required to do a minimum of three days a week in the office from monday.

I’m new at the company (4 months) and this was never mentioned in the recruitment phase. That said I didn’t push them for a written answer.

Given we’ve spent the last two years working 100% at home, this seems like a massive overreach, and I’m intending to tell them to do one.

It’s going to have such an impact on me, my partner, and my children (from previous relationship).

I already have interviews for fully remote roles.

So, AIBU for reacting to such a request?

The level of entitlement which has developed through the pandemic is astonishing.

I think it’s more that the pandemic has shown us that a lot more work can be done remotely than originally thought and that there is a better way to live for some people.

Things change. Just because that was how things used to be done doesn’t mean they have to continue to be done that way, or that there isn’t a better way. Employers and employees now know there is a different way, and it doesn’t have to involve wasting peoples’s own time and money on so much unnecessary commuting.

I think it’s more that the pandemic has shown us that a lot more work can be done remotely than originally thought

More bluntly, it's shown some employers were full of shit.

As a maxim it's not perfect. But once you've found a flaw or lie once, the only question remaining is how many more are there to be found ?

@Belladonna12

Generally you can't claim mileage for commuting. However if your place of work is your home, then every journey is a work one.

I think that would only apply if you had to work at home and going into the office was not an option.

Yes. I can claim for going to the office as I WFH. Those who are WFH due to Covid / new hot desking situation can't

We want our staff back,it has been ok WFH but our results are not as good .
We will of course look at individual flexible working requests as legally required

If people leave for WFH jobs then so be it

We really need a big push to get things moving again,otherwise therewill be no business and no jobs WFH or otherwise for anyone

I think its about time people went back to the office. My job will never be WFH however I am sick of liasing with other professionals when at work and hearing doorbells, dogs etc. It is so frustrating. I had an important meeting the other day and she kept stopping to let the puppy out. Utterly unprofessional.

YANBU! If this pandemic has taught us anything it's that we should prioritise your life and what makes you happy!
Do it! Work would replace you the day after you died! You owe them nothing!

I've just been told I've got a job I went for (hybrid working). Put the phone down 10 minutes ago.

The CEO called me from home and had to take a DPD delivery while talking to me.

@AskingforaBaskin

YANBU! If this pandemic has taught us anything it's that we should prioritise your life and what makes you happy! Do it! Work would replace you the day after you died! You owe them nothing!

The main quote I saw is that you can be replaced at work. You can't be replaced at home

I think its about time people went back to the office. My job will never be WFH however I am sick of liasing with other professionals when at work and hearing doorbells, dogs etc. It is so frustrating. I had an important meeting the other day and she kept stopping to let the puppy out. Utterly unprofessional.

The pandemic has made a lot of us that bit more human, understanding and flexible. Shown us what really is important in life.

@StripedMousse

I think its about time people went back to the office. My job will never be WFH however I am sick of liasing with other professionals when at work and hearing doorbells, dogs etc. It is so frustrating. I had an important meeting the other day and she kept stopping to let the puppy out. Utterly unprofessional.

The pandemic has made a lot of us that bit more human, understanding and flexible. Shown us what really is important in life.

But, when you've already been in a phone queue for over an hour, and finally get through to a customer service assistant, only to have a background of a very noisy dog barking and struggling to hold a conversation due to the CS assistant constantly asking you to repeat yourself, shout at the dog, constantly say sorry, etc., any remaining ounce of humanity and consideration has evaporated., not just due to the barking dog, but the ridiculously long wait in the queue which ruined your mood in the first place.

I've never spoken to a customer services agent at home. It's not something I'd feel comfortable mandating without a lot of protection around data. And at the end of the day no matter what was in place, you can't guard against someone snapping a screen with personal details on it.

Still I already know from various discussions that not all companies are the same ...

A key marker will be whether systems providers start to incorporate security features that support remote working into their offerings.

@DGRossetti

I've never spoken to a customer services agent at home. It's not something I'd feel comfortable mandating without a lot of protection around data. And at the end of the day no matter what was in place, you can't guard against someone snapping a screen with personal details on it.

Still I already know from various discussions that not all companies are the same ...

A key marker will be whether systems providers start to incorporate security features that support remote working into their offerings.

My entire companies customer service team and a massive majority of their booking department work form home.

We handle names, emails, phone numbers and on The Hotel calls we do take card details.

Sorry my point being for many you wouldn't know you were calling someone at home. You would call the venues number and that would be transferred to our online system.

@StripedMousse

I think its about time people went back to the office. My job will never be WFH however I am sick of liasing with other professionals when at work and hearing doorbells, dogs etc. It is so frustrating. I had an important meeting the other day and she kept stopping to let the puppy out. Utterly unprofessional.

The pandemic has made a lot of us that bit more human, understanding and flexible. Shown us what really is important in life.

Somebody else's puppy isn't that important to my life. I wish puppies no harm but I don't have one for a reason so don't want to have to accommodate others.

We handle names, emails, phone numbers and on The Hotel calls we do take card details.

How does that square with PCI-DSS requirements ?

I've never spoken to a customer services agent at home

Sounds like you've done well - with me it was the family solicitor, who could hardly be heard for kids shrieking in the background
Okay so she's working for a % of my claim, but considering what these people charge it's hardly what I expected from a professional

I would complain if you can, our workplace kept trying to do this and so many people complained that they backed down and now it’s fully flexible when you want to come in, some people might be for meetings or 1 day a week with their team. I actually want to go back 2/3 days so it didn’t bother me, but enough people kicked up a fuss that they changed it.

@Puzzledandpissedoff

I've never spoken to a customer services agent at home

Sounds like you've done well - with me it was the family solicitor, who could hardly be heard for kids shrieking in the background
Okay so she's working for a % of my claim, but considering what these people charge it's hardly what I expected from a professional

You could always find another solicitor who doesn't work from home if it was that important ...

You're right, I could, DGRossetti, except it would mean delaying my case still further
As ever the WFH needn't have been a problem in itself, but I was a bit surprised that better arrangements hadn't been made to keep up the expensive professional appearance

Having just seen the "DH WFH" thread, I wonder how many companies have conducted an assessment of their employees working conditions at home ? When I started properly WFH they sent a H&S officer around to advise and approve the setup. Although maybe working for an insurance company they were very sensitive to workplace injury claims.

"You mean your employer was happy for you to work at an unsuitable desk with unsuitable equipment until your back/eyes/wrists/legs developed a chronic condition ?"

Would be how I imagine a claim starting.

@Puzzledandpissedoff

I've never spoken to a customer services agent at home

Sounds like you've done well - with me it was the family solicitor, who could hardly be heard for kids shrieking in the background
Okay so she's working for a % of my claim, but considering what these people charge it's hardly what I expected from a professional

My issue here would be the clear lack of confidentiality….

Because if you could hear children in the background, no else was there you didn’t know about?

I have to say.
All my business enquires-orders are done from home
We've bought and sold a house
Bought and sold cars
Renewed renegotiated ultitlies, phone, water, gas, etc.
Communicated with HMRC AND DWP.
All without a hitch during covid communicating with people mainly working from home.
The only issue has been with the fertility clinic admin being incompetent with our information, so it's taken 6 months longer than it should have. But that's the NHS for you.

@DGRossetti

We handle names, emails, phone numbers and on The Hotel calls we do take card details.

How does that square with PCI-DSS requirements ?

Who knows I just use the system as instructed. That is above my pay grade and care.

@Puzzledandpissedoff

You're right, I could, DGRossetti, except it would mean delaying my case still further As ever the WFH needn't have been a problem in itself, but I was a bit surprised that better arrangements hadn't been made to keep up the expensive professional appearance

I think you've answered your own question ... clearly their "professional appearance" wasn't actually translating into "money". At least to the extent they let it slip and not lose business.

Having WFH, and set others up to do the same for over 10 years, it's fascinating how some companies haven't quite got it yet. There was a recent thread about a company that basically wanted it's employees to just work the exact same hours (9-5 I think) only "from home". Which struck me as trying to write a message on the back of an iPhone and post it to a friend.

Yes, you need to work out core hours etc etc. But as an employer offering WFH is one of the biggest non financial rewards you have in your arsenal. When I started it translated to an immediate £200 month pay rise. Plus the flexibility to attend medical appointments (not just for myself, but DW who has MS and sometimes needs to go to clinics etc).

Funnily enough DW and I drove into central Birmingham yesterday around midday. We were both taken aback by how light the traffic was. I would be curious to know how much of that was down to a certain %age of people WFH. It's quite surprising how few cars you need to take off the road to suddenly free everywhere up.

@AskingforaBaskin I wouldn’t be that worried about booking something and people working from home.

I’m much more worried about anyone who works from home and handles confidential information. I’m thinking HCP (eg I saw a psychologist on the NHS. She was clearly working from her bedroom), lawyers, social workers etc etc

As @DGRossetti pointed out, there should have been some sims assessments done. Of course, right at the start, it was too quick. Now though….
And it’s not just equipment (eg we ended up buying a desk for DH as unsurprisingly working from the dinning table wasn’t that good for his back…) but access to adequate internet (some of his colleagues are struggling a lot because of that), confidentiality (what when people are handling critical data, eg working on systems for the army?) etc
I dint think this has been thought through tbh.

BUT it also doesn’t mean wfh should just be scrapped either!