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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Has anyone refused to go back into the office?

841 replies

GreenPepperRed · 27/02/2022 00:12

Just that really. Have a job that can easily be done working from home. Company is now saying compulsory 3 days in the office. Has anyone just not gone in and carried on working from home? How did that turn out?

The majority of my department is insisting they are not going in. Can confirm they are serious because I went in to the office a couple days back and there was probably 10% of the people in.

Intrigued what my company will do. Fire us all?

OP posts:
Belladonna12 · 27/02/2022 08:38

People can refuse to go back in. Whether or not a company accepts that depends on how much they want you to work for them. It might help if everyone stands together but I'm not sure you can trust people to actually do that. I started to work from home many years ago as I was really fed up of very long and expensive commute each day just sit in an office and do what easily could be done at home.

Wnkingawalrus · 27/02/2022 08:39

Yes, but childcare will be different when wfh vs office. It can be really difficult (or expensive) to find childcare places past 5:30pm or very early hours to accommodate a commute.

And why should that be the woman’s problem 5 days a week?

This is the perfect opportunity for more working mothers to demand a more equal partnership from their partners. Coordinate your office days and you each do a more equal share of drop offs/picks ups. But i suspect a proportion of working mothers will use return to office an excuse to moan about how their employers are being unfair rather than how they get left to deal with everything child related at home.

TheKeatingFive · 27/02/2022 08:40

The staff who are protesting could have been 100% predicted

Yeah, I expect that's the same everywhere

timetochangeusername · 27/02/2022 08:41

I'm not saying no, I'm saying yes but then just not going in. But mine is only one day a week so easier to be a bit elusive ...

Glowtastic · 27/02/2022 08:41

@EmbarrassedAllOver

Most people I know who are working from home openly admit (to friends, not employer) that they work a fraction of the hours they used to. They regularly do the school run and take a few hours off for childcare. They regularly leave at lunch and just access emails for the afternoon.

I don't blame them if they can get away with it. But equally I don't blame employers for wanting more for the money they're paying.

Meanwhile many public sector (low paid, highly skilled and needed) workers have never been allowed to work from home. They haven't saved commuting costs. They haven't been able to cut childcare costs.

Homeworkers who refuse to go back are entitled. And need to realise the employer holds the cards because they have created the job and pay for it. If you don't want the job, leave.

Completely agree. It's hugely entitled. And yep, in throughout (public sector) doing an essential role, so no sympathy here I'm afraid. People need to start going back now, at least some of the time, for multiple reasons. I expect entitled types like yourself op will be gradually managed out over time. That's what I'd be doing as an employer.
Belladonna12 · 27/02/2022 08:42

Zero reason for her to be home. Shes in her 60s and its time for her to stop working as she isn’t productive. And we can get someone younger with work ethic in.

How do you know that there is zero reason? If she's in her 60s she could easily be at high risk from covid.

Iamthewombat · 27/02/2022 08:42

@GrandPrismatic

2 years of working from home has made my function soft. We’ve been asked to come back 3 days and all hell has broken loose. Lots of “I’m just as effective working from home as I was in the office” is frankly not true. Our functional output has dropped to about 60% of what it was pre-covid…adjustments were made given the difficult circumstances but it is not sustainable. The lower output has become the new norm and they all got used to it and people don’t understand that expectations will return to pre-covid levels. I’m foreseeing a lot of challenging performance management discussions looming.
Yeah, this. The OP and her colleagues may consider that they are just as effective working remotely but her employer clearly disagrees.

Employers are not enablers for your private life. They are paying you to deliver effectively, and they have every right to decide how that is best achieved.

A few posters have commented that it’s difficult to hire people at the moment and ‘now is a good time to push back on employers’ to get what you want. No, for all kinds of reasons. Not least that pulling a stunt like that will make life more difficult for everybody in the future. A PP also made the very good point that we have to think of the interests of younger people, who may not want to spend their careers working from home.

My contract, and those of my team, were changed in 2020 to permanent WFH. Despite that we hire space at a Regus office at least four times a month to get together as a team. We get loads more done because we are physically co-located and it’s important for the younger team members to experience a bit of banter, build relationships and do things as simple as going out for lunch and post-work drinks. I don’t think that it’s unreasonable for employers to want similar outcomes.

Suzi888 · 27/02/2022 08:42

@bonfireheart

What does your contract say? This was a temporary measure due to a global pandemic, extreme circumstances. Not sure employees can refuse to go back. They might be asked to leave.
^We would be. Hybrid working is a pretty good deal!
Whitefire · 27/02/2022 08:42

We’ve refused to take it down to her and the boss has to do it, he says his hands are tied.

Well his hands aren't tied really, he could escalate it very easily.

LaurieFairyCake · 27/02/2022 08:44

I think it's a good hand to play - but you have to band together

What people are failing to realise is that it's an employees market at the moment - masses of jobs around, there are literally hundreds of jobs in my own sector within 5 miles of my house I keep getting offered up on my Indeed account

linerforlife · 27/02/2022 08:46

Pre covid I commuted into the office about 3 days per week but my team was split across two offices at opposite ends of the country so we always did most of our meetings online anyway. However in the TWO YEARS since my personal life has changed significantly...I've had a baby Grin and I have changed to compressed hours to work 4 days a week. I don't want to go back to commuting as it's hard to see the benefit of adding two hours of sitting on a train onto my already long day - and I mean both the business benefit and the personal benefit. Because we are such a geographically disparate team I will continue to travel to organised get togethers with the full team or commute on days when I can see the business need or I think it'll benefit my network growth.

OhMygodddd · 27/02/2022 08:46

I thought those not working from home were getting pay rises to work in office, it costs money to go to work and everyone has got used to the extra money and it’s needed now more than ever!

Belladonna12 · 27/02/2022 08:47

As someone who has worked at home for many years I find the idea that it is “entitled” hilarious. So much jealousy.

KatherineJaneway · 27/02/2022 08:48

@TheKeatingFive

Well what does your contract say? If it specifies the office as your place of work then of course you can't 'refuse'. You can try to renegotiate your contract though.
OP could but that could have an impact on pay.
PinkSparklyPussyCat · 27/02/2022 08:51

It's an interesting situation and research has shown that WFH has been largely very good for productivity.

Partly because a lot of people work longer hours! I usually leave the office by 5.30, if I work from home I rarely finish before 6/6.30. Friday night was 7.15 I'm not the only one doing this. I’m going to start going in more to try and get my home life back (and my dining table!).

Sally872 · 27/02/2022 08:52

Can employee get a similar job easily? If so they could dig heels in. Can employer replace them easily? If so they may look to do so. Depends who is in strongest position to negotiate on this.

Personally I like my job and benefits so I would go back if told to.

Doris86 · 27/02/2022 08:52

@Whatadayyyy

Why would you not go in to the office?
A good question. I much prefer being in the office, and have been going back voluntarily long before my company insisted on it. I like the space and comfort of having a proper desk and chair, having the home/work separation, not having the distractions of being at home and being able to interact with colleagues

A lot of people at my work are resisting coming back though. They have got too used to what was only ever meant to be a temporary situation.

Butitsnotfunnyisititsserious · 27/02/2022 08:52

@TheKeatingFive

The staff who are protesting could have been 100% predicted

Yeah, I expect that's the same everywhere

Yep, it is in our workplace. We're back two days a week. If people don't want to work that in the office, they can look for a more suitable job in a different company. They aren't irreplaceable, most workers aren't, they just like to think they are.
JunkIsland · 27/02/2022 08:53

@OfstedOffred

I'd be wary about the companies requiring minimum 3 days. They tend to be the ones who fundamentally don't like wfh, I suspect they will creep it back up to 5 again if they can possibly do it and not lose staff, however, I think they will struggle.
Agree. There’s something about an arbitrary number of set days p/w that stakes out the majority for office time, isn’t there? It’s a very reluctant nod to flexibility.

I suppose it’s at least more honest than employers who advertise wfh jobs and then want people to come in a certain number of days when they start as I’ve read on here a few times. I had a phone interview last year with a company for a fully remote role - they asked me how I would feel if in a few years’ time it became office-based. In Switzerland. It was clear remote just suits them at this particular point in time!

LyricalBlowToTheJaw · 27/02/2022 08:55

As with most situations of this type OP, a lot depends on how much leverage you have.

Lou197 · 27/02/2022 08:56

If your contract says five days of office working then your company is being reasonable in offering a hybrid style of working asking you to come in for only three days per week with two days at home.

There are many benefits in working closely with colleagues in terms of building postive relationships, mentoring, training, mental health for some.

Hope you get to a place you are happy with.

SpiderinaWingMirror · 27/02/2022 08:57

Readjust your thinking. If 2 years ago you were told you could wfh twice a week, you would have been delighted.

GreenFingersWouldBeHandy · 27/02/2022 08:58

Intrigued what my company will do. Fire us all?

Or you could leave and find a job which is happy with you working from home?

If you were all in the office, full-time, before lockdown, then you are being very unreasonable to refuse to go back in.

KittenKong · 27/02/2022 08:58

I did - I already work much longer than my part time hours (more than full time) and have an hour commute either way, so it saves some much time at home. I really don’t need to be on the office.

I pointed out that if I work in the office I’d leave bang on time as I have a commute… that seemed to persuade them…

Belladonna12 · 27/02/2022 09:00

Do people's contracts actually state where they will be working?

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