To think that in years to come there will be studies into the social isolation caused by working from home?

[MySugarBabyLove]

I think that on many levels working from home is beneficial, so I’m not looking at slating the existence of WFH.

But I do believe that in years to come we will start to look at the social isolation that wfh has led to.

It’s already known that people who don’t work, be that because they’re home with the kids, or because they have disabilities are more socially isolated, purely because they just don’t get the same opportunities to speak to people as people do when they’re at work. In fact there have been many threads on here over the years from SAHMs who say they feel lonely and isolated, and the suggestion has been that they should go back to work.

Let’s face it, most of our interactions happen at work, and even if we don’t end up with lasting friendships, we do end up with regular opportunities to interact with people.

And now many people are working from home. And while there are many other benefits, the work/life balance, the ability to go to work without a commute, and be home at a decent hour etc, but I do think that the lack of interaction that WFH has led to should be acknowledged.

I work entirely from home. It works for me because I have a disability as well as another health condition, so while a commute would have been possible, not having to do so does benefit me.

And yet I feel more isolated now than before I started this job. Because although I work with people, a quick chat on teams isn’t a substitute for being able to have a laugh in the office, pass people going in and out, seeing someone at the coffee point.

My job started as WFH, I’ve been there since last July, and I have never and likely will never meet any of my colleagues in person.

And the longer I do it, the more I realise how different it is to when I used to work in an office.

I don’t miss the office politics, but I do think that WFH will possibly have a negative impact on people’s social abilities and their sense of belonging and isolation, and that this is something there will be studies on in the future.

No, not perfectly flexible, no, but a hell of a lot better than a few years ago where you basically had to move to London for decent jobs with big employers, or if you couldn't do that, you were stuck with whatever small/local employers you have in your locality.

Opening up the "bigger/better" jobs so that people living in poorer/rural regions can only be a good thing. It's how it always used to be before everything became centralised in London.

Surely wfh is only a part of it? Otherwise why is almost everyone refusing to go back to the office, with the resultant crappy service from government, DVLA, utilities etc? Clearly many people like to skive off while pretending to wfh, otherwise there wouldn't be such a massive decline in service.

I think that's just the tip of the iceberg really. Poor management can be blamed whether staff are WFH or are slacking/incompetent in the office! But the real cause IS poor management, not the working location. Just because someone is present in the office 9-5 doesn't mean they're actually working or doing their job properly. WFH is just the same really. Management should be monitoring the work volumes, quantities, doing spot checks, accuracy, etc.

After all, we had crap service from DVLA and HMRC before they started WFH, so why would we think their service levels would improve by their staff not going into the office?

I think wfh is just part of a broader movement towards more social isolation.

How often do you read on here about people who don't answer the doorbell, get changed into pjs at 5pm and that's them for the night, have a phobia of talking on the phone.

I know teens/ young adults who barely leave their bedrooms, eat alone in their rooms.

When I grew up we lived in Village and people were always dropping round as they passed, there were lots of community events. I try and create a similar experience for my dcs by involving them in their communities via cubs/scouts/volunteering but it's not the norm or it doesn't seem to be here.

It very much depends on the role, job and personalities of the people.

I work in an office where I have little work contact with other colleagues based there. When I do show face in the office it really is just a commute in, zoom all day, say hello to anyone I bump into, then commute home. Especially now with hot desking, sometimes I am sitting next to complete strangers with no idea who they are or even what department they work for.

Most of my daily contacts are remote and WFH allows us to talk more spontaneously, naturally and honestly without the ears of the office listening in. Our relationships have come on leaps and bounds in the last 3 years because of it.

On the days either side is doing their "in the office for no reason days" you can tell they are in the office as the conversations are awkwardly "professional" and less fruitful.

I work from home about half the time and enjoy both halves. I wouldn't want to just WFH every day. But I agree you're right that studies will have to look into it - the key is whether people are doing it because they want to and it works well for them, or forced to - which sounds like it could cause issues.

You don't think any of these organisations have been affected by the labour squeeze, then? Or the general increase in the number of workers on long term sick?