Why does it seem most are against WFH?

[user6776]

Just read an article that has said civil servants are now to work from the office at least 3 days a week. I'm not a civil servant, but my company adopts the same approach. WFH is generally frowned upon and they are all about being in the office as much as possible.

I prefer WFH. Less time commuting, more productive as no office distractions, can get stuff done on my lunch hour. It's a no brainer for me. I agree going in the office periodically to meet with the team and for important meetings but other than that I don't benefit much

What does everybody else think?

Personally I think it's sheer jealousy from people who can't do it. Either because their job doesn't allow it or because they lack the discipline.

We have a hybrid arrangement with some WFH. Personally I find those at home feel they are more productive and they are... but entirely because those in the office are picking up sort of random tasks that those at home get to avoid!

What’s going to be interesting going forward is a lot of companies no longer having the real estate to have everyone in, but starting to realise they want people in a bit more than one or two days a week.

We have booking systems and allocated areas but on popular days of the week like Tuesday and Wednesday it’s getting difficult to get everyone in the building.

As a customer of various services, I don't like people I have to phone to be working from home. They don't seem to have very good systems and are always waiting for a computer to do something. They don't seem to have any resources to answer any problematic query, and just fob you off, knowing they'll never have to speak to you again. I despair if I hear a child crying or people chatting in the background as I know the person can't be concentrating.
Of course employees prefer it- they do less, pay less travel, are never seen by management lounging about in pyjamas or underpants, go out to the shops all in work time.

I also think teams that are largely home working, and doing so well, really shows up a bloated middle management for producing very little. If you line manage a team who don’t give you much to fill your day with, how do you justify their requirement within the organisation?

I think initially for experienced staff, WFH works really well. I think over time, you get less buy-in and interaction and less of a sense of a team, after a couple of years. It all just feels very detached. Younger and newer employees then lose out considerably.

I go in two/three days a week, two/three days a week at home, which is a perfect mix, I get the peace and quiet to crack on on my home days and can mentor/meet/build relationships on the days I'm in, as we all plan collective events (e.g. meetings, lunches) on those days. I see if you come in and no-one else is there, that's a bit pointless. I make sure on my days in I meet up with colleagues and we all know each other's working schedules, so if they are Mon-Wed I make sure I'm in at least one of those days.

WFH is genuinely on par with policies like annual leave, maternity leave and sickness pay in terms of beneficial worker policies.

I can imagine the ability to wfh leads to more diverse work force too...eg. more women staying in work if they can cut down on wrap around care costs, older people staying in work longer as it was the commuting they were starting to find tough etc, people from rural areas having access to a wider range of jobs etc.

I also prefer WFH and find it suits me better. My company also say I have to be in the office three days a week.
So I waste my time travelling in, and then when I get there, I stick on my headset and am on Teams calls all day because that's what my job mostly involves.
I rarely speak to anyone actually in the office beyond a quick nod hello as I'm just stuck on calls.
I really resent spending the time and money to get to the office for absolutely no benefit to anyone at all.

I benefit from a mix. Best still if it’s alternate days, gives you chance to really enjoy and look forward to doing each! On my wfh days usually I drive to a coffee shop nearby for the morning, I find I’m really productive there.

But why does it matter if someone is using their home gym, or shopping or cleaning? As long as they are working the hours they are paid it really shouldn’t matter what is being done in between. Why must we be chained to a desk 9-5 Monday to Friday? We are humans, we aren’t supposed to be stuck in an office like that all day. Who’s idea was the working week anyway. Sitting in an office 9-5 really isn’t the future of the work force, and I think those against wfh are people who are old fashioned, like control over their employees and don’t like this change that is inevitably coming.

"Of course employees prefer it they do less"

Not the conclusion of most studies which suggest the opposite - that you get more out of the homeworkers

Which brings us back to the original question - why do people clearly hate it yet can not actually articulate a valid reason why

I do agree sone kind of mix is likely best based on the work , experience and personality of each employee

I am far more productive when I am WFH, I don't get distracted by people in the office and when I go and make myself a cup of tea in my kitchen no one wants to chat to me!

It works better for home life too as I can tidy up/cook etc at lunch time. I go in one day a week (part time) and have to save things I need to concentrate on for when I am at home.

I have also had the experience of trying to speak with customer service people who clearly have other people or kids in the room and they can't seem to concentrate, so that doesn't always work out very well. That should be picked up though and not allowed, not that they should all go back into an office to shout down the phone with headsets on.

I'm in Local Government and they've recently said they want us in 60% of the time.

Except we don't have enough desks anymore....

A few people I know say they like office days for the social aspect. For me it's the opposite, after my 3 days in the office I often feel completely drained after being around so many people. I think 2 days in the office / 3 from home is the perfect mix

Employers don't like it because some people take the piss.

I think it's great for working mothers (I I am childless by choice so doesn't really affect me but most of the people I work with have children and it works really well).

Also because if they took the piss they would be forced to work from the office full time, it means that they actually do more work to make sure that they never have to work from the office.

They are so grateful to be able to work from home, but they are much more productive.

Oh good, another post about this. There have been hardly any 🙄

I challenge your starting point, that "it seems like most people are against wfh". Most of the people I know are pro wfh. The people I work with are pro. My team are pro. My friends are pro.

My employer, on the other hand, is anti. My employer is not a large number of people, but they are extremely influential people.

Personally, I enjoy the fact that my home is no longer my workplace. I enjoy speaking to a wide range of people about a wide range of topics - that doesn't happen when I wfh, I pick up lots more random-but-interesting/useful bits of info in the office. Yesterday I had lunch with a new starter in my team, spontaneously - not pre-planned, not in diaries, just because it was a nice thing to do. You can't do stuff like that at home, it's just not the same... but I bet you think that's anti wfh sentiment!

I started wfh 15 years ago. I have ASD and the office environment was torture for me, even with a private office. I have also since developed an allergy that rises to the level of a disability. Without wfh, I’m not sure I would be able to work.

I have also been promoted, gotten raises, and even been given an award for my work. I take my job very seriously. I have a home office and I treat entering it like going to work each day.

The problem occurs when people can’t self manage. We have a team of 8. Half can be trusted to work as effectively as they do in the office, the other half become unavailable, their measurable output drops by about half and I know they look after their children, feed and see to their pets, do housework etc.

That half have ruined it for the rest of us and we’ve never been able to establish a formal hybrid agreement which would have been a really good thing to have.

Unfortunately not all people have the right mindset and they simply can’t be trusted. Most teams have a few like this, who will always try and get out of doing what they are paid to do and managers know this.

Our function at work is just as productive wfh, we've shown that from our results year on year now. We do slightly hybrid, but it's not really fully enforced yet. We do flex up / down on the hybrid times, at super busy times (like year end or half year) we can be in the office full time. This week I've not been in yet!

It's hard though, some of us are just as productive at home but there's the occasional bad apple that hides amongst everyone else ruining things! It's annoying but I find there's skirkers in person too.

Agree OP.

I am public service and WFH 3 out of 5 days. I have to write and think, and it is so much easier in a quiet space where I’m uninterrupted.

I also agree with the diverse work space comment - you can hire people from wherever. You’re not limited by geography (among other things).

In the early 2000s I worked from home full time in London for a New York company that needed someone in the UK/EU time zone. They ended up with several hires in the UK / EU, and across America - massively beneficial to be able to hire whoever’s best for the job, regardless of where they lived. We’d get together 4 times a year and there was a real opportunity to bond then over shared experiences.

I’m now back in my home country and the WFH culture means we have several hires in our team from across the country, who come into the office sometimes, but are mainly based at home.

I don’t like everything being WFH because my dc are still young and starting out in the world of proper work. They already missed out on the university experience they expected because of Covid and now the experienced people who would usually be mentoring and guiding them don’t want to be in the office providing the benefits that were given to them because they can’t be arsenic to commute anymore.

It’s about what works best for an organisation as a whole, not the individuals that want to be able to put the washing on during their lunch break.

My job is totally remote. Some friends say they are jealous of elements of my job (no commute, flexible hours, and as it’s fully remote I can work anywhere as opposed to just WFH). Others say they would never want a remote job as they love the office socialisation.

Others (not friends but outspoken family members) say they don’t believe in remote work/WFH, it isn’t proper work, you’re just doing your laundry, etc. I don’t really care but I know that’s an opinion many have. I used to have it too.

I must admit that when I do have to go away for work (it’s usually just one or two days a month), I am absolutely knackered afterwards from getting up early, travel etc. Went away for work this week and on my first day home I was in bed by 9 asleep by half past 😳

I love WFH.

I live rurally and have only ever worked for small businesses who underpay and overwork, very little in the way of benefits, structure or progression. But it was all I could find within a 45 minute commute. Childcare didn't do extended hours so I couldn't do a longer commute even if I wanted to.

Now I work for a much bigger organisation and I cannot believe the difference in approach. I work really hard because I appreciate my job so much. I take more pride and care because I know how lucky I am and I wouldn't dream of taking the piss.

I'm also quite introverted and I don't miss all the office politics, one up-man ship, gossip and sniping. My dog is my best work colleague.

For myself I am very pro WFH, but now we have a few new starts in our team who have joined us as their first job, and working from home for them is really hard - supervision isn’t as effective, it’s hard for them to build relationships with coworkers, and they miss out on watching and learning from a lot of soft skills.

I think for a lot of roles a blend of 2 or 3 days in the office and the rest from home works well. It’s great to give people back the time in their day usually spent commuting etc, and it can really aid in productivity, but a couple of days in the office allows for supervision / collaboration etc.