To WANT to office work and not WFH?!

[TikkaChance]

I'm applying for jobs, and can't help but notice how many are now hybrid remote, as in work from the office for a couple of days a week and the others you're at home with your headset on and presumably creating your own call environment from your spare bedroom or something.
Is this a new thing since lockdown?
If I'm at work, I want to physically go into work and feel like I'm at work, as opposed to being at home and getting distracted by shiny things nobhead kids and DH 😁 (love em really)

You just need to be selective - there are plenty of employers who will welcome you!
we found wfh did not work for us as employers - 95% of the staff felt the same and we ate happily working productively from our office environment

It’s mostly viewed as a perk, but I don’t think a hybrid role would stop you from going in to the office if you wanted to. There are usually minimum in office days but not maximum ones.

You can always go in despite being hybrid. It's often a choice as to how many days you want to go in when it's more than the required days.

Yes, it'll be minimum number of days in. Unless they are running a very tight space and have very high turnout (ie they might risk there not being room for everyone), they're hardly going up bar you from going on every day if you'd prefer to.

I also prefer being in generally. Unlike having the ability to WFH now and then but generally speaking I prefer being in.

DH is the same. He is two days WFH and it assists with school runs so good in that way but he’d prefer to be in all the time.

It's a perk, more and more people are wanting it to give then flexibility. And yes it's since lockdown. People realising that things can actually work well so giving people the choice.

There’s plenty of office based jobs out there!

I much prefer working from home and love hybrid (ideally fully remote but that’s harder to find) but I think companies should be giving people the choice not forcing one way or another (depending on the job obviously!)

It’s not just the flexibility of school runs etc- it’s the commute cost savings- with everything else going up, clawing back £100 a month is not to be sniffed at by me.

fyi the finance / banking sector is London wants people back 4-5 days!

Our place is hybrid but some people choose to go in every day and that's fine.

My job is supposed to be 3 days in the office, 2 days at home but the bosses are happy for us to work the office as often as we like. I often go in even if I don't need to as I don't really like turning my living room into an office (I live in a one bedroom flat close to the City and I have a short, easy commute).

Don't let it put you off applying. If you get an interview they often ask if you have questions. You never know, this could put you ahead of the competition!

I like working in an office, but would like the flexibility to work from home if needed.

example. Massive operation a few years ago meant I couldn’t be in the office, but I could have worked from home had the company not been as pedantic about everyone needing to be in.

current company are fine if I need to work from home should be be not able to be in but still able to work (crohns disease, can work but need to be near a loo)

YANBU.

And I say that as someone who has WFH FT for the last 4 years. It suits me perfectly, and my work / life balance has never been better, but being at home on your own all day every day obviously isn’t for everyone.

@gemloving

You can always go in despite being hybrid. It's often a choice as to how many days you want to go in when it's more than the required days.

That's good to know, thanks - applied for a job today, got an interview for next week from it and they said it would be a couple of days WFH.
Would rather be in the office all the time if that was an option!

It's absolutely fine as long as you don't try to force your view on others. For others WFH or hybrid is perfect for them

Defo ask the qu at interview. I'm civil service and we have to be in 3 days but are allowed to go in more if we wish. I know some places have issues with space though so it's worth checking.

I would bring it up at the interview. I know that some places have done away with space and only have capacity for workers to come in once or twice a week.

@yytee

It's absolutely fine as long as you don't try to force your view on others. For others WFH or hybrid is perfect for them

I definitely wouldn't do that, as I totally get that we're all individuals and different situations work for others..
All about the choice here 🙂

An employee who actively wants to be in the office would be heralded by employers! There aren't a shortage of in the office 5-days a week jobs going and even if you had a hybrid set up there's nothing precluding it. I personally don't understand the fanfare with being in the office - the majority of my female friends are Black so perhaps a selective group but the normalisation of WFH quite literally saved some of their mental health struggles. The push back is what annoys me the most. It's almost like people want others to be miserable with them or see them be miserable.

This conversation about hybrid vs WFH vs full time at the office has been going on for at least 3 years now!

Each to their own. I prefer wfh and wish I could do it 100% but we are expected in the office 2 times a week. At least they are flexible about which days.

My employer argues that this presence benefits younger employees who can learn more about the world of work via in-person interaction and seeing professional behaviour in action. I can see that pov but it doesn't benefit me so I'd rather not be a behaviour mentor!

The expectations seem to go across industries, better paid seem to want people in more but badly paid ones are much more likely to see it as a way they can keep costs down. My org is 100% WFH, would we be more productive in an office, maybe, would I keep staff when the rest of our industry is very WFH probably not. So it may well balance out. That said I think many employers would like you in as much as they can and if there is an office you can do as much as you want.

We're two days in the office but a few people go in every day. It depends on your colleagues because sometimes you're in on your own or with people that you don't like working with so much so the atmosphere can be a bit weird. But at least everyone has the choice

You can always go in despite being hybrid. It's often a choice as to how many days you want to go in when it's more than the required days

Misleading because this isn't always the case. Many offices have downsized their space since covid and there's physically no capacity for people to attend more than X days a week. This is the case with my job - two days in the office is mandatory but you'd be pretty stuffed if you wanted more.

Definitely still worth applying and asking if full time in the office is an option. It's my preference too, I think it would be unusual to find companies that couldn't accommodate you.