Sorry, not sorry, but wfh really is much easier

[Jeannie88]

I know it's become the norm, especially post covid, but do those who wfh realise how much easier their lives are?

Sorry, but I have found it a bit pathetic and embarrassing that there has been a big defiance of 'going into office' once a fortnight to be such an horrific ordeal?

Don't you all realise how fortunate you are? No commute, time at home to do things those of us have to do after a day of being on our feet, all frontline and retail etc then look after our children?

Sp my point from.personal experience. We are a group of 6 friends (f) and go out regularly together. When we have been to midweek gigs, comedy nights, meal, the 4 who wfh joke how they can roll out of bed and be online within minutes to show present, then have breakfast and just work at their own pace and even during teams meeting they can sit back and contribute what they have to.

Then, the 2 of us who have to get up at 6am, dress for work, ready to drive so sensible of alcohol intake the night before and buy ourselves soft drinks in rounds or even drive and give lifts. Then do a full intensive day with full on human interaction and check e mails on the evening when we get the time to do so.

Of course childcare issues come into this. We who don't wfh have to take our DC to breakfast club or childminder then go on to work, the 3 of the 4 who have DC drop them off at school and rush back having been seen to log on early but not really working as getting them ready.

Ok so my observation and opinions based on this. I guess all the moaning on MN about having to go into the office (which really isn't so hard is it?) had incited me to raise this point.

Oh and I do have DP who wfh and he totally agrees with me. He's hardworking and doesn't do the slob thing, but agrees, in his own words. 'It's a piece of piss compared to going to the office and even that was so easy compared to your job'.

So please those who have the privilege of wfh stop moaning! Honestly, how would the world work if everyone wfh? It wouldn't.

I wfh and definitely dont moan, and can't say I've noticed anyone posting on these (hundreds of) similar threads moaning either. We are absolutely lucky but i think those who post who dont wfh tend to moan about those of us that do constantly. And i feel it's mostly fuelled by jealousy.

I’ve never actually met anyone in my real life who means about wfh at all.

Even when downsides are mentioned, it’s usual an aside rather than a moan. Generally everyone I know is very positive about it.

Reminds me of telling SAHP that they have it way easier than working. And that may be true in some cases, in other cases it is not. And if you aren't living with them, do you really know?

Don't think I have the discipline to WFH, I'd do nothing if I could !😅

This is the fundamental, basic assumption that people who don’t understand the kind of jobs where you can wfh make.

I am a manager. I don’t have “managers breathing down my neck” about how often I get up from my desk, or how many phone calls I take, or whether I’m on the internet or dealing with personal admin. The pressure I get is around why hasn’t that complex issue been resolved when I haven’t been given the budget to hire the people with the skills to resolve it, or why can’t I commit to delivering that project in two months when the requirements aren’t understood yet.

The amount of time I spend at my desk or in the office has virtually no impact on my ability to do those things, and my managers are aware of that and also understand that if they pestered me and my colleagues about that kind of trivia, they’d be creating unnecessary work for themselves whilst demotivating people and making it more likely that they’ll leave.

They’d also have to pay for us all to traipse up and down the country all the time rather than working in order to get to the face to face meetings that are allegedly so vital, and wait longer while we arranged the logistics of all that travel.

As someone who used to work from home almost exclusively at one point to now mostly working in an office I agree with you.

I have always agreed with you though, I knew the difference between WFH and WOH because I'd worked in an office full time before home working, as most people have. My good fortune in having home working opportunities has always been treasured by me and I've taken steps to work in roles where I knew that some WFH would be possible. That has meant not applying for more hours/promotions/unsuitable jobs etc. I've always earned minimum wage or not much above it so it's cost me, but with children it is worth the financial cost for us as it has made day to day life much less stressful.

I feel for people for whom it's not possible. My DH for example works one AM a week from home and the rest of the time has to be patient facing, understandably. He like you frequently then ends up having to do admin at home in the evenings. He does earn more than double what I do though so there's some compensation for it! And he knew when he trained for that role that obviously it wouldn't be one lending itself well to WFH.

You do sound really unhappy though OP with your set up and I would recommend sitting down and thinking through what changes you could make to make your life easier/you feel less stressed, if any.

One day there will be reliable statistics to show that 90% of the people wfh are doing 50% of the work they are paid to do.

One day there will be reliable statistics to show that 90% of the people wfh are doing 50% of the work they are paid to do

utter rubbish

I do feel lucky being able to WFH but I had started before COVID as I previously worked about 10 mins walk from my office, but got divorced years ago then met my new (now fiance) partner. If I went to the office every day I'd have a 3 1/2 hour commute. When I first moved I initially thought I'd look for something closer to home but after having worked with my company for 29 years they wanted to help so I worked 2 days at home, 2 days in the office and I dropped a day. When COVID hit I changed to 4 days a week but I always worked the 5 as there was nothing else to do! Since COVID I pretty much work all the time from home though I've had to stop the Friday extra as I started to feel resentful. I also worked while on holiday several times when holidaying in the UK. But I've had to draw the line. I still work a half hour every day extra that I'm not paid for but I don't mind. In the beginning I thought it was great being able to do washing and stuff after 30 years being out the house five days a week, but now I can't be arsed! I just save it for my days off. There is a great advantage to me right now WFH as I have terrible health issues due to the Perimenopause and it helps me massively to stay working. If I'd been younger I don't think I'd like WFH, it can be very lonely..and I don't always know what the gossip is! But for now it helps me loads.

Absolute crap.

I'm the only person who does my job at my company and I also inherited someone else's job too! I alone am responsible for 2 jobs, if I only did 50% I'd soon be found out!! If people are lazy when they WFH I can assure you they will be lazy when they're in the office!!! WFH doesn't change your work ethic! And those with a good work ethic do more, see my post above!

Given that's not true, there won't be.

Some people who work from home don't work as hard as they should be. So do some people in the office.

You tend to find that the people with the low work ethic, have it regardless of the location of their job.

I don’t think people moan about going into the office I think moan because businesses are changing the goalpost. It really annoys me when people claim I’m just moaning because the office wants me in more. Not the case I am moaning because I was told I needed to be in the office one day a week and no more. So my childcare was organised around this. I even increased my hours (I work part time) as work needed me to so I did on the basis this was only possible if the WFH/hybrid working stayed as it was. Then the 1 day went to 2 and now they want it to be three. Based on where I live and childcare etc it’s cheaper and easier for me to just get a part time job locally if the days increase to 3 per week. You can’t expect people to magic up childcare!
I also don’t get the leisurely breakfast etc of wfh. I think people who are lazy are lazy whether they are in the office or at home. Yesterday at home I got 8 reports done. Took a 20 minute break to take the kids to school and maybe 10 minutes to grab a sandwich. Today in the office I did one report. Caught up with colleagues who I hadn’t seen for a while (days vary so don’t always see people for a few weeks) and had an hours lunch break. I constantly had people asking me questions about stuff that should have been requested via other channels but because I’m there it’s easier to ask me which took me away from doing my actual job. I did far less in the office than I do at home and as a business our work rate has increased significantly since Covid. Unfortunately the person who was lazy before Covid is still lazy and work shy now. It’s the person not the environment. Yes work from home is easier because there is no commute so more time at home and a better work/life balance but it doesn’t work mean the work is easier. My husband is WFH and most days barely has time to eat he is so busy. It actually annoys me so much people that don’t WFH have this view that we ll sit at home doing nothing!

This is a bit like ‘those of you who broke your arm, stop moaning as I broke a leg and that’s worse’.

It’s all relative. I hate going in as I don’t have regular childcare before school so I have to arrange that. It’s not our fault you work in a less flexible job

@Notenoughtime23 nail on the head I think. You arrange your life around what you need to do for work. Change the requirements for work and it upends everything.

I think wfh is massively easier so we've all embraced it but I think there are bigger picture costs that we're not really discussing. Junior staff don't get the opportunity to learn from osmosis, social side of work is virtually non-existent, loneliness and isolation is creeping in more as a society, women who wfh tend to also end up doing the role of housewife while trying to do a full day at work. I think yes day to day it's easier but long term I'm not sure it's best for us as a society.

Source: trust me bro.

Me too. And the house is a constant mess unless I spend every minute of my free time cleaning and tidying 😭

Junior staff don't get the opportunity to learn from osmosis

There's some truth in this. The current batch of trainees at my work are all WFH full time and not getting the same degree of mentoring that I got when I was in their position. Having said that, I'd not volunteer to go back into an office to support junior colleagues. I just couldn't be arsed now. I've done my bit over the years. Not that I could go into my current employer's office even if I wanted to, since it's over 600 miles away.

Well that's why hybrid is the best of both worlds!
And, as much as I love WFH, I'm also aware that it makes my job easier to replace with someone far cheaper than me, in some other country. Yes, it may result in worse productivity in the long-term but senior managers don't care. They outsource, get the kudos with savings etc then move on to their next Big Role, with some other poor sods left to pick up the pieces.

So, our office does hybrid working . There are those who prefer the office and have gone in since they could after covid restrictions . There are those of us who prefer to work from home and go in to the office to ‘touch base ‘ once every couple of weeks. WFH suits me - my dh is up at 6 for work and dd leaves for work at 7.15 . I start up my computer at 6.15 and start working * once it’s loaded. I work through till 12 whether it’s databases or meetings unless a meeting runs later - I’m available by email or zoom all the time . I then break for lunch - a sandwich or something and check personal messages or emails . 1pm I start up again , sometimes earlier , more meetings etc and finish between 3 and 4 depending on work load. I don’t work Mondays. If I go into work I still get up at 6 and do some work before leaving to get the bus for a 45 min journey (if I’m lucky) to the office at about 8am when I get into the office I have to check and adjust seat and screens before I can start work , then I’m usually called into meetings or discussions with colleagues . I pack up and leave about 4 and don’t usually get home till about 6 pm . I get far more work done at home .
luckily I’m now on retirement leave and I finish at 5he 3nd of 5he month.
i have however worked in offices most of my life so the last few years since covid have been a bonus.

You describe how hard it is for you, then say “it’s really not that hard, is it?”

Yeah it is harder. Hence, people would prefer to wfh.

I WFH. Have done in my role for 10.5 years.

My role is field based, so I often have to travel to different places for meetings, conferences, etc.

My one and only head office is 100 miles away. So it’s not somewhere I travel to often unless I have a meeting there.

If I suddenly had to go into the office a few days a week, I’d have to find a new job because a 200 mile round trip into the office several times a week isn’t entirely practical.

Do I feel fortunate to be a remote worker? Yes I do. It brings many privileges/perks.

However, do I end up working far more hours than I would working in an office, because it’s harder to switch off? Yes I do

Do I feel like you’re generalising a lot of people who WFH? Absolutely.

I used to wfh all the time and whilst there were benefits as you describe I was lonely and less productive. Now I work in an office full time and it's a better for me but very full on. What I need is some sort of hybrid where I do maybe two days at home. That would be perfect.