Hybrid is now 4 days no flexibility

[Abby23]

The US multinational I work for has mandated all UK employees back to the office for at least 4 days a week. It was 3 days before. I’m gutted. I took this job 3 years ago having moved from my previous role that was 2 days hybrid. I’d been there for over 10 years.
My commute is 2 hours into Canary Wharf (ie 4 hours round trip minimum). The cost is another matter but that’s ok. I’m a single parent with a young teenager I have to leave at home at 6am when I leave for work, I’m not back till at least 7 pm. She makes her way to/from school but I feel so guilty. I get home and I’m exhausted. BTW, my teenager is going through an AdHd/autism assessment and does not particularly like school. Her behaviour can best be described as challenging.
Has anyone had to deal with this transition?. If so, did you embrace it?. I have asked my boss if I can apply for an exemption so I continue doing 3 days in the office due to my commute plus family commitments. Still awaiting a response,
I don’t want to sound precious because most people did 5 days in the office before Covid. But, I do feel so deflated and stressed about it as I really love my job. Unfortunately, I’m seriously thinking of looking elsewhere.
I do wonder if some companies do this to reduce staff numbers. We have just concluded a huge restructure..
would be grateful to hear people’ s comments.
thank you

AIBU to feel deflated?

This only works in a strong labour market and where there are equivalent/better jobs for people to move to. I am not sure how many people will actually be driven out by going from 3 days per week to 4 days in these rather precarious times. Especially when other employers are doing the same thing, particularly in OP’s sector of banks and financial institutions.

You have a right to make a statutory flexible working request. Details here.
https://workingfamilies.org.uk/articles/flexible-working-a-guide-for-employees/

If you are in the office 10-4 then you could leave home at 8 and be back by 6. Yes you would have to work additional hours to make up the time but at least means you are home to see your child in the morning, have a chat and fix dinner after school. What is your commute like? Can you work during it?

If you can do shorter office days then i’d try and do a long day on the 1 day at home and at least get home a little earlier. I think many companies are moving back to 4-5 days attendance and I don’t blame them as we have had nothing but problems with people refusing to come in, missing when meant to be working etc. They ruin it for everyone. I do think 2hrs each way is a very long distance to travel to work and we all know hybrid could change. Can you afford to drop a day? You say you have a lifestyle to uphold, but how much is essential spends? Guess its a choice whether to spend more time with your daughter for next few years or if to want more money.

Your daughter is a young teenager, 13? 14? You have been leaving her for three years three days a week from 6am until 7pm? Or did you previously have help? She is undergoing assessment for a disability. This seems way too long to leave her and sounds very lonely. I would use this opportunity to re evaluate what is important, your daughter of the lifestyle you wish to maintain.

@MumoftwoNC Re using the increased office days to reduce staff This is probably true but it's stupid of the employer because they won't be losing their worst employees, they'll probably lose their best ones as those will be the ones who find a better option quickest.

Never really thought of it this way but I reckon that’s very true! Also the potentially less engaged ones are ore likely to be doing the bare minimum if they’re not so happy any longer!

If your request is refused, could contracting be an option? A lot of companies will accept wfh if you are a contractor.

But OP can WFH 1 day a week.

She wants to work predominantly at home which is what I was envisaging when saying WFH jobs are a temporary arrangement typically. It’s totally understandable why companies want people in the office, no just due to monitoring workloads and outputs but also knowledge sharing, networking and professional skills that are learned through being with colleagues.

It's not really insane, there are tens of thousands of people who have this daily commute, my DH included. So many work in London who could never afford to live there.

If you’re pursuing a SEN diagnosis, then you may have grounds for reasonable adjustments as there could be indirect discrimination under the Equality Act

This happened to DH. He applied for exemption based on autistic DC, and they granted two days per week in the office (was previously three days moving to four days). So was better than before. Good luck

Agree with this. I WFH full time, but I see others in the team absolutely abusing the situation. It’s already been rumoured that they might be bringing people back to the office because of it. My view is that those who do take the piss should be told they must work in the office, and the others who do work hard at home should be allowed to do so. But management would rather punish everyone than focus on the piss takers, because they don’t want to be accused of targeting people.

I moved roles for this very reason. Life is too short to waste this level of time on travelling. Calculate your annual salary for 13 hours a day, then recalculate your salary at a shorter commute. If you can afford that, then go for it. For info, in my mind, I charge the hours I lose with my kids at double my hourly rate! So that made it a no brainer!

There is certainly a lot of evidence about increased retention rates which must help productivity. This study is quite interesting:
https://news.stanford.edu/stories/2024/06/hybrid-work-is-a-win-win-win-for-companies-workers

I manage 8 people and hybrid does have challenges especially with new staff members or underperforming staff but generally it's been a positive change. Decreased sick rates, a fun atmosphere on team days etc. People tend to plan different tasks for their different settings.

I do though work longer hours at home and attend more online meetings which are draining but the balance just feels better. It's especially beneficial for team members who commute long distances.

I do think it depends on the job, the team etc. I don't think full time at home or in the office is as effective as hybrid.

@GiveDogBone thanks- before Covid I worked for a company reasonably close to home. Commute was between half an hour and 45 minutes max one way. ,,

@SunnySideDeepDown to clarify, I do not want to work predominantly from home. I will hate it. 3 days was my sweet spot, 4 is just taking it over the edge for me.

i will hate a fully remote role. I can deal with the commute etc for 3 days but not 4…

@JillMW I've only been doing the really long hours for the past year as daughter is now 14. She also has to leave for school by 7 and is not back till 5. Not ideal I know but she is on her own for 3 hours 3 days a week. I don’t want it to extend to 4 days.

re lifestyle etc, I do have to work, if I don’t, our home will get re possessed plus I might lose my sanity.

These are terrible reasons for a ft return to the office!

Firstly, the hand-wringing about young people never actually seems to come from young people. I work with lots of bright young grads, and they are not the ones opting to come in 4 or 5 days a week, believe me.

As for seriously suggesting wfh divides society, perhaps you think everyone should be paid minimum wage and pension contributions too? Why, after all, should anyone’s work be more pleasant or attractive than the least appealing jobs?

Honestly, it’s so depressing how the arguments against ft WFH are now being marshalled against the sensible compromise, hybrid.

And the pp suggesting this was clearly only ever temporary… we’re coming up to six years since office workers were sent home at the outset of covid. Many workers will never have known five days in an office. For others, it represents a significant proportion of their working life. More and more, people have taken roles based on hybrid policies - even if those aren’t written into a contract, changing them to the employee’s detriment is going to sour the working relationship. We’re no longer talking about rash individuals who moved to the other end of the country one month onto lockdown; it’s entirely reasonable to make employment decisions on the basis of policies in place for several years that are promoted in recruitment. That’s not to say working trends can’t change, but insisting wfh/hybrid is an obviously temporary blip is a really poor argument.

“at interview, they promised me 3 days max….”

what does your contract state about this?

Did you not get it written into your contract that it would be 3 days in the office only, since they promised this? I’d look for something else, there are still 100% wfh jobs out there, just harder to find these days.

Says the person who does.not have a ND teenager who is severely struggling with school.

Years 9-12 were rhe absolute worst for DS and I almost gave up work because I could not manage DS needs. This was in a lovely local family friendly job 30min from home , next door practically from DSs school

"Luckily for us" Covid happend, as about about 3 months before that, DS was so anxious at school he over reacted to another child's comments and ended up permanently excluded. I would have had to give up work.orherwise

Op I would definitely look for a more flexible role.

I don't know which year your DD is in but yesr 9 is typically when things can go badly wrong for kids wirh ADHD and AUTISM. I started having to go to the school in the day and DS started calling me in a lot of distress from the breakout room and comimg home early. Eventually we got severe school refusal, with the exclusion happing on a day he was was coaxed in using various school strategies despite very high anxiety

I am not saying it will go.this way for your DD but behaviour difficulties are common in ND children in the later years of secondary school and you need to be around more for her nor less, whole she finishes school.

Changing house or school may cause more behaviour issues which whilst not unsurmountable you will need energy and time to cope with, so think carefully if you want to move . If you can get a more flexible job nearer home even if its pays less, you may find that better. You need time and energy to support your DD

Yes this

I should also have said that you should pf course still submit a flexible working request based.on this.

I just think that an American company is unlikely to approve this request. You should submit it anyway though, just in case

Does your company use freelancers / contractors / project workers?

I work for myself on a contracting basis, and it has been hugely successful in terms of work life balance. I always happily go into London for events and board meetings, but this averages out as less than once a month and I bill for travel time and costs.

You have to be a bit organised in terms of doing tax returns, billing regularly etc and you need reasonable savings in the bank because you’ve got less job security. But on the flip side you can charge more per hour and can deduct costs from income on your tax return which is quite beneficial if you work from home.

Worth a look maybe? Especially if your role is reasonably in demand, so you would be able to work for other clients not just your current company……

this really baffles me…I’m a million times more productive when WFH rather than the days I’m in the office! I work in HR and we’ve seen the opposite in terms of office space, we have less space but more staff and we can do this because all of them work in a hybrid model which means we need less physical space on site. For us it’s been a total game changer for many reasons. Appreciate totally it’s not for everyone though.

I don't think moving closer into London will save costs.