Nigel Farage calls for an end to working from home

[sally037]

Nigel Farage has doubled down on his attack on remote and hybrid working, calling it “a load of nonsense” and saying people are only productive when working face-to-face in the office. He argues we need an “attitudinal change to hard work” rather than focusing on work-life balance.

AIBU for thinking this idea is just bonkers and totally at odds with how most of the workforce actually wants to work now?

I can only think it appeals to the "pull the ladder up" generation. Don't give two fucks about anyone else as long as they are comfortable or those that are unable to wfh and want everyone else to be as miserable as them.

Unusually, there don't seem to be a large number of Reform supporters on this thread. There are usually loads when Reform gets a mention.
I know a few Reform supporters and none of them work from home.
They are either retired or they work in a factory setting or are plumbers/engineers (just my personal experience).
So I doubt it will sway many away from voting for them as the policies that really appeal to their voting core will not be affected by this.
I wonder is there a working from home and voting Reform sector of people?
(I work from home)

You can't turn back the clock. In a lot of professions, WFH is expected now as a perk.

They could do. I wouldn't stay in any job that forced me to work from the office for 5 days a week. Those days are long gone for me. People worked from home before COVID and in my field there were WFH jobs before that. I would find a fully remote contract, it the bear minimum days in an office.

I'm certainly not voting for that racist prat in the next election.

I can only think it appeals to the "pull the ladder up" generation. Don't give two fucks about anyone else as long as they are comfortable or those that are unable to wfh and want everyone else to be as miserable as them

That's a large proportion of Reform voters, isn't it? He's playing to his audience. They are miserable, and want to blame everyone else and make sure they're all miserable, too.

The only businesses who are going to pay any attention to this are those backed by Reform money; or who are already questioning remote working for whatever reason. Neither is where you want to be anyway.

Incidentally, not many people seem to mention the time-shifting aspect of WFH.
Which means your "9-5" can actually be "8-12" and "7pm-11pm".

Again a boon for parents.

Which is fine if it's not dictating what everyone does.

But what this thread is Farage suggesting about is dictating everyone working from offices.

Not a debate on the positives or negatives of WFH, but forcing office based working for all.

He may only be 61 but the way he drinks and smokes - he'll die soon... ;-)

I do t think he's forced every American back into an office has he? He's always changing his mind and forgetting things.

Don’t be naive. It’s a vote-winning tactic - like telling people that Brexit will enable us to regain control of our borders, create wealth and stop the influx of foreigners.

There is a divide between the haves and have-nots, those who can’t wfh often feel jealous of those who can.

If wfh ended then I’d simply exit the workplace - I couldn’t work and commute and manage the kids and home. I do a demanding and skilful job but I need flexibility

Unusually, there don't seem to be a large number of Reform supporters on this thread. There are usually loads when Reform gets a mention.

That's because rather than being a whingefest of how bad everybody else is, this is a stone cold idea (rare from Reform).

You can see why they don't really encourage thinking. It doesn't end well for them.

I wasn't focusing on any single issue.

Local councils don't have the money for that.

It'll be another wedge issue he's dug up as a way of speaking to his base.

As you observe, many are either retired or work in the kinds of roles that don't allow working from home. The mentality of, 'If I can't have/didn't have the thing, no one needs or should be able to have the thing' is strong.

If they stopped spending on useless things like SEND (which is like climate change to reform) then councils would be awash with cash.

We don’t have anywhere near as many desk or parking provision for that matter. Plus I think that implying that someone is more productive in the office on the assumption that they would otherwise be dossing around at home, reflects really badly on the employer. It’s a wonder that anyone would actually want to work for the public sector if Reform get in.

I felt this in my soul. So tired of them all.

The only string they have to their bow is immigration, and their obvious hatred for public sector workers. They don’t seem to have any other policy ideas.

I'm public sector and we were essential workers and there were a couple of employees who just didn't want to be at home with their kids so used the essential worker reason to keep their DC in school while they sat in an office with no-one else or one other because no-one else needed to be there and their workload was dramatically reduced because of covid restrictions.

Then complained about the lack of social interaction and wanted everyone to be forced into the office to make them feel better.

Or just didn't go into the office after a while but still kept their kids in school because they could.

Why are you policing me for not keeping to the topic when neither are you 😂😂 your first post on the thread is the fifth comment and you make your distain for office working very clear, but funnily enough no mention of Farage.

JUST to be clear, even though I’m miserable wfh, I have accepted that I will never work full time in an office again with my colleagues. My dream is for a properly hybrid job but I don’t even think I’ll get that ever. This is just working life now. I’m not rushing out to vote Reform in the hopes I’ll get my way lol.

We have absolute proof that offices, especially open ones, destroy the opportunity to do deep quality work.

https://calnewport.com/open-offices-make-you-less-open/

Going into a distraction machine, rather than being at home able to shut people out, will make productivity worse, not better.

(I'm still voting for Reform)

It will be because some of his backers are losing money who own surplus office space. He works for capitalists, not us.

That said I do prefer working from home - but I work for myself and don’t hire anyone. So no one to fire me, no training people, no grievances or injustices here.

This sounds like you enjoy WFH yourself but don’t want others to have the ability to WFH.

From your other post it sounds like you want younger people to go in to the office keep ‘elder colleagues’ company.

Does that mean no more photos of Farage 'working' while in the pub with a pint at his PR team? Grand.
I wonder if he's even turned the heating on in his house at Clacton yet.

The guy is a tosser.

I don't like "work from gym". Signs everywhere saying "no mobiles"; but still, some people are taking business calls whilst working out.

Of course.

But this isn't a thread about preferences or choices, it's a thread about Farage proposing no choices or preferences but WFH not being possible for people not self-employed.

And so people saying 'but WFH is hard for these people' are presumably agreeing the choice should be removed?' otherwise I don't understand why they're commenting with that POV.

Or they haven't understood the premise of the thread.