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.

I work in the public sector and WFH full time has a seriously detrimental effect on the ability to do the roles I do. Many people are really unhappy about it, but don't go in as no-one else does, so what's the point?

Hybrid is fine, but public sector employers really do need to require their staff to come in more frequently. Working in office two or three days a week is not unreasonable.

Managers are not enforcing this though. I know in my team its because many staff are underoccupied and so don't want to go in.

This!

And also the constant assumptions that wfh-ers aren't really working, conveniently ignoring the amount of non-work chat that goes on in many offices.

The day anything useful comes out of Nigel Farage's mouth will be the day pigs fly. His opinions should be treated with the contempt they deserve.

Anecdote does not equal data.

It absolutely is the same. A conversation is a conversation.

Good point, same where I live.

I mean, if you wanted to keep women with children out of the workplace and not competing with mediocre men for sought- after jobs, then I guess banning wfh would help...🤔

(see also disabled people)

Managers are not enforcing this though. I know in my team its because many staff are underoccupied and so don't want to go in.

Here we have the reason why workers will be required to be onsite. Looming redundancies and cuts.

Surely people can feel differently on this. I don’t think it’s the same. I think a mix is good so can see both sides but I don’t agree on this.

I think there is a huge problem with the current workforce when it comes to resilience and sickness.
I think that some people know how to abuse and play the system and others see this and copy as they get sick of having to pick up their slack

it does need addressing

however I do not think that working from
home and flexible working is the cause of this. I’m my opinion a flexible working actually rewards performance

Politics of misery and nonsense.

most local authorities do not have the space for staff to be in daily. And haven’t for nearly a decade. Lots of places don’t.

my entire company’s head office is run remotely. We don’t even have an office to return to. Clearly appeasing his donors

Pp explained why disability is relevant here. It's not a derail, it's a relevant aspect of the topic.

For me having the option to wfh is just as important to me as salary. Before I got my current role I turned down several that mandated 5 days in the office. I have to do three now which is one more than I would like but do enjoy some form of hybrid.

If I could get it down to fewer days I could move back to my home town which would be great!

I suspect there will be lots of redundancies in some sectors so plenty of room in the offices for those left

Nigel Farage has so many lucrative irons in the fire I doubt he is in his Clacton constituency or Parliament very much. He's just pandering to a chunk of the Reform voting demographic that believes anyone who WFH isn't actually working.

I do not think you should ever be allowed to wfh for child care - unless the child is capable of entertaining themselves etc

Also I think Farage’s concern about wfh is more about his landlord mates than anything else.

Nigel Farage is the perfect example of a career politican who is only interested in population demographics who he thinks can provide him with influence and lined pockets and he forgets that he's a public servant who lifts a salary paid for by the rest of the working public whom he is supposed to be serving. He doesn't bother to inform himself of how his theories could affect the rest of the population.

If more people were put out of work due to him ending working from home, he would absolutely advocate for cutting those same peoples benefits and then put blame on them for living in poverty as a result.

The man literally stuck his face on a double decker bus advocating all the money brexit would pay into the NHS and then the very next morning after it was announced he was on the morning news saying he never said that. And it makes perfect sense he's now weaponising asylum seekers and minority groups to scapegoat the blame for the fallout from his campaign.

He is an absolute piece of work who is too good at preying on social fears to turn people against each other because they're struggling. And meantime he grew up privileged, went to private school and was handed a job in the stockmarket at 18. Its beyond me how people are so willing to allow themselves to be led by someone like this.

Fuck off Nige

WFH for a disability should be accommodated where practicable imho as it keeps people in work

"People are only productive when working face-to-face in the office. "

Really? I'd like to see some reliable data on that. (But I doubt there is any).

I don't think that decision is a Politicians call, its the employer. There are always people who take advantage of the system either working from home or in the office and they need to be routed out, and not spoil it for others.

I was a Civil Servant and the nature of my job meant my team were spread out nationally, I couldn't go into an office and sit with them. So I sat in my local office like Billy no mates. Most of the offices were open plan and the nature of my conversations was normally confidential so I had to book meeting rooms for most of the day when I was in office and so there was no socialising or team building from office attendance for me. I was supposed to spend 3 days in office and 2 working from home but the reality was that I was on site visits for those three in office days so wasn't with my normal team anyway.

But the government wanted us back in the office where possible to set an example to businesses and to support the local infrastructure i.e. shops, cafes, public transport etc. Well I was supporting shops and cafes, just in my own home neighbourhood when I worked from home and the public transport system isn't sufficiently funded to meet the workforces needs.

I never said it did. But there’s lots of data on the internet if you could be bothered to Google. I do think there’s a lot of nuance and it’s very complex though.

Farage can GTF.

He also plans to review employment rights, my bet is that the mandatory minimum annual leave entitlement will be reduced. He will turn us into little America. He's already talking to anti-abortion groups to put this into place. I'm not sure why, (if he loves their system so much) he doesn't just fuck off over there!

I would think that for anyone who really thinks WFH has a detrimental effect on their roles then they would go into the office?

You say they can and are not restricted from doing so so why not?

If you feel they need to be forced to then that raises a lot of questions about the workers to be honest.

Public sector workers have statutory obligations to adhere to, as well as professional obligations to maintain their registrations which include self-awareness, seeking appropriate training, supervision etc.

If, as you state you are, a public sector worker who can go into the office but are not doing so but complaining it is affecting your roles, you need to take professional responsibility and go into the office that is available to you. Same applies to all of your colleagues.

You're held to a higher standard than many private sectors and should be doing what you need to do, not complaining that no-ones forcing you so why would you bother?