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.

If Farage becomes PM, it does come under his remit to look at WFH in the public sector, civil service, quangos, councils, NHS, etc etc.

A lot of retired people think they have paid their dues and we should too. It’s all about the voting base. The mindset is that they need to force these people off their soft pretty arses cozy at home getting paid to eat avocados on Zoom calls, and back into proper grafting out in the real world, like the good old days.

I think the right will always ideologically not like WFH even if many benefit from it.

Other than the impacts to commercial real estate, which I wont claim to fully understand, just know that my old office block is now completely empty and in ruins with vandalism etc I don't see how it impacts him.

WFH means that as a parent I can work full time and rely less on wrap around care, can attend school events, spend more time with my family - all things he claims to be important?

It also opens jobs up to people who otherwise couldn't do the same role if it was in the office with a commute, this means greater diversity.

I've worked in large offices most of my life and all the people who claim that WFH means people are being lazy are those who don't do very when they are in the office, there have always been those people who make a full time of doing very little - that's not a new issue at all.

This^ he's being clever with why he's being so vocal about this, he's trying to position himself as a friend to the people who would bank roll his future campaigns by trying to present himself as leading a cultural shift. Which is why he is so dangerous.

Fair enough-apart from the class-but the poster to whom I was referring simply said, "Old, white male." It is something I have seen more and more of and I am sick of the men in my life-all white, all obviously male and hopefully, one day, all old being insulted by twerps.

Someone's colour, age and sex should not be a stick to beat them with and I am amazed that so many white women think it is.

Not to mention getting over your anxiety about leaving the house or using the phone….

I think it will lose him some votes, which can only be a good thing.

Absolutely!

I doubt it would happen in private sector and in Government they need to get some more office space first. That said I do go in every day from choice and I am so over all the complaining and excuses why they cannot come in, sometimes when it’s only once per week as per office space. Before Covid we did 2 days WFH and had few issues, now no end of problems. What doesn’t help is people refusing to put cameras on, and so trying to engage online is pretty impossible.

Tell me you don't have a disability without telling me you don't have a disability..

In the times you're talking of there were opportunities for engagement outside of the regular workplace for people with physical and mental health issues, these have largely gone by the wayside.

But that is often ignoring the burden on more senior staff who are constantly bothered by minor queries from junior staff who should be able to figure out most of it by themselves but won't if there's someone at the next desk they can distract.

Being available in an arranged conversation enables boundaries for both parties, so the junior member of staff organises what they really have questions around that need answering and not silly queries or mundane questions that are causing them anxiety momentarily but don't really need senior advice.

True.

My job is fully online so not sure where I would go 🙄

I thought he said it was for public sector? Private businesses can do as they please as they are not taxpayer-funded?

True but civil servants are already mandated in the office 3 days a week and many government offices don’t even have capacity to accommodate that.

I think you will find that the people against WFH are generally not retired. Any retirees I know don’t give a jot about what other people are doing in the workplace , they’ve gladly left it behind.

Managers, business owners and business dependent on office working are the ones beating the drum on this.

Nigel Farage is deeply unpleasant, misogynistic and racist.
The attack on WFH is all about propping up the status quo and rich landlords who wish to continue to make ( tax free probably) profits on renting out large buildings.
As far as I can see Nigel has never done a useful days work in his life, whether he was in the office or otherwise. So his view is worthless, as it is on all things as he is w bellend.

This. He’s the ultimate hypocrite. Lecturing us about the EU while making a fortune from being an MEP.

He was 748th out of 751 MEPs on attendance during his time in Brussels. He was also docked £35k for misuse of EU funds.

Also he spends far more time on his lucrative media work than as an MP.

Listen to what he does not what he says.

That from a man who is never in his constituency or in Parliament...

More nonsense from Farage who is doing this to cosy up to commercial landlords and business owners who complain that WFH means less profits for them.

Hybrid work is perfect in my opinion.
I hope the great British public wakes up to the absolute SHAMBLES a Farage government would be. God help us!

That is still on the company though to ensure that young people are getting the onboarding that they need.

Plus, they applied to such jobs to begin with for whatever reason usually knowing that their colleagues were hybrid or remote.

From what I’ve seen, many job listings are upfront about hybrid/wfh, with plenty saying they do training in office for 3-4 weeks before they allow whomever they hire to wfh/hybrid.

Firstly he's a knob, obviously.

But the WFH issue needs to be dealt with on a case by case basis.

It works for some, doesn't work for others.

For me, WFH is perfect. I'm the kind of person who locks in, for hours, and gets a tremendous amount done. I just can't do this in an office environment with people making conversation, offering tea or biscuits etc. I still get work done, but my productivity is huge at home.

My job pays me a full time wage, but I only have to complete set tasks each day and then I can stop.

It's 13.47 - I've completed my tasks. If I was in the office it would be at least 4.30.

Human contact is essential even for introverts.
As an introvert, I can still have human connection. The difference is, it’s with whom I want and when I want. Forcing me to interact with people I find toxic, because you think I need human contact, is not good for my mental health.

People do get more done in the office, it eliminates skiving.
It does nothing of the sort. Plenty of slivers in office settings.

There will be career advancement more readily available for onsite employees.
I’ve been promoted twice whilst WFH for my current company.

When home and work is blurred you never switch off if WFH.
My computer has an off switch. Many office workers still have work email on mobiles and take laptops home. If you can’t switch work off, that’s a you problem.

Yes fares and petrol cost but that is something that needs to be factored in when budgeting. Not sure why people complain about this when it has been the case for decades.
The rises in costs of these have been higher than wages over the years.

Location. Again, you choose to live in an area that is accessible for work. Whether that is driving range or train access. For a small number that includes walkable.
Again, the price of housing has outstripped the rises in wages for decades. Workplaces tend to be in cities where housing is more expensive than most wages can afford.

People who work from home do disappear to collects kids from school and go to the gym. Things you should do in your own time not your employers.
It is my own time. My employer gets 7.5 hours of my time a day. Largely, I can decide when to do those hours. I’m away at 3 to pick up my daughter. I’ll be gone for half an hour. I started at 8 this morning, so actually they’ll owe me half an hour if I finish at 5.30 (which I probably won’t)

If someone wants to WFH they should set up their their own company or be totally freelance. I.e in charge of their own destiny.
I am in charge of my own destiny. My boss gets their clients’ needs met, when they need to be met, and I can have a nap at lunchtime if I want to.

many major Reform donors have significant investments in office buildings

And there it is.

Well based on another thread running on AIBU at the moment, using the phone to talk to people does seem to be a genuine anxiety of a surprisingly large number of mumsnetters...

It's strange to me in some ways that the right don't like WFH. From a boss perspective, you're transferring quite a lot of costs in terms of rent and electricity to your employees. And presumably freeing yourself from associated bureaucracy. Cutting free the red tape!