When do you think the WFH if possible advice will end?

[LonePenguin]

I'm hoping late March/ early April. Do you think that's too optimistic?

I doubt I’ll see the inside of a work office until
at least June/July. And even then, they have told us that we will never go back to normal. I’m gutted. I hate WFH

My office wants us back in by mid March

Apparently the government blueprint for next week’s announcement is to avoid saying people should get back to the office.

I think it’s likely to stay in place for most of this year. Perhaps end Easter next year.

Yes, that is excessively optimistic! I don't think that advice will change until the adult population is fully vaccinated and we have a stable annual vaccination programme running.

There is constantly news about new variants and the risk of vaccine evasion - why would you encourage people back to the workplace when the risk is still high? I wouldn't be surprised if the advice to wfh if you can will stay in place for 6 months to a year.

We've been told we can't go back until the official advice changes. Really hoping it will be soon after schools. Must be less risky than hospitality opening?

When the train companies run out of money.

This article earlier says wfh will continue for now.

mobile.reuters.com/article/amp/idUSKBN2AH0OH

@Youngatheart00 as in back to office full time ?

@BlueTimes

Apparently the government blueprint for next week’s announcement is to avoid saying people should get back to the office.

I think it’s likely to stay in place for most of this year. Perhaps end Easter next year.

There will be nothing left !

As a PP has said I can’t imagine this changing until all adults have been offered a vaccine at the very earliest. The government know that it’s impossible to get people back with all the covid secure measures in place. They tried last summer but hardly anyone went back to the office.

My prediction is that the advice will be dropped by September but brought in again by November lasting until Spring 2022. However most people won’t go back in until Covid secure measures are dropped and that could be even further away- Summer 2022 perhaps.

I’ve no idea what state city centres/public transport will like by that point! Lots of companies won’t renew leases on office space but I guess some will be committed long term.

@LonePenguin

We've been told we can't go back until the official advice changes. Really hoping it will be soon after schools. Must be less risky than hospitality opening?

I think it will be different after Easter and you will be able to go in if you want to. Our office is more or less shut currently except for hardship cases or people who need to go in to do a specific job like use the printer, but before this lockdown/tier 4 you could go in if you wanted to but most people were staying at home.

I fear my place of work has changed for good. We're all IT and seemingly everyone working from home has worked out for nearly everyone and productively is high. They said they might make it optional to go back and with so many happy as it is, hardly anyone is likely to actually choose to go in. I'm gutted because I don't like WFH as I miss seeing actual physical people!

I desperately hope it will be soon! I work in education so some hope I’ll be able to get back faster than the government guidance as this is what happened last time.

@LonePenguin

We've been told we can't go back until the official advice changes. Really hoping it will be soon after schools. Must be less risky than hospitality opening?

Same here - ours are ‘following government advice’ Last lockdowns, they didn’t really drop the WFH advice - just re-worded it. I really really hope it isn’t the case this time but if people CAN physically wfh, they’re unlikely to change it any time soon. I’m expecting May/June although I don’t want to believe it.

I can understand why some people enjoy wfh but my fear is that could be used as a figleaf for employers to say its wfh forever, when actually its to cut costs and ignores sizeable numbers who hate it. Or at least don't hate it, but would prefer a mix of wfh and the office.

I miss people, having a chat about last nights telly, building working relationships, getting to hear about things as a result of conversation in a corridor. This feels so cut off.

I think September or October. My work has already been clear that not everyone will be able to return, numbers will depend on what social distancing measures have to be put in place at the time.
I love WFH so I am in no hurry to go back.

@BlueTimes

Apparently the government blueprint for next week’s announcement is to avoid saying people should get back to the office.

I think it’s likely to stay in place for most of this year. Perhaps end Easter next year.

Not sure they'll be able to justify "wfh if you can" through Summer.

I think advice will change June/July and most companies will ignore it waiting to see if it's reversed in Autumn/Winter.

I think advice will change June/July and most companies will ignore it waiting to see if it's reversed in Autumn/Winter.

Did many companies reverse their wfh policy last summer when the government actively pushed people to go back? Mine didn’t and kept us at home, and the same with DH’s company.

I think wfh will be much more common than in the past. Maybe a rota system.

Soon I hope, I hate working from home, and suppliers we work with might get some work done.

I don’t think Til we are all vaccinated. And they won’t be Til October. Then it’ll be winter so they might try and be cautious. So I’d say til next spring.
My company tho offers you a place if you want to be in the office , they did last summer but nobody was requested to go in compulsory. So I think this is what will happen this time as well

We've already been told no office until October.

But we're one of the few Covid growth industries. We're 3 times bigger than we were pre-Covid and we were bursting at the office seams a year ago. We will never go back to how it was.

I’d be interested to know how much in practice government advice has changed behaviour in this area. Our office has never been re-opened, whereas I know other workplaces who have been back in the office ever since the end of lockdown 1 and are still in the office as for whatever reason (legit or contrived) they say they can’t do their job as effectively from home. Have there been many offices that have been opening and shutting over the course of the year?

So weird, my office has been able to work from home and yet has never ever shut its doors and only one person has worked from home and even that was only for 2 weeks.

Its an office based job, solicitors practice. Office currently shut to public but working from home just hasnt ever taken off as boss wasn't keen.

Would have loved the opportunity as I'm pregnant but it was a firm no. Just surprised in a way to hear that so many places still are working from home and sticking to advice!

I go to work now, I have my own office and travel by car so they have no reason to tell me to wfh