Are you going back to the office next week?

[bevelino]

Our office of around 1500 people have suspended reopening next week due to the anticipated increase in infection rates. Also we were told that we need to download the NHS app but now they are concerned that it will lead to the whole office having to isolate in a similar way that we have seen in schools in the UK.

Unless modifications are made to the NHS app I don’t see how it will be possible for people to return to work without multiple periods of isolation and massive disruption.

I've been in the office for months, open plan although much smaller scale. Can a rota system not be implemented? Is there any reason why everyone had to come in at once?

We also do regular testing and anyone who has any sign of illness stays at home.

Ours have suspended the start of plans to return.

Once the double jabbed no quarantine requirement comes in on 16 August, I expect there may be a change.

My husband's office is letting people come in if they want but they need to be double jabbed or have a negative LFT within 24 hours for one day in the office or twice weekly if you're in every day. They're not planning to start encouraging people in til mid September but I can see that being pushed back.

never going back !

Yes. Originally we were going back part time as part of hybrid working but some people raised concerns, so now we're in bubbles which - along with hybrid working - means we're only in one day a week. It's tricky - I have a couple of team members who are very anxious about it and a couple who are desperate to be back around people as wfh has affected their mental health.

Nope! It’s crazy - friends in office are getting pinged left right and centre!

Nope.

Bosses have said we have been more productive at home, for example many of people use their commute time to do at least an hour of extra work per day. And there lower levels of sickness than usual for last 15 months. Given rising infection rates and risk us catching covid on public transport or the office they are happy for us to WFH. Even if we get it mildly we’ll still be less productive when under the weather than if we are completely well.

Bosses are hoping if infection rate goes down again they might be able to encourage us back in late Aug or Sept for meetings, workshops, interviews etc but unlikely anyone will need to go back 5 dpw.

People who can’t tolerate working at home anymore can work from office if they want but will have to adhere to social distancing, book a desk in advance etc for the foreseeable future.

We were meant to be going back next week but that’s now been postponed until September.

Bosses have said we have been more productive at home, for example many of people use their commute time to do at least an hour of extra work per day

I do hope you're getting paid for that extra work?

We're building up to going back 3 days a week. I'm not even remotely looking forward to it. 2 of our team of 6 are vaccine refusers - not for health reasons, and not making any extra effort to avoid risk, in fact one works in a bar as well as our office job. Our air con does an excellent job of spreading the normal winter bugs to every single person in the huge open plan office so needless to say I'm absolutely dreading it.

Communications at the tail end of last week confirmed we are still on course to follow this plan.

I work for the NHS in an odd role that's part office based, part clinical. Office staff (my team included) have all been on a rota to WFH at least part of the week, and we were advised on Friday that no immediate changes will be made.

Never been out of the office. We have mixed departments per room so if one room goes down it takes 1 person from each department not a whole department.

We’ve never been out of it. Twice weekly lateral flows, windows open and wearing masks if not 2m apart.

Been back for months, temperature on way in, hand sanitisers, desks moved to be socially distanced.

I hate WTF, feel so isolated.

No, we aren't. We are staying as we are.

People who couldn't wfh have been in (though usually hybrid) through the whole thing.

I have been in a couple of times

Our MD fully believes there's a risk of winter lockdown, or that many people isolating we can't function. Or even just a bout of covid spreading round the office, that makes people too ill to work.

I fought to get back in a couple of times a week a few months ago, a few of us have been going in to a massive open plan office.

They emailed Friday to say they’d be delaying the return but haven’t said when!

Yes. And I'm very unhappy about it. My team have worked ourselves into the ground and have proved we don't need to be office based... but the few have spoiled it for the many as is always the case and now we all have to go back. Just as the schools finish and the weather picks up, not to mention the infection rates.
Fuming.

My brother was forced back to the office a month or so ago but they're all back working from home now.

The constant absences due to workers being ill with covid, or caring for children partners, or parents ill with covid just made it untenable.

I was forced back 4 months ago.

we were supposed to be, but it's been suspended until the end of August and possibly longer. Some staff are in and a few more have been asked to still return next week but they basically want to keep social distancing up in the office so we can't all fit in.

I'm extremely relieved as I have a long commute and I'm not feeling super happy about that again. I do miss my colleagues but we're effective from home - and in some areas, more effective, which has been unexpected, but interesting (and I know it's the same for other businesses in my sector for this particular element). They do still want us to go back in when they feel it's safe to do so though, but three days a week rather than five. I'm hoping to negotiate that down to two because of the nature of my role.

I should say, I'm not super happy about the commute from a Covid perspective - I don't mind it in general.

No I went to my boss last week and said due to several life changes since March last year I can only continue doing the job if it is from home and flexible in hours. He said yes thankfully as long as I go in and meet him once a quarter for an hour. I'm a bookkeeper so as long as I get everything done every month it shouldn't matter if I work 9-3 or 6-midnight and luckily my boss is happy with that!

I was back 3 days a week last summer and have been back 3-4 days a week since April

DH and I are both still wfh at the moment.

I work from home forever now! Work clearly decided that, since we all apparently just got on with it at home, they'd save themselves the expense of housing us all in offices.