Wfh - they can dictate when surely?

[ahemfem]

I have a manger who I think has been a bit too forgiving of things and now has put their foot down.

They've said right, you're meant to come in the office 50% of the time and you aren't. (To everyone) so now they've said I want you all in on Monday and Friday and pick one other day a fortnight that you want to come in. I think that's really fair but there's other people kicking RIGHT OFF and complaining. Am I right in thinking that even if the policy just says 50% of time in the office the manager is still able to dictate when that is? They've given a month's notice too which seems more than fair.

I think that's a really dumb and lame attitude and should be left firmly in the past.

The poster isn't talking about unfeasible things like caring for a young child all day while WFH, she is talking about being present in the home while a child old enough to walk home alone comes home. That child will be more than capable of sorting themselves out for an hour or so until OP finishes.

Attitudes like yours are exactly why parents, and in the vast majority of cases women, suffer and are held back in the workplace. Because people would rather them limit their options and reduce their progress and earning potential for the soul moral panic that, God forbid, WFH may actually assist their work life balance and make both their career and home life manageable.

Nope, not your place - but I’m always amazed (but not surprised) at the poor quality of managers who can only manage their teams if they’re sitting a few feet away from them.

Ohshitiveturnedintomymother
"I have no option to WFH as I’m in education so the whole concept is baffling to me."

So you've never lesson planned at home instead of your workplace? Or taken work home to mark? You might not be able to teach from home but the concept really can't be baffling, surely.

I’m the same. Commute is easier and I like it as a way to end the week. Similarly I have colleagues who like to be in on a Monday - similarly quiet commute - and sets them up for the week. And when there is a group of you doing it, it is throughly pleasant.

I'll tell you, some will be a complete pain in the arse for those of us who are at home for whatever reasons. Yapping and whining and piddling in communal areas because walk time hasn't been factored in by their owners.

Happened after COVID so it's nothing new. Fortunately there are responsible owners so life will probably continue as usual.

Yeah. Tbh I think they tried but people were playing the system. Always some excuse not to come in and then it got to be so frequent there's 4 of them who've ruined it for everyone else and they are the biggest moaners!

I read your post. Read mine. They are choosing to manage it by having people sit in front of them rather than put in place other structures.

The workforce have proven themselves to be slackers and now they are paying the price. Some people just can’t have nice things.

Yeah that's the issue if they'd stuck to it they would have had more freedom but they can't even see that what they had was good.

I work for a public sector organisation and we've been asked to go in 2 days a week but hardly anyone does. The moaning and whining about it does my head in, it's only 2 bloody days out of 5 days and our contracrt is for hybrid working. We have a team day once every 6 to 8 weeks and there's colleagues who don't even bother to turn up for that. Middle managers in my team are quite happy working from home on Teams calls with their cameras off half the time so don't bother to enforce it.

Read my post again. If they had been effective managers well before now they wouldn’t have allowed things to get to this point. Their teams would have been working productively from any location. Poor managers get the teams they deserve.

Always some excuse not to come in and then it got to be so frequent there's 4 of them who've ruined it for everyone else and they are the biggest moaners!

Is it worth irritating other workers who have been following the rules? Why aren't just these 4 being told to come in Monday & Friday? If they couldn't/didn't enforce the 3 days a week before, how are they planning on enforcing it now?

If I'd been happily doing tues-thurs, and not slacking on Monday or Friday, I'd be irritated at being included in a policy that is clearly being introduced as a punishment.

We managed that by having out persistent offenders on 100% present. 2 quit, one improved and is now allowed to WFH on Fridays. We have 3 currently on 100% office. One will resign soon (I hope) and one is on a performance plan ad at be managed out. The other decided to embrace office life and moved closer to the office.

I'm often less productive in the office but being there "greases the wheels" and I quite enjoy the chats in the kitchen etc.

Yeah it's a bit annoying but hey ho

Of course I have. As has every teacher in the world.

what we also do is be present at our designated work space (int he OP’s case, the office) for all directed hours. Do you think teachers poo home to put the washing on and collect children in free periods or between lessons?
work we take home is on top of the work we do at work.

Marking is part of a teachers job though, that aspect they can choose to do from home or choose to do at school, the teaching aspect of a teachers jobs they can only do at school.

different jobs have the ability to be able to work different amounts from home, some like a retail worker or a carer you can’t work from home at all. Other jobs like IT or call centre can be done almost exclusively from home if thst is the employers choice. Some like a teacher you can do some from home and some at school although you have to be at school in set hours, not sure why you can’t understand the concept.

I don’t think the better option is to ostracise your entire workforce to attempt to performance manage a minority. Deal with the slackers if that’s the issue, don’t punish everyone and tar them all with the same brush.

This, 100%.
As @Brefugee says has been done at her workplace.