Get Your Butt Back To The Office (1 Viewer)

[belljr]

Ugh, as of June 1 my company will be requiring us to be in-office two days (Tuesdays and Thursdays). My department had agreed to do Mondays and Thursdays, which I got really used to doing over the past couple of years. Monday just seems like a natural day to come in, and allows me to get a lot of "personal" things done on Tuesdays and then have the option of coming in on Wednesdays to catch up on emails/etc. and then again Thursday.

With us moving from Monday to Tuesday, it messes up my schedule and will probably mean I never go in on Wednesdays. Can't see myself going in 3 consecutive days. Ever.

But I guess it's good that I effectively get a 3.5-day weekend during the summers (we get off at 1pm on Fridays during the summer months).

Still, I hate change especially when I had a real good thing going.

I'm confused are you working from home the other days? Why would you go into the office to catch up on emails?

Fwiw, Monday is a nice to day to work from home, makes the weekend a bit more relaxing when don't have to go into the office on Monday.

Everyone wfh Monday. It's why I go in. Plus you throw in the 6 or so holidays and it's 6 less days I have to commute!!!

You don't get to move your wfh day when it falls on a holiday?

Nope. Our schedule is our schedule.

Certain circumstances manager may allow you to wfh for say an emergency or something but most of the time you have to follow your set schedule

So I count it as my commute day anyway!!

So I wfh T and Th.

So I won't be back in the office until next Wednesday..

 

[nirad3]

Ugh, as of June 1 my company will be requiring us to be in-office two days (Tuesdays and Thursdays). My department had agreed to do Mondays and Thursdays, which I got really used to doing over the past couple of years. Monday just seems like a natural day to come in, and allows me to get a lot of "personal" things done on Tuesdays and then have the option of coming in on Wednesdays to catch up on emails/etc. and then again Thursday.

I don't get it. If they are requiring you are in the office two days a week why do they care which days those are? If you are doing Monday & Thursday why would they complain about that? Seems just arbitrary.

The owner of the company really values team and inter-team collaboration, mainly "in person". So he has mandated that those are the days. I'll make do.

 

[Scoresman]

Ugh, as of June 1 my company will be requiring us to be in-office two days (Tuesdays and Thursdays). My department had agreed to do Mondays and Thursdays, which I got really used to doing over the past couple of years. Monday just seems like a natural day to come in, and allows me to get a lot of "personal" things done on Tuesdays and then have the option of coming in on Wednesdays to catch up on emails/etc. and then again Thursday.

I don't get it. If they are requiring you are in the office two days a week why do they care which days those are? If you are doing Monday & Thursday why would they complain about that? Seems just arbitrary.

The owner of the company really values team and inter-team collaboration, mainly "in person". So he has mandated that those are the days. I'll make do.

This most likely translates to "The owner of the company has to justify a multi year office space lease and says BS things like "we want to see your faces" or "I value inter-team collaboration"

 

[WVU Alum]

We are local government and had to limit WFH days to justify the amount of office space we have, as space is an issue. That is the only reason we don't allow anyone to WFH more than two days a week.

 

[acarey50]

Our team is at 2 days per week - we support a very large territory and our team is spread out over multiple work locations for their "home" location.

1 day is Wednesday and is supposed to be at your "home" location. The other day is flexible and can be at any location - or if we have all hands ,etc., that counts.

Like others in non-blue collar jobs, most of my time is either focusing on work such as programming dashboards, analyzing data, etc. or on meetings that are primarily on Teams.

Other groups that went up to 2-3 days are already scaling back to 1 day. I don't mind going in as needed, but for the most part it is adding minimal to no value to my ability to do my job.

 

[Kanil]

The company I work for is a large government contractor (about 30k employees). During covid we sold most of our office spaces around the country and are currently sitting at less than a third of what we previously had. In my specific division (about 3k people) there are less than 30 people that work in an office and the rest WFH. The only people from our division who work in an office are the people who HAVE to be in office because they physically have to put hands on something (e.g. the IT team that repairs broken computers). Our overhead costs have plummeted and morale has never been better.

 

[Max Power]

Work from the office people should get a raise!

 

[beer 30]

Work from the office people should get a raise!

From your lips to God's ears

 

[nirad3]

Ugh, as of June 1 my company will be requiring us to be in-office two days (Tuesdays and Thursdays). My department had agreed to do Mondays and Thursdays, which I got really used to doing over the past couple of years. Monday just seems like a natural day to come in, and allows me to get a lot of "personal" things done on Tuesdays and then have the option of coming in on Wednesdays to catch up on emails/etc. and then again Thursday.

I don't get it. If they are requiring you are in the office two days a week why do they care which days those are? If you are doing Monday & Thursday why would they complain about that? Seems just arbitrary.

The owner of the company really values team and inter-team collaboration, mainly "in person". So he has mandated that those are the days. I'll make do.

This most likely translates to "The owner of the company has to justify a multi year office space lease and says BS things like "we want to see your faces" or "I value inter-team collaboration"

We own the building. We have monthly, all hands on deck, company meetings on the first Thursday of the month so those days are musts. Most people also came in on Tuesdays too. My team just selected Monday, and it was working out well. Only benefit will be that they provide us with lunch on Tuesdays so I will save like $15 a week on lunch (unless what they get is "meh").

 

[coopersdad]

We have been WFH 2 days a week since we came back from Covid (Jan 2021), but directive came down from corporate that they want us to be in the office to "collaberate" and have face time.

Our supply chain is right down the hall from me.........they have been in the office 4 days a week for the past 2 years, but I'm telling you, they spend way more time talking than working.................and they are the "attendance" checkers who drive me nuts. If my department is getting their job done, I don't care if it is done at 9am, 9pm or while they are sitting on the toilet.

So starting the end of June we will be working Tu/W/Th in the office. Boss says that we can adjust if needed and as necessary...........leaving early / etc. However, 2 days after this message was delivered we got another email saying that the enire shared services area (Credit, Tax, General Accounting, Legal, etc) will be closing their office and going to a total WFH model.

I work for a large multi brand company where corporate is in one state w/ the largest brand, and the remainder of the brands are located where they were when purchased.

They are really good at making decisions that work for them and the major brand, but the other 90% of the company is like "WTH".

 

[Snotbubbles]

For those of you who are married or have children under the age of 18 living at home, I'm not sure this is going to be a unique problem but we are drowning at my house

-We are running out of space and also my wife is getting hostile of late whenever I make noise on my side of the home/office during the day. She cannot handle any outside noise and she has a lot of Zoom type calls throughout the day but there is an even larger problem with working from home 80% of the time...

-Straightening up/Cleaning up has become an eye sore to say the least. I walked in this morning after some morning appointments and go into the kitchen and realize it looks like a bomb went off inside there. I'm exaggerating of course but not much. I broke down last month and finally hired a new house cleaner, my wife drove the last one away after 4 full years here. Everything was OK until my wife started working from home and I knew it was going to be an issue.

It's starting to put a strain on our marriage IMHO and I can't say much or else we start getting into a tug of war and then we both feel lousy a little while later

-Another example is just the clothes situation...i can do all the laundry in the world, fold it and even set it on my wife's pillow but somehow the clothes do not find their way into her many chests of drawers. The walk in-closet that is bigger than some studio apartments, you can't even barely get the door open to it.

We have 2/2 with a Den/Office, 1600+ sq ft, should be plenty of room
I should have never let her talk me into closing up the storage unit. I know it's painful to shell out $200 a month on things you likely should just throw away or not have in boxes but believe me this is far worse. I want to rent a U-Haul and load it up with everything not currently being used and open a new storage unit, the closets in here are overflowing.

-I love my wife and it's totally not her fault. They have made it almost impossible to come into the offices, all but encouraging folks to work full time from home. If you can believe it, my wife has staff that complain about not being able to come into the offices.

I answered my own issues here, I need to get a lot of junk/stuff out of here and try to get my wife some help.
...but just to share, I bought my wife a Bellicon trampoline from Germany and I thought it would be excellent inside the condo since she doesn't get out much, she can just bounce for 5-10 minutes and get the blood circulating...it's used as more of a coffee table in her office, I just want to cry.

I feel like you are speaking my language here. WFH is great when I'm there alone. When the wife and kids are home, it's a terrible experience.

 

[massraider]

Huge Midtown office building sells at auction for a 97% discount after receiving just 1 bid

The half-block behemoth at 135 W. 50th St., which sold for $332 million in 2006, garnered just $8.5 million at auction this week.

nypost.com

8.5 million for a 23 story building in midtown.

I know someone who two years ago paid 10 mil for a two story building in the Lower East Side.

 

[the moops]

Huge Midtown office building sells at auction for a 97% discount after receiving just 1 bid

The half-block behemoth at 135 W. 50th St., which sold for $332 million in 2006, garnered just $8.5 million at auction this week.

nypost.com

8.5 million for a 23 story building in midtown.

I know someone who two years ago paid 10 mil for a two story building in the Lower East Side.

And, most significantly, the building does not come with the land beneath it. That was sold by the seller to a company called Safehold for $285 million in 2019, the Real Deal reported, arguing that the land sale’s profits mean the building’s discounted sale should be considered much less of a loss.

 

[eoMMan]

If you have a WFH job, appreciate it and really think about what it allows you to do (freedom) versus an in office position.

I started a 100% in office job (day 2 now) and I miss my WFH job, even with the aspects of that job that annoyed me.

WFH jobs rock.

 

[dutch]

If you have a WFH job, appreciate it and really think about what it allows you to do (freedom) versus an in office position.

I started a 100% in office job (day 2 now) and I miss my WFH job, even with the aspects of that job that annoyed me.

WFH jobs rock.

But you missed out on all that team building and interactive synergy working from home. Now you can chat with Chet from accounting everyday while getting your cup-o-joe and you won't miss out on the birthday cake from the bashes thrown together by the biddie club. Good times ahead, my friend!

 

[nirad3]

If you have a WFH job, appreciate it and really think about what it allows you to do (freedom) versus an in office position.

I started a 100% in office job (day 2 now) and I miss my WFH job, even with the aspects of that job that annoyed me.

WFH jobs rock.

I can't even entertain a full in-office gig anymore. I heard from my boss that the higher-ups here are considering going to a 3-day in-office thing, and that would be absolutely horrible.

I can barely sit at my office for a full 8-hour workday these days. I get in around 8:30am and I am absolutely, positively ready to go by 2:30pm. Most of my emails come from the CST so my inbox slows down right around then anyways. And unfortunately, my boss says that the higher-ups are being super sticklers about "butts in seats" for a full day on the two days a week we are supposed to be in-office.

 

[Harry Manback]

If you have a WFH job, appreciate it and really think about what it allows you to do (freedom) versus an in office position.

I started a 100% in office job (day 2 now) and I miss my WFH job, even with the aspects of that job that annoyed me.

WFH jobs rock.

I can't even entertain a full in-office gig anymore. I heard from my boss that the higher-ups here are considering going to a 3-day in-office thing, and that would be absolutely horrible.

I can barely sit at my office for a full 8-hour workday these days. I get in around 8:30am and I am absolutely, positively ready to go by 2:30pm. Most of my emails come from the CST so my inbox slows down right around then anyways. And unfortunately, my boss says that the higher-ups are being super sticklers about "butts in seats" for a full day on the two days a week we are supposed to be in-office.

We're moving from 2 days in office to 3 next week. People want to riot.

 

[Scoresman]

This is just executives trying to justify the office space contracts they are in, right? I mean, nobody actually believes that mandating "butts in seats" does anything productivity-wise, right?

 

[nirad3]

This is just executives trying to justify the office space contracts they are in, right? I mean, nobody actually believes that mandating "butts in seats" does anything productivity-wise, right?

We own our standalone building. Our executive staff aren't old cronies either.

 

[Instinctive]

This is just executives trying to justify the office space contracts they are in, right? I mean, nobody actually believes that mandating "butts in seats" does anything productivity-wise, right?

No.

It's a huge oversimplification. For example - my firm has identified a clear trend; if you're doing a job you already know how to do, you can basically always be fully remote, even if you're working as a team. However, if you're trying to learn the job (say, you're a first or second year associate, or you're a new team leader, or you're a new partner), it is significantly slower and more high risk that you don't succeed if remote.

I can imagine something similar is true in many other roles.

 

[the moops]

When I work at home I can get like a whole days work done before noon, eat lunch, take a nap, go for a bike ride, check in on a few emails around 330 then call it a day. I can't accomplish all that in the office

 

[nirad3]

When I work at home I can get like a whole days work done before noon, eat lunch, take a nap, go for a bike ride, check in on a few emails around 330 then call it a day. I can't accomplish all that in the office

Exactly. And for me, I have two people in my department that are fully remote (live/work out of area). You think their "butts are in their seats" from 8-5 every day? No chance.

 

[Scoresman]

This is just executives trying to justify the office space contracts they are in, right? I mean, nobody actually believes that mandating "butts in seats" does anything productivity-wise, right?

No.

It's a huge oversimplification. For example - my firm has identified a clear trend; if you're doing a job you already know how to do, you can basically always be fully remote, even if you're working as a team. However, if you're trying to learn the job (say, you're a first or second year associate, or you're a new team leader, or you're a new partner), it is significantly slower and more high risk that you don't succeed if remote.

I can imagine something similar is true in many other roles.

Meh, I've been trained on two specific roles since COVID and it went just fine. I know this might vary based on the type of work, but I'm speaking more to the blanket "butts in seats" mandates. Sure, there are situations where even I have to go in every now and then, but saying everyone has to go in without looking at individual roles is just lazy and is a bad look these days.

 

[Runkle]

When I work at home I can get like a whole days work done before noon, eat lunch, take a nap, go for a bike ride, check in on a few emails around 330 then call it a day. I can't accomplish all that in the office

Exactly. And for me, I have two people in my department that are fully remote (live/work out of area). You think their "butts are in their seats" from 8-5 every day? No chance.

My entire department manages remote staffs at distant locations. I have a few teams in NYC, a few teams in Toronto, a few teams in Vancouver, and some spread out in random offices all over Los Angeles county. There is zero reason for us to all be physically in our office in Burbank to monitor those remote teams, but, our corporate boss is known as one of the most clueless idiots in the Fortune 500, so, here we are.

 

[Instinctive]

This is just executives trying to justify the office space contracts they are in, right? I mean, nobody actually believes that mandating "butts in seats" does anything productivity-wise, right?

No.

It's a huge oversimplification. For example - my firm has identified a clear trend; if you're doing a job you already know how to do, you can basically always be fully remote, even if you're working as a team. However, if you're trying to learn the job (say, you're a first or second year associate, or you're a new team leader, or you're a new partner), it is significantly slower and more high risk that you don't succeed if remote.

I can imagine something similar is true in many other roles.

Meh, I've been trained on two specific roles since COVID and it went just fine. I know this might vary based on the type of work, but I'm speaking more to the blanket "butts in seats" mandates. Sure, there are situations where even I have to go in every now and then, but saying everyone has to go in without looking at individual roles is just lazy and is a bad look these days.

Yeah I mean a blanket mandate to go in is about as lazy and bad as saying nobody believes it does anything as a blanket statement.

 

[belljr]

I'm going into the office tomorrow to connect to a meeting from 9-11 on Teams....

Then in the afternoon I'll will connect to our servers remotely that are in a different building to do my work just like I would if I was home.....heavy sigh

 

[bigbottom]

If you have a WFH job, appreciate it and really think about what it allows you to do (freedom) versus an in office position.

I started a 100% in office job (day 2 now) and I miss my WFH job, even with the aspects of that job that annoyed me.

WFH jobs rock.

But you missed out on all that team building and interactive synergy working from home. Now you can chat with Chet from accounting everyday while getting your cup-o-joe and you won't miss out on the birthday cake from the bashes thrown together by the biddie club. Good times ahead, my friend!

I acknowledge the dripping sarcasm, but my son just started his first career job post-college and I am thrilled that it is not a remote work job. A number of his friends have started remote jobs and most (though not all) of them are either miserable or disengaged. My son absolutely loves the personal interaction he is getting with co-workers and superiors. He called to tell me about how a senior level manger grabbed him one afternoon and spent an hour with him walking the worksite and talking about the business. Those sorts of organic opportunities with entry level employees rarely happen on line.

But even better, he’s only in the office maybe one day a week. The rest of his time is at a job site as he is working in the construction industry. He is loving that kind of workplace. He would probably hate cubicle life.

For those further along in their careers, I totally get it. But for those just entering the workforce, there are very real tradeoffs from fully remote jobs.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

This is just executives trying to justify the office space contracts they are in, right? I mean, nobody actually believes that mandating "butts in seats" does anything productivity-wise, right?

Some of it is that. Some of it is that the people who rise to the C-suite tend to be very social people and enjoy the office atmosphere much more than the average worker.

 

[the moops]

When I work at home I can get like a whole days work done before noon, eat lunch, take a nap, go for a bike ride, check in on a few emails around 330 then call it a day. I can't accomplish all that in the office

Exactly. And for me, I have two people in my department that are fully remote (live/work out of area). You think their "butts are in their seats" from 8-5 every day? No chance.

Is this a problem? Them not being in their seats 8-5?

 

[the moops]

When I work at home I can get like a whole days work done before noon, eat lunch, take a nap, go for a bike ride, check in on a few emails around 330 then call it a day. I can't accomplish all that in the office

Exactly. And for me, I have two people in my department that are fully remote (live/work out of area). You think their "butts are in their seats" from 8-5 every day? No chance.

Is this a problem? Them not being in their seats 8-5?

Also 8-5 is 9 hours. Too long of a day

 

[nirad3]

When I work at home I can get like a whole days work done before noon, eat lunch, take a nap, go for a bike ride, check in on a few emails around 330 then call it a day. I can't accomplish all that in the office

Exactly. And for me, I have two people in my department that are fully remote (live/work out of area). You think their "butts are in their seats" from 8-5 every day? No chance.

Is this a problem? Them not being in their seats 8-5?

Never said it was; quite the contrary actually. Things have "changed" post-COVID, I think we can all agree. I was merely trying to point out that having ME required to be "butt in seat" from 8-5 twice a week is a little unfair when my peers aren't tethered.

 

[Alex P Keaton]

This is just executives trying to justify the office space contracts they are in, right? I mean, nobody actually believes that mandating "butts in seats" does anything productivity-wise, right?

Some of it is that. Some of it is that the people who rise to the C-suite tend to be very social people and enjoy the office atmosphere much more than the average worker.

Also harder for executives to manipulate and gaslight the troops consistently when they aren’t in person, held captive every day.

 

[Alex P Keaton]

When I work at home I can get like a whole days work done before noon, eat lunch, take a nap, go for a bike ride, check in on a few emails around 330 then call it a day. I can't accomplish all that in the office

If you can get a whole day’s work done before noon, then hey, perhaps it is time to redefine the term “whole day’s work.”

 

[the moops]

When I work at home I can get like a whole days work done before noon, eat lunch, take a nap, go for a bike ride, check in on a few emails around 330 then call it a day. I can't accomplish all that in the office

Exactly. And for me, I have two people in my department that are fully remote (live/work out of area). You think their "butts are in their seats" from 8-5 every day? No chance.

Is this a problem? Them not being in their seats 8-5?

Never said it was; quite the contrary actually. Things have "changed" post-COVID, I think we can all agree. I was merely trying to point out that having ME required to be "butt in seat" from 8-5 twice a week is a little unfair when my peers aren't tethered.

Yea sorry wasn't trying to insinuate you had said that. Just was asking the question.

 

[CletiusMaximus]

When I work at home I can get like a whole days work done before noon, eat lunch, take a nap, go for a bike ride, check in on a few emails around 330 then call it a day. I can't accomplish all that in the office

If you can get a whole day’s work done before noon, then hey, perhaps it is time to redefine the term “whole day’s work.”

I had the same reaction to Moops’ post, understanding every role is different. I saw a guy on twitter last year advocating for WFH by saying he was able to build a deck on his house, save on child care and train for a marathon because of WFH. Obviously a small business owner or mid level team manager is going to read that and have the opposite reaction.

 

[Scoresman]

When I work at home I can get like a whole days work done before noon, eat lunch, take a nap, go for a bike ride, check in on a few emails around 330 then call it a day. I can't accomplish all that in the office

If you can get a whole day’s work done before noon, then hey, perhaps it is time to redefine the term “whole day’s work.”

I'm in the same boat, although there are some days where it's busier. But a lot of days I finish early, but stay online available on Teams.

It's more like "I can finish the job they hired and paid me for by Noon". If they want to add more work, they can and should increase salary to match.

 

[Gally]

But even better, he’s only in the office maybe one day a week. The rest of his time is at a job site as he is working in the construction industry. He is loving that kind of workplace. He would probably hate cubicle life.

This isn't really the kind of job that WFH is an option for. Kind of an apples to oranges comparison for this discussion.

 

[Alex P Keaton]

When I work at home I can get like a whole days work done before noon, eat lunch, take a nap, go for a bike ride, check in on a few emails around 330 then call it a day. I can't accomplish all that in the office

If you can get a whole day’s work done before noon, then hey, perhaps it is time to redefine the term “whole day’s work.”

I'm in the same boat, although there are some days where it's busier. But a lot of days I finish early, but stay online available on Teams.

It's more like "I can finish the job they hired and paid me for by Noon". If they want to add more work, they can and should increase salary to match.

I totally get that. And definitely am not implying otherwise for moops or anyone else in that situation.

 

[bigbottom]

But even better, he’s only in the office maybe one day a week. The rest of his time is at a job site as he is working in the construction industry. He is loving that kind of workplace. He would probably hate cubicle life.

This isn't really the kind of job that WFH is an option for. Kind of an apples to oranges comparison for this discussion.

My point, poorly expressed, was that he could easily have ended up with a WFH job (like a number of his peers) or a job that lends itself to WFH and I’m really glad he didn’t for the reasons expressed in my post.

 

[Scoresman]

The thing is, when I was in the office I also pretty much finished by Noon, but the work was spread out over the course of the day in between talking to co-workers, getting coffee, longer lunches, and other distractions. But in the case of WFH, if you replace those distractions with things like doing my laundry or building a deck, suddenly the attitude is lets give them more work to do.

 

[bigbottom]

When I work at home I can get like a whole days work done before noon, eat lunch, take a nap, go for a bike ride, check in on a few emails around 330 then call it a day. I can't accomplish all that in the office

If you can get a whole day’s work done before noon, then hey, perhaps it is time to redefine the term “whole day’s work.”

I had the same reaction to Moops’ post, understanding every role is different. I saw a guy on twitter last year advocating for WFH by saying he was able to build a deck on his house, save on child care and train for a marathon because of WFH. Obviously a small business owner or mid level team manager is going to read that and have the opposite reaction.

I appreciate the honesty frankly. I hear people argue semi-frequently that workers are more productive when WFH, when what they mean is that they are more efficient. By and large, most people aren’t working longer hours and/or doing more work. Rather, they are completing the same amount of work more efficiently, which then allows for a better work-life balance. Which as a general matter is just fine for me as a business leader (setting aside the other benefits of an in person work culture). I want people to have a work life balance.

 

[HomerSimpson]

If you have a WFH job, appreciate it and really think about what it allows you to do (freedom) versus an in office position.

I started a 100% in office job (day 2 now) and I miss my WFH job, even with the aspects of that job that annoyed me.

WFH jobs rock.

But you missed out on all that team building and interactive synergy working from home. Now you can chat with Chet from accounting everyday while getting your cup-o-joe and you won't miss out on the birthday cake from the bashes thrown together by the biddie club. Good times ahead, my friend!

Where is the laughy emoji, well done.

 

[AAABatteries]

But even better, he’s only in the office maybe one day a week. The rest of his time is at a job site as he is working in the construction industry. He is loving that kind of workplace. He would probably hate cubicle life.

This isn't really the kind of job that WFH is an option for. Kind of an apples to oranges comparison for this discussion.

My point, poorly expressed, was that he could easily have ended up with a WFH job (like a number of his peers) or a job that lends itself to WFH and I’m really glad he didn’t for the reasons expressed in my post.

As big of a proponent of WFH that I am, I'm also glad that my oldest two will be at a job - sales manager and nurse. I think it will be good for them to continue to develop their interpersonal skills and to network.

 

[offdee]

This is also a perfect time for companies to dictate employees back to the office because the job market is absolutely terrible right now. They treat it like a silent layoff knowing some will quit because of it…and maybe that’s their goal to cut expenses/salaries. And if they do need to replace those positions there’s hundreds of highly qualified unemployed people waiting and ready to fill the role.

 

[bigbottom]

This is also a perfect time for companies to dictate employees back to the office because the job market is absolutely terrible right now. They treat it like a silent layoff knowing some will quit because of it…and maybe that’s their goal to cut expenses/salaries. And if they do need to replace those positions there’s hundreds of highly qualified unemployed people waiting and ready to fill the role.

This WSJ article suggests that fully WFH workers were 35% more likely to be laid off by companies, which seems somewhat counterintuitive given that they consume less overhead, but I guess proximity bias is a thing.

Another issue to consider is that fully WFH arrangements broaden the labor pool for open positions, and gives companies the opportunity to reduce compensation by hiring employees in low cost of living areas. So if you’re an AP Clerk living in Los Angeles and working remotely, you might see your job go to someone in rural Arkansas (or India) for half the pay. Not trying to be a WFH opponent or anything but there are some unintended consequences (or perhaps intended from the company standpoint) if WFH becomes mainstreamed. These may be issues that won’t affect anyone in this thread, but they definitely could affect our kids who are early in their careers.

 

[Terpman22]

If you have a WFH job, appreciate it and really think about what it allows you to do (freedom) versus an in office position.

I started a 100% in office job (day 2 now) and I miss my WFH job, even with the aspects of that job that annoyed me.

WFH jobs rock.

Yeah man. Unless I change jobs or some crazy stuff happens, the fact that they closed our local branch means I'm working from home in perpetuity. The wife and I work for the same company (I'm out in the garage now which has helped immensely although the SoCal Heat wave these last few days might have made me lose 10 lbs in sweat). Married, older, wiser (I think) and with a kid now. I have no reason to want to interact in office with co workers, many of which are 10+ years younger than me. I cherish the job and the set up. Never gonna have to physically sign one of those cards that get sent around or sing happy birthday to a co worker ever again!

 

[Terpman22]

When I work at home I can get like a whole days work done before noon, eat lunch, take a nap, go for a bike ride, check in on a few emails around 330 then call it a day. I can't accomplish all that in the office

If you can get a whole day’s work done before noon, then hey, perhaps it is time to redefine the term “whole day’s work.”

I disagree. If you are efficient and great at the job and you get an "average day's work" in less than a day, you should not be penalized b/c you are faster/better/smarter/more efficient/whatever than the rest. I always hate this aspect of office work "Hey good Job Steve! Since you are done already, can you help out Brett?"

Nah....Brett needs to learn on his own how to be better.

 

[bigbottom]

When I work at home I can get like a whole days work done before noon, eat lunch, take a nap, go for a bike ride, check in on a few emails around 330 then call it a day. I can't accomplish all that in the office

If you can get a whole day’s work done before noon, then hey, perhaps it is time to redefine the term “whole day’s work.”

I disagree. If you are efficient and great at the job and you get an "average day's work" in less than a day, you should not be penalized b/c you are faster/better/smarter/more efficient/whatever than the rest. I always hate this aspect of office work "Hey good Job Steve! Since you are done already, can you help out Brett?"

Nah....Brett needs to learn on his own how to be better.

Well, there’s the old adage that the reward for good work is more work.

 

[Harry Manback]

This is also a perfect time for companies to dictate employees back to the office because the job market is absolutely terrible right now. They treat it like a silent layoff knowing some will quit because of it…and maybe that’s their goal to cut expenses/salaries. And if they do need to replace those positions there’s hundreds of highly qualified unemployed people waiting and ready to fill the role.

This WSJ article suggests that fully WFH workers were 35% more likely to be laid off by companies, which seems somewhat counterintuitive given that they consume less overhead, but I guess proximity bias is a thing.

Another issue to consider is that fully WFH arrangements broaden the labor pool for open positions, and gives companies the opportunity to reduce compensation by hiring employees in low cost of living areas. So if you’re an AP Clerk living in Los Angeles and working remotely, you might see your job go to someone in rural Arkansas (or India) for half the pay. Not trying to be a WFH opponent or anything but there are some unintended consequences (or perhaps intended from the company standpoint) if WFH becomes mainstreamed. These may be issues that won’t affect anyone in this thread, but they definitely could affect our kids who are early in their careers.

Yeah this part always bugged me and is why I am all for having to come in a few days a week.

The flip is someone getting paid a NYC rate but living in Arkansas, which seems...unfair. There are definite benefits to going in office, but I think 1-2 days a week is a sweet spot.

 

[Desert_Power]

When I work at home I can get like a whole days work done before noon, eat lunch, take a nap, go for a bike ride, check in on a few emails around 330 then call it a day. I can't accomplish all that in the office

If you can get a whole day’s work done before noon, then hey, perhaps it is time to redefine the term “whole day’s work.”

I'm in the same boat, although there are some days where it's busier. But a lot of days I finish early, but stay online available on Teams.

It's more like "I can finish the job they hired and paid me for by Noon". If they want to add more work, they can and should increase salary to match.

The job that I've had the last three months have involved managing a team that produces a lot of daily reporting. Some days we have issues with data or something else that cause these to take the full day. Without issues, we can pretty much get all of this out of the door by around noon-1. A couple of the guys will just take their scooters home and WFH all afternoon on these quiet days. I know they are not doing very much unless I'm asking them for specific work.

It doesn't bother me much, but it makes it harder for them to advance. The point I make to them is that I am happy to help cover for them and their work/life balance but making progress on the non-daily work as well as networking with other parts of the department that sit here are still important to their advancement. Hard to tell which path they want to go down.