Working From Home Megathread

AndrewJRenko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118470185#Comment_118470185

Unless you have some kind of crystal ball, you have no idea how long the current restrictions are going to last and what policies will be in place if/when restrictions actually end.

bokale

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118470760#Comment_118470760

No

martingriff

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118470760#Comment_118470760

I also have been through this for 2 years as have some I know and they got back in the office for a whole lot of reasons not just to get work done it happens maybe you just have to actually argue for it from both your manager and also HR

A Shaved Duck?

You can pick up desk that folds down in a few seconds for around 150 from the flying elephant company. Ive been WFH full time for 3 years in the spare room and if the space is needed I take the desk apart and put it away.

Seems that the poster currently dominating this thread is looking for problems when the reality is there is always an answer.

Cluedo Monopoly

Anyone got a recommendation for a standing desk? I have a contraption that sits on top of my large desk but I am thinking of investing in a standing desk. Adjustable ideally.

AndrewJRenko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118470872#Comment_118470872

It's really not about me and my negotiation skills. The problem is at policy level. People shouldn't have to go begging cap-in-hand to their manager, exposing private details about their home life and their home situation for the 'privilege' of getting access to a workplace with a desk and a chair.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118472590#Comment_118472590

Oh great, so now people are going to have to pack up their laptop, their monitors, their docking station, their webcam, their mouse, their keyboard, their chargers and everything else on their desk, the pens, the glasses, the papers every evening and put it all back together again each morning? It's great to get such practical tips and ideas round here. I'd be lost without yez.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118469457#Comment_118469457

My costs are less than the average utility costs that I referenced above. I've done about half of the things that you list. I can't afford to do any serious work at present, like more insulation or better heating controls. Why would you assume that I'm helpless on the basis of seeing a utility bill. Have you been tone deaf to the more and more problems arising for many people with utility bills over the past six months or so?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118474737#Comment_118474737

It's really not about me 

That seems to change from post to post. Sometimes its all about you, other times you are a warrior fighting for the rights of the massive anti-WFH group. By massive, I mean 2 people

AndrewJRenko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118474871#Comment_118474871

When have I ever said that it's all about me? I've repeatedly highlight the needs of other people for whom WFH doesn't work for two years here.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118474918#Comment_118474918

And yet nobody has claimed wfh is for everyone or every situation.

But you seem stuck in the land of the outliers in relation to wfh

AndrewJRenko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118475148#Comment_118475148

And yet, WFH is being imposed on everyone in every situation, in the public service at least. The policy documents issued to date take no consideration of those people who can't or don't want to WFH.

I'm stuck in the land of WFH. Get me out of here.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118475244#Comment_118475244

Caused by a global pandemic which has required a lot of changes to how we used to do things, but you seem to float between either blissfully unaware that this is temporary or deliberately claiming its not temporary because we're not out of it yet.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118474918#Comment_118474918

Yes we all know that WFH isn't suitable for all and that for these people there has to be options.

But you're going on about getting compensated for using space in your house for WFH, that is entirely different to having to work like the person in the cartoon above. Don't worry, It'll soon all be over and tou can get back to your beloved office space with the comfy chair and desk, don't be too surprised if many of your colleagues prefer to remain at home (assuming they are allowed).

That office may be a lot quieter than you expect it to be.

AndrewJRenko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118475274#Comment_118475274

How temporary is it? When will we be out of it?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118475559#Comment_118475559

How soon will it all be over?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118475568#Comment_118475568

Probably in a month or so, when it becomes impossible to justify it when the entire population have had it.

bokale

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118475568#Comment_118475568

Outside of random guesses, you won't get an answer to that question on this thread. Recommend you email the CMO and ask him

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118475611#Comment_118475611

I can give you the situation in Wales, which is almost identical to Ireland but two weeks ahead, as for the CMO, he's completely clueless and simply following what others are doing.

[quote] There will be a four stage process to lifting the current alert level two restrictions in Wales, depending on cases remaining low:

• Saturday: Numbers allowed to attend an outdoor event will rise from 50 to 500
• Friday 21 January: Crowds allowed to return to sporting events, paving the way for rugby Six Nations full houses in Cardiff, and no limits on those attending outdoor events
• Friday 28 January: Nightclubs can reopen and hospitality allowed to operate normally, although Covid passes will still be required for large events, plus cinemas, nightclubs and theatres. Working from home no longer a legal requirement
• Thursday 10 February: Wales returns to a three-week review cycle as the country is at alert level zero

"The actions we have taken together have helped us to weather the Omicron storm. The latest data suggests some positive signs that the peak may have passed," Mr Drakeford said. [/quote]

AndrewJRenko

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118475611#Comment_118475611

SO we really need to plan our solutions around the possibility that it might not end for the foreseeable future.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118475913#Comment_118475913

Tis impossible to be sure of any thing but death and taxes

JTMan

What are people's latest expectations of when WFH restrictions will be lifted?

All the government have said is decisions will be made after the NPHET meeting next Thursday, and that restrictions are likely to be lifted from the start of February. With the general expectation that hospitality are first and WFH are near last.

I would guess around mid March, maybe after the double public holiday. I would guess Hospitality on 31 January, then nightclubs, then capacity, then WFH, then social distancing, then masks excluding hospitals. With 2 week gaps between each.

*Assumes there is no new variant.

Potential-Monke

I heard today someone say that by Paddys Day we'll be back in the pub without masks and back in the offices. I doubt it, but you'd never know. Preparing my "No, i'm not coming back into the office" speech.

Szero

I think the risk will still be too high to lift WFH restrictions around Paddys day.

In South Africa, cases which have dropped significantly from a peak, but are still at an elevated level. By mid March we still could have a reasonably high level of cases. Why put staff at risk in the office in an indoor office with an airborne disease when it is not necessary?

The government should prioritise the lifting of hospitality and nightclub restrictions, Lifting WFH restrictions will wait until the risk is WAY lower i.e a wait and see approach.

Also, those with an underlining condition, who have not had a recent covid infection, should not be forced into offices even after restrictions are lifted. i.e. an exception for those people.

There's a huge difference between recommending people WFH and forcing them back to the office, common sense(which is in short supply) needs to be used in such situations. People who don't feel safe in an office environment should be allowed or even encouraged to remain at home. Those who want to go to the office should also be allowed, in reality the restrictions are pointless at this stage of the pandemic when the odds of getting infected are close to 100% for those who have not already been recently infected, regardless of what restrictions you apply.

JTMan

Leo now says the restrictions will be lifted over a "couple of months". With WFH restrictions towards the end of the lifting, this might mean April 1st or thereabouts for the lifting of WFH restrictions. Certainly does not sound like February anyway.

It'll be interesting to see the volume of pushback against employers who try to go back to 100% onsite. After 2 years of mostly WFH for a lot of people, I'd wager there are very few cases that employers can justify for a full return where those roles have functioned without issue as 100% remote.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118485560#Comment_118485560

Had a good read of their site, seem to have done their homework well on the topic. Of note is the results from their employee survey

Potential-Monke

I'd love to see that graph broken down again by role for each person who voted.

PokeHerKing

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118485560#Comment_118485560

Yeah I work for a financial MNC and they're only dying to get us back in unfortunately.

I can only put it down to the second hand car salesman type spoofery the place is built on.

BBC News - Why a wide-scale return to the office is a myth

https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20220113-why-a-wide-scale-return-to-the-office-is-a-myth

Ashley02

I've been working from home for nearly 2 years (since mid March 2020) and I've been in to the office maybe a handful of times and I just don't like it, It's not the same, in ways I feel more isolated in the office than at home. Very little people are in there, with social distancing for the desks, you're lucky if there's 2 other people in your general vicinity so very little interaction can be made. You've to use masks walking around the office and apart from talking to someone in the kitchen, there's very little opportunity to interact. My workplace is working on a rotation system (2 weeks in, 2 weeks out and you hotdesk when you're in), Not sure if that will change over the coming months. They will offer a hybrid option but so far no option on if you want to stay home permanently.

There's no incentive to return to the office for me, I miss what it used to be like and I feel pretty much alone when I'm there so I may as well save the commuting time and stay home for as long as I can. I just find it truly depressing going to the office.