Working From Home Megathread

inthenip

GDK_11 wrote: »

In a nutshell this sums it up very well, if your employer tells you to go back to the office then basically you go. I’ve seen a few posts from people stating they won’t go even once COVID has gone and will be handing in their notice if forced to do so, without being rude unless you’re an absolute superstar and indispensable to the organisation they won’t really care, there will sadly be plenty of people out of work happy to take the role on.

I think people will have the conversation with their boss about continuing to work from home at least a day or two a week and if they don't accomadate them they will put their C.V out on the market.

Big difference to refusing to go back with the virus rampant than not going back at all. They do pay your wages.

c68zapdsm5i1ru

Chairman Meow wrote: »

I agree with you fully aside from this. Honestly, once the gov says its fine for everyone to go back to the office, employers will tell us to go back and thats it. I know, im in that situation. We were WFH from march to July 20th with no problems. The on the 20th our office decided its time to get everyone back, covid bedamned. Even recently when the govt advised people to WFH wherever possible, our office just said "we dont see any issues arising so keep coming in to the office". I protested and was politely told i could continue to WFH as much as i liked as long as i got someone to cover for me in the office mon - fri 9-5. So i had no choice as there is no one to cover for me, it was a nice way of them telling me to suck it and get back in the office basically. Aside from the big tech companies that can afford to send their employees home for the forseeable, everyone else is too engrained in office culture and spending too much money on rent to let the offices sit idle and not force us peons to come in and work. Tho hopefully ill be able to keep a mix of WFH & Office at least, as im only doing 3 days in the office currently.

But quite a few companies have already said they'll be downsizing their office space and asking staff to work from home a few days a week. These companies will be the ones attracting the cream of the crop if other companies don't follow suit. So they will. The public and civil service will also need to be seen as attractive employers so will also have to follow.
I already know of many people who have said they will be pushing for more flexibility to work from home in the future. If the Labour market start lobbying for this, then employers are going to be under huge pressure.

Kilboor

average_runner wrote: »

Really, Economy will just change and move, like it did from late 90's to early 00's


You don't seem to be too worried the way pubs and coffee shops shutdown in towns during the last 10 years as everyone moved to Dublin?


How did the economy survive in the early 00's when most people went home at the weekends and dublin was a ghost town?

You never asked me was I? Pubs, post offices and coffee shops closing down in smaller towns has had wide ranging economic and social impacts on those areas.
Working from home isn't going to fix any of those.

GDK_11

inthenip wrote: »

I think people will have the conversation with their boss about continuing to work from home at least a day or two a week and if they don't accomadate them they will put their C.V out on the market.

Big difference to refusing to go back with the virus rampant than not going back at all. They do pay your wages.

I think most organisations will be reasonable and allow a mix of office work and WFH but like you say they pay our wages and if you want to be paid you will have to accept their decision.

average_runner

Kilboor wrote: »

I travelled 10 minutes to work, to walk was 50 minutes. Not everyone is stuck commuting in Dublin every day.

I'm not asking for people to do this again I'm saying we don't have a solution for all those services lost. It's extremely dangerous for everyone

Those people can keep the city going. I am going to look after my local area. It was neglected enough. Shops already hired people who used to worked in the city.

hetuzozaho

GDK_11 wrote: »

In a nutshell this sums it up very well, if your employer tells you to go back to the office then basically you go. I’ve seen a few posts from people stating they won’t go even once COVID has gone and will be handing in their notice if forced to do so, without being rude unless you’re an absolute superstar and indispensable to the organisation they won’t really care, there will sadly be plenty of people out of work happy to take the role on.

It depends on the industry I guess. In IT it's difficult to get good developers, there isn't queues of them ready to take up jobs.

keane2097

Naos wrote: »

I understand that services will be impacted but if you actually stop and think about what you're saying...

You want people who can currently doing a job perfectly fine from home to go back to 2 hour commutes and spend money on petrol/tolls/public transport/cafes/office attire in order to prop up a few businesses hours from where they live.

It would be akin to having a nail in your foot and every week, you have to call a taxi to bring you to a doctor, so they can give you a prescription in order to buy painkillers from a chemist and instead of just removing the nail, we say "Sorry but you need to keep the nail in your foot or else the taxi, doctor & chemist will go out of business".

It turns out all the stuff you hear about Dublin subsidising the rest of the country was actually the wrong way round and we had to force people who didn't want to be there to turn up and buy sandwiches and packets of crisps to keep it afloat.

GDK_11

Shawn Sparse Sunstroke wrote: »

But quite a few companies have already said they'll be downsizing their office space and asking staff to work from home a few days a week. These companies will be the ones attracting the cream of the crop if other companies don't follow suit. So they will. The public and civil service will also need to be seen as attractive employers so will also have to follow.
I already know of many people who have said they will be pushing for more flexibility to work from home in the future. If the Labour market start lobbying for this, then employers are going to be under huge pressure.

All true and in full employment times employees hold the power, once this is all over it will be an employers market and if they want people to work in the office then people will have to do it.

I am most definitely in favour of more flexible work for people but for a start the government will not be encouraging employers to do this full time, the economy would tank even further if that’s possible!

average_runner

keane2097 wrote: »

It turns out all the stuff you hear about Dublin subsidising the rest of the country was actually the wrong way round and we had to force people who didn't want to be there to turn up and buy sandwiches and packets of crisps to keep it afloat.

I think the rip off prices and bad attitudes will come back to haunt the city.

hetuzozaho

GDK_11 wrote: »

I am most definitely in favour of more flexible work for people but for a start the government will not be encouraging employers to do this full time, the economy would tank even further if that’s possible!

What do you mean by full time?

The government have already being encouraging working from home into the future:

https://twitter.com/LeoVaradkar/status/1281154705457123328

c68zapdsm5i1ru

GDK_11 wrote: »

All true and in full employment times employees hold the power, once this is all over it will be an employers market and if they want people to work in the office then people will have to do it.

I am most definitely in favour of more flexible work for people but for a start the government will not be encouraging employers to do this full time, the economy would tank even further if that’s possible!

I think most employees would prefer a mix of both. The Civil Service has already commenced a significant survey amongst its workers on how it should operate going forward, and working from home in the future has formed part of that. The Government will, presumably, (or certainly should) be taking into account the environment, local economies, pressure on housing, and work/life balance when deciding how to proceed. It will be very obvious if they just blatantly start offering life support to businesses and city centre landlords at the expense of everyone else.

GDK_11

hetuzozaho wrote: »

What do you mean by full time?

The government have already being encouraging working from home into the future.

Yet they are supposedly considering starting to encourage workers to head back to the office in the not to distant future?

There are a couple of reasons a government may want us to work at home full time but they will be far outweighed by having us out spending.

** should clarify by full time I mean every day and permanent **

DebDynamite

GDK_11 wrote: »

All true and in full employment times employees hold the power, once this is all over it will be an employers market and if they want people to work in the office then people will have to do it.

I am most definitely in favour of more flexible work for people but for a start the government will not be encouraging employers to do this full time, the economy would tank even further if that’s possible!

Exactly, and if employers feel it’s of benefit to both parties and they want to keep the employee happy, they will offer WFM. It’s employers who make the decision ultimately.

But the Government will not he encouraging it as it’s obvious people working at home all week benefits few but impacts many.

hetuzozaho

GDK_11 wrote: »

Yet they are supposedly considering starting to encourage workers to head back to the office in the not to distant future?

I'll be interested in what they say in this respect as it seems like a step backwards from :

https://twitter.com/LeoVaradkar/status/1281154705457123328

which sounded like some progress! Maybe a few envelopes have been received

GDK_11

hetuzozaho wrote: »

I'll be interested in what they say in this respect as it seems like a step backwards from :

https://twitter.com/LeoVaradkar/status/1281154705457123328

which sounded like some progress! Maybe a few envelopes have been received

Ha ha, quite possibly!

I think the majority of us would be happy if we had less commute time, some more time with our families etc so long as it is sustainable. It will be an interesting few years for us all no doubt!

ednwireland

hetuzozaho wrote: »

I'll be interested in what they say in this respect as it seems like a step backwards from :

https://twitter.com/LeoVaradkar/status/1281154705457123328

which sounded like some progress! Maybe a few envelopes have been received

needs a bigger screen i have a 23" at home and 2 at work but really need a second at home

DebDynamite

hetuzozaho wrote: »

I'll be interested in what they say in this respect as it seems like a step backwards from :

https://twitter.com/LeoVaradkar/status/1281154705457123328

which sounded like some progress! Maybe a few envelopes have been received

The tweet was a month ago, maybe the economic impact has become clearer over the past month.

hetuzozaho

DebDynamite wrote: »

The tweet was a month ago, maybe the economic impact has become clearer over the past month.

Yep maybe. Will be interesting to see what is announced. So far though nothing discouraging WFH.

Alf Veedersane

hetuzozaho wrote: »

I'll be interested in what they say in this respect as it seems like a step backwards from :

https://twitter.com/LeoVaradkar/status/1281154705457123328

which sounded like some progress! Maybe a few envelopes have been received

The programme for govt had included that that public bodies move to 20% WFH/remote working in 2021

JDD

I'm a public servant and the general feeling on the consultation is that our entity is going to allow us to WFH at least 2 days a week, if not 3.

I'm also reluctant to accept that this sea change in how we work is somehow going to lead to long term unemployment. This isn't the coal mines we're talking about. This is coffee and sandwich shops, office cleaners and clothes shops. Who works in those companies? People in their twenties. Some being immigrants, some being college students working part time.

This is an unusual situation, in that the money that was being spent in those shops hasn't disappeared, like in other recessions. The office workers that propped up those shops are largely unaffected by job losses and pay cuts. And while some money may be saved, some will still be spent, it will just be elsewhere.

There will be other firms taking on staff - our local coffee shop is advertising for wait staff already. Some of those laid off will end up getting jobs elsewhere. There certainly seems to be increased demand in IKEA/Woodies/Halfords. Some will, unfortunately, as is the answer to many an Irish recession, emigrate for a couple of years, or perhaps for longer. It's obviously not a solution we would like, but it does mean that we have less on the live register to pay dole for.

ExMachina1000

As you browse your emails and prepare to tackle your own daily workload in your underpants please remember us peasants who cannot work from home.

Knock as long as possible out of it.

inthenip

ExMachina1000 wrote: »

As you browse your emails and prepare to tackle your own daily workload in your underpants please remember us peasants who cannot work from home.

Knock as long as possible out of it.

A few lads i work with have thier work shirt on perfectly pressed throughout meetings. I absolutely cringe.

Here me in my boxers and a polo shirt on during calls.

Its all internal people as well, no customers.

hetuzozaho

I've always found wearing a shirt and tie really improved my code quality! :pac:

Thank God all that was put to bed a few years ago.

Jim Root

Kilboor wrote: »

There are a lot of services that can be impacted by WFH:

- Transport (Buses to work, private buses hired by companies, chaffeurs hired by companies, transport for visitors from abroad as well as to the airport for trips abroad)
- Cars (New car dealers less car sales, mechanics have less servicing/work to do, petrol stations now down on revenue as less people filling up/stopping for coffee/food including the chauffeurs/buses above, tyre places)
- Office services (Cleaning staff no longer needed, rent no longer needed to be paid, bills etc no tax income and less demand for electricity companies, less need to purchase projectors/meeting room tables, coffee/tea delivery no longer needed anymore, vending machine goods, water cooler services, charity baskets,)
- Local Shops/Coffee/Cafes/Hotels (Less demand overall for these businesses that are located in/near office districts. Lunch, Lunch with team, breakfast meals out, after work coffee/snack, lotto syndicates, catering services for office, rental of nearby business board rooms for training/upskilling, less visitors from abroad so less demand for local hotels, no more christmas parties (?), summer office bbqs and other events)
- Other (Tailors - Drop in demand for suits/office clothes/shoes as work from home essentially means more casual dress code, interviews now online (?))

A few off the top of my head.

So what? None of that stuff is essential

Dial Hard

I too am struggling to get my head around the narrative some people seem so wedded to that being able to work from home means your job can automatically be outsourced to a cheaper economy.

My job requires intimate knowledge of the Irish political, legislative and media landscape. Good luck outsourcing that to a call centre in Bangalore.

c68zapdsm5i1ru

DebDynamite wrote: »

Exactly, and if employers feel it’s of benefit to both parties and they want to keep the employee happy, they will offer WFM. It’s employers who make the decision ultimately.

But the Government will not he encouraging it as it’s obvious people working at home all week benefits few but impacts many.

It actually benefits many in terms of family life, work life Balance, community life and mental health.

c68zapdsm5i1ru

ExMachina1000 wrote: »

As you browse your emails and prepare to tackle your own daily workload in your underpants please remember us peasants who cannot work from home.

Knock as long as possible out of it.

So because you can't work from home nobody should?

Kilboor

Jim Root wrote: »

So what? None of that stuff is essential

Don't you understand the negative impacts of unemployment as well as loss of livelihood for people ? So what says you. I bet the entrepreneur, the employees, the agencies and eventually you when you're forced to pay more tax for the unemployed will care

Kilboor

Shawn Sparse Sunstroke wrote: »

It actually benefits many in terms of family life, work life Balance, community life and mental health.

Mental health is debatable to be honest. Depends on the circumstance. Take young people again, living and renting a room and now forced to work in it too. A lot of people with short 10-20 minute trips to work also like the drives as it helps to clear the head.

I can see the other side's too though of course particularly for people with families

ExMachina1000

Shawn Sparse Sunstroke wrote: »

So because you can't work from home nobody should?

That's not what I said at all. I'm jealous.
If its working out for people and everyone is happy thenppppp keep it going as long as you can.