Wfh now?

[LivingAlmostLarge]

If you are still working from home or worked from home do you think you worked harder, less, or about the same? Just working at your job. Not counting all other distractions like kids or spouse. Not including having to cook and clean more. Did you work more hours? Less hours? Going for exceeds or meets expectations?

[bjl584]

I still report to work, and I am working harder than ever.
Not only am I doing my job, but I have to support all of the people who are working from home.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

I still report to work, and I am working harder than ever.
Not only am I doing my job, but I have to support all of the people who are working from home.

interesting. Do you work more hours or just more efficiently? I think my DH is less efficient being home. So am I less efficient. So we take longer to do work. Also I think expectations are lower but at the same time self-pressure is higher in someways because I think he's worried what if he loses his job? I don't think they would do a salary reduction but rather a layoff. So if that were to happen then where would we be? I can't put a finger on it but at our ages which I feel is still young enough to work, over 50 i think in most fields it's harder to get hired forget 60. That we need to keep on working hard now to be able to stop fully worrying by 50.

[riverwed070707]

I'm working harder, and more. I find that being home allows me to set a schedule/routine that works better for me and maximizes productivity. Not only do I feel great about being able to clean the kitchen, meal plan or start some laundry while on a mental break, having the time and flexibility to balance my home responsibilities makes it easier for me to put in longer days. When i was in the office, I had to leave AT 5 to get DD, get her home, feed her, get her to sports practice and by the time I got home I was beat and rarely keeping up on daily chores. I've settled into a nice routine and honestly wish I could do this forever.

[disneysteve]

I still report to work, and I am working harder than ever.
Not only am I doing my job, but I have to support all of the people who are working from home.

Are you supporting them in terms of tech support or are you on site and have to do stuff that they can't do from home?

[bjl584]

interesting. Do you work more hours or just more efficiently? I think my DH is less efficient being home. So am I less efficient. So we take longer to do work. Also I think expectations are lower but at the same time self-pressure is higher in someways because I think he's worried what if he loses his job? I don't think they would do a salary reduction but rather a layoff. So if that were to happen then where would we be? I can't put a finger on it but at our ages which I feel is still young enough to work, over 50 i think in most fields it's harder to get hired forget 60. That we need to keep on working hard now to be able to stop fully worrying by 50.

Harder and longer hours. Our business hasn't really slowed down. There are just less people physically in the building to do the actual work.

[bjl584]

Are you supporting them in terms of tech support or are you on site and have to do stuff that they can't do from home?

More doing the stuff that they are not able to do since they are not physically here.
I manage a warehouse and do inventory control.
So, lots of questions that I have to answer and lots of shipping items and managing stock for people who can't do it themselves since they aren't in the building.

[ua_guy]

Our normal schedule includes working 2 days remotely in a 5 day week. Historically, those have been comparatively lighter days meant for catching up, or doing a deep analysis of something. It was nice, while it existed.

Now everyone is working from home. And our teams have become hyper-productive, every day has become both early and late. A couple of factors:

-Extroverts are going nuts. We have to meet for meeting's sake to talk about everything, many times per day.
-Helicopter managers are worried about the loss of productivity so are virtually hovering; every new issue needs movement right now.
-The "miserable-at-home" people work long and often to escape their children and spouses.
-The fear of furlough or additional pay cuts has everyone kissing ass, working hard, and trying to prove they're relevant and irreplaceable.

Several weeks in a row, when trying to find a time to meet, people have commented, "wow your team's schedule is full...the only time I could find for us is Friday at 4:30--but hey I guess we're all at home and have nothing to do, so why not!" :die:

I'm going for survival. Not meets, not exceeds, but survival. I'm good at this, but I led an isolated life prior to this which is still very fulfilling outside of work, and my husband and I get along very well and enjoy each other's company even when we're both wfh 24/7. There have been a couple times where I've told people that's all for today, closed the laptop, I'll pick up where I left off tomorrow.

[riverwed070707]

Our normal schedule includes working 2 days remotely in a 5 day week. Historically, those have been comparatively lighter days meant for catching up, or doing a deep analysis of something. It was nice, while it existed.

Now everyone is working from home. And our teams have become hyper-productive, every day has become both early and late. A couple of factors:

-Extroverts are going nuts. We have to meet for meeting's sake to talk about everything, many times per day.
-Helicopter managers are worried about the loss of productivity so are virtually hovering; every new issue needs movement right now.
-The "miserable-at-home" people work long and often to escape their children and spouses.
-The fear of furlough or additional pay cuts has everyone kissing ass, working hard, and trying to prove they're relevant and irreplaceable.

Several weeks in a row, when trying to find a time to meet, people have commented, "wow your team's schedule is full...the only time I could find for us is Friday at 4:30--but hey I guess we're all at home and have nothing to do, so why not!" :die:

I'm going for survival. Not meets, not exceeds, but survival. I'm good at this, but I led an isolated life prior to this which is still very fulfilling outside of work, and my husband and I get along very well and enjoy each other's company even when we're both wfh 24/7. There have been a couple times where I've told people that's all for today, closed the laptop, I'll pick up where I left off tomorrow.

Accurate summation of people in an office setting! If I had one complaint about WFH its the number of meetings we're having every day. Have you seen this video? Real life conference call. It had me rolling https://youtu.be/DYu_bGbZiiQ

[disneysteve]

If I had one complaint about WFH its the number of meetings we're having every day. Have you seen this video?

I was on a Zoom chat (ironically) with some friends yesterday and they were complaining about this. Essentially, with everyone at home, every conversation requires scheduling a meeting. There's no such thing as an impromptu chat by leaning over the cubicle wall or walking down the hall to someone else's office or gathering a few people around the conference table spur of the moment.

[bjl584]

I was on a Zoom chat (ironically) with some friends yesterday and they were complaining about this. Essentially, with everyone at home, every conversation requires scheduling a meeting. There's no such thing as an impromptu chat by leaning over the cubicle wall or walking down the hall to someone else's office or gathering a few people around the conference table spur of the moment.

Agreed.
We actually had to reign this in recently.
One shouldn't have to explain to someone that if you are sitting in meetings all day that no real work can actually get accomplished, but it seems that the WFH crowd has lost touch.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

Hehehe..okay I laughed about the youtube...its so true. My DH just works a lot more. He worked a lot before but with more meetings and other stuff he's been working a lot. Pedal to metal. Besides I think he worries he won't get his normal "Exceeds or greatly exceeds" and he's like that. Obsessive. I work more because I can't do anything during the day really. I sit and help focus my kids or cook or clean. So we tend to spend at least 2 hours a night working usually 9-11 pm. And how do i know? We haven't binged or even finished tiger king or any shows on any streaming. We did watch picard but us watching about 3-4 hours of tv a week seems about right. I will forgive myself and say we do tend to watch a few movies with the kiddos at night. But overall we aren't binge watching tv.

[Smallsteps]

I think it depends greatly on the job. i had a previous job that was a lot of data comparisons and matching and i felt i was getting more done at a short stay at home for inclement weather without random stop by my cube at the office.

In my current situation I am not getting much done and I think many others are not as well....
Too "many where are we at" zoom meetings that often are a waste of time one meeting this week was scheduled for an hour and actually lasted 22 minutes they said great we get back x amount of minutes.... but to get back into what you were doing prior to meeting sucks that up.

Many of the people I work with are salary and feel the urge to work and send emails at 9pm etc and they SIMPLY do not get some of us are hourly and not checking emails 24/7.
They get upset you did not answer their 9pm email immediately even if your hours are 8-5.
It has encouraged some of the hourly to work off the clock or creatively figuring their hours and are confusing what hours are "on the clock". This could be an issue later if someone is hurt for example or if any labor law is crossed.

Now this company is talking about office staff staying home longer perhaps permanently ... not for health........ but they do not need to provide office space for everyone. They found they are saving a ton in services they had previously provided. I used to order/ coordinate catered meetings and know just for my department they probably have saved thousands in those costs.

My contract is up in July i will not stay as part of the reason i have a job is to get OUT of the house.
We are losing a few others as well that this situation is not working for them. I wonder what will happen when they run into real trouble of blurred lines.... they have already had some IT security issues in a industry where intellectual property is huge.

[disneysteve]

Many of the people I work with are salary and feel the urge to work and send emails at 9pm etc and they SIMPLY do not get some of us are hourly and not checking emails 24/7.

This is a problem that pre-dates the COVID situation. We run into this at work a lot. An email will go out to the staff but the only ones who see it are the ones who are working that day. If someone is off for 2 or 3 or 6 days, they don't see it until they are back at work, which is sometimes a problem when it's a time-sensitive matter. If it's something really important, they'll text everyone too. If hourly folks are reading emails when they're off, you have to pay them, but texting apparently is okay. Makes no sense to me but that's how it goes.

I do wonder about labor laws and workman's comp issues with folks WFH. If you get up from your desk to get a snack and you trip and fall at home, is that a work injury because you were on the clock even though it happened in your living room?

[disneysteve]

Now this company is talking about office staff staying home longer perhaps permanently ... not for health........ but they do not need to provide office space for everyone. They found they are saving a ton in services they had previously provided.

Exactly what I predicted would happen early on in the quarantine. A lot of employees are going to find that working from home saves them time (no commute), money (no gas or tolls, no eating out for lunch), and is more efficient (no constant distractions). A lot of employers are going to find that WFH saves them money (downsize their physical space, no water cooler, coffee service, vending machines, etc.).

There is another thread from someone offered permanent WFH status. I think many people will be getting those offers.