Returning to the Workplace

[GetFatty]

Joking aside that could be an issue for lots of people...doggy daycares will fill up or there’ll be lots of pugs and poodle hybrids up for adoption

I fully agree. I worked largely from home a couple of years ago and my then boss got a puppy and moved to wfh. I then got called back into the office 2 or 3 days a week until Covid started. I've now taken a calculated risk that at most I would need to be out of the house for 3 hours (and even that not for a few months) and also the fact that my partner will also have a more flexible working life so the dog shouldn't even need to be alone other than when we go out for dinner

 

[Rooster1]

Been back in the office for a few weeks. We all have to do a Covid test twice a week and have social distancing markers everywhere + take your temp on arrival, sanitising stations galore. Its working out fine.

 

[byegad]

I wish to sue fossyant. Anyone with his real name, address and bank account number please contact me urgently.

I read the title of the thread and am just back from hospital!

After 15 years of retirement the title was too much for my dicky ticker!

Being of a certain social status I, of course, went private and my insurance company are demanding that I recover the costs!

 

[Milkfloat]

For some of us the office is no more it is closing so moving to a WFH contract. For others the plan is that people go in when they need to, that can be a mix between everyday if you cannot work effectively from home, to going in for project meetings or for a bit of a social, all the way through to never going in. My company treats people as grownups so generally we are trusted, my direct reports are spread over 13 hours of time zones with the nearest in Germany, as a rule they don’t need to be colocated, although a yearly meeting is always worthwhile.

 

[CanucksTraveller]

Prior to "the event" I used to work from home 50% of the time anyway, with the rest split between travel in the EU and sometimes India, and at the company offices in the US. So I had no permanent "office" as such.

I'm just starting to travel again in the EU - and my God it's a logistical nightmare, what would have been a quick 3 day trip in 2019 is now something closer to a 8-9 day odyssey with all the associated testing, waiting, then travel, work, then testing again, waiting again, then travelling home, and even then it's 8 days of quarantine, with a further 2 tests.
I anticipate that later in the year the department will expect to see me at the US offices too, when travel between our countries is allowed. So it's on the way to becoming like it was before, although more complicated now.

The company is starting to invite its usual / local people back in to the US head office. Apparently there's no hard expectation that everyone will be in at once, but there's a strong hint that people wishing to work from home more than a couple of days a week will need a strong justification and a long discussion with their manager. But I think there will be a mix of WFH and office work for them in future.

 

[fossyant]

My first job, and it may take a few days, is to bin all the paperwork, and only essential stuff will be kept in a box on a shelf. Completely clear desk from now on.

 

[GetFatty]

Prior to "the event" I used to work from home 50% of the time anyway, with the rest split between travel in the EU and sometimes India, and at the company offices in the US. So I had no permanent "office" as such.

I'm just starting to travel again in the EU - and my God it's a logistical nightmare, what would have been a quick 3 day trip in 2019 is now something closer to a 8-9 day odyssey with all the associated testing, waiting, then travel, work, then testing again, waiting again, then travelling home, and even then it's 8 days of quarantine, with a further 2 tests).
I anticipate that later in the year the department will expect to see me at the US offices too, when travel between our countries is allowed. So it's on the way to becoming like it was before, although more complicated now.

The company is starting to invite its permanent people back in to the US head office. Apparently there's no hard expectation that everyone will be in at once, but there's a strong hint that people wishing to work from home more than a couple of days a week will need a strong justification and a long discussion with their manager. But I think there will be a mix of WFH and office work for them in future.

Unfortunately due to issues discussed in other threads, my travels to the EU are over for a while. I may go and visit a supplier in Paris when they open but other than that I have to wait to be approached by the 27 non sovereign independent states.

 

[CanucksTraveller]

Unfortunately due to issues discussed in other threads, my travels to the EU are over for a while. I may go and visit a supplier in Paris when they open but other than that I have to wait to be approached by the 27 non sovereign independent states.

Yes that's extremely sad. I'm only getting on the road around the EU again because at least US companies are still doing business with the EU... farcical really isn't it, when we're the EU's next door neighbour, but enough said on that. I hope things pick up for you soon.

 

[Accy cyclist]

Joking aside that could be an issue for lots of people...doggy daycares will fill up or there’ll be lots of pugs and poodle hybrids up for adoption

You forgot these fashion accessories. They were fashionably popular before the lockdown stuff,but have become very fashionable this last year. I look at the owners walking their 'Frenchies',usually in pairs (the dogs i mean) and think "Will you still have your fashion accessories in say 5 years time"? A dog is for life,not for the duration of a fad!! 🧐

 

[Saluki]

I am still WFH. In 1 day a week currently. It suits me and I don’t feel like punching anyone then.
There isn’t room for all of us anyway and, we have had loads more subcontractors start, and hogging all the desks. I hope to move to 2 consecutive days a week and WFH for 3 days. I dread going in for 5 days a week with an hour commute at each end. Supposed to have 1 hour for lunch. I have asked if I can start 30 mins later and have 30 mins for lunch but “it’s impossible“ according to the HR email. Madness.

Now companies are recruiting again, I will look around. I have no problem with being in the office 5 days a week but the noise is really irritating and all those people milling about is stressful now. I have always quite liked solitude and quiet. Lockdown has been marvellous for me.

 

[delb0y]

Been back into offices two days this week - one was a meeting at a supplier at one was a meeting at our own office. Traffic on Monday was horrendous - seemed like everyone must have been commuting. Yesterday was okay. WFH today. I can easily see imagine how the virus might start to spread again (*) when more people go back - and our bosses seem really keen to get people back, and moreso, to get themselves back into offices and into the working environment. I guess that's why they're bosses.

Interestingly it's been 7 hours travelling over two days for those meetings. That's 7 hours I would have been working last week.

(*) Lots of under 40s not yet had the vaccine. Six in a room turns out to be seven or eight when someone pops in. Some folks forgetting not to shake hands. Shared workspaces and sinks and taps and doorhandles and lift-buttons and whiteboard markers.

 

[matticus]

(*) Lots of under 40s not yet had the vaccine. Six in a room turns out to be seven or eight when someone pops in. Some folks forgetting not to shake hands. Shared workspaces and sinks and taps and doorhandles and lift-buttons and whiteboard markers.

Have you tried reporting them? Obvs I don't know your workplace culture, but if you don't try, you won't know.
The limited numbers rule is a good one, as they can't argue with that - you just walk in, point at them, "1..2 ..3 .."

As for shared surfaces, if YOU keep YOUR hands clean, at least you're removing the risk to YOU. Provided none of the bu99ers force a hand-shake on you!

 

[fossyant]

MrsF back today, but she's been double jabbed. She's got a little card on her desk saying 'welcome back' and a bag of goodies. Looks like commute was good and she actually got a space at work.

We've got a load of under 30's in our office, so most won't have been jabbed. We've got all the rules about wiping everything down. I'll take milk in every day, so not to use the fridge, but at least the "Dolce-Gusto" pod machine is mine (I'm the only one that uses it)

All might change if this Indian version starts moving about !

 

[GetFatty]

We’ve now had a directive from above saying we are expected to be in the office for 50% of our contracted hours. I can’t see it working as long as social distancing is in place as my office can only operate at 25% capacity. I will wait and see but I’m still expecting to WFH pretty much until I change job if ever

 

[Julia9054]

As a teacher, I obviously have no control over working from home but I hope that staff meetings and parents evenings continue to be held remotely as they have been much more efficient that way.