NFT: Anyone WFH due to COVID excited about going back to office?

has instituted a three tier workforce.

- Essential to be at the office/workplace
- Intermittent need to be at the office
- Non-essential to be at the office

I'm in the 2nd group and we will still be working from home until further notice which means I can go in when necessary, but otherwise can stay at home

I know of several other companies doing something similar

I have seen every possible option...

WFH is prefectly fine for many....improving the well being of their Home Office experience.

But there are some concerns....

Although I understand what they are trying to explain but I would never recommend calling them "non-essential"...as losing their connection to their company, whatever loyalty on both sides is at greater risk....

For those going back....adding distance, seperation and orientation even having protocols ...is all part of it....improving air ventilation and filteration...not only do office need to be safe...but employees must think and feel safe.

other than some business and personnel related administrative functions for my team of contractors (all non-billable work) which I do at home, my work is 100% completed at client's site. Thankfully, we've been 50% (alternating teams) schedule for social distancing reasons while getting 100% pay (for now), so I feel extremely fortunate.

and then we will be similar to what FMiC posted though I think it will just be 2 tiers for the most part.

Come in if you need to but notify your manager before doing so - 50% max capacity

Work from home if you can

...our office has about 50 people in 8 aisles of cubes and offices, we've been almost 100% telework - I believe that as things reopen, we will do a *reverse* telework schedule. People going in once or twice per week, never allowing office clusters to be in house until CoVid is no longer a threat.

After the weekend's protests, we'll all be lucky if we're not in full lockdown in a month.

I am actually content to work from home. I never thought I would be, but I have gotten used to it and am enjoying it. And saving nearly $500/month on Metro North and NYC Subway costs

For a school district. Been going in and doing things for almost a month now, its hard to get back into the routine. At first it was tues and friday only 9-1:30, the mon-weds 9-1:30 and this week its mon-thurs 9-1:30. Still trying to feel normal this morning. Very odd

Because i would be distracted and not as productive without the proper software and set up, but now I prefer it for the reasons in the OP. Saving money, saving time, not as exhausted at the end of the day, etc. With a baby on the way too I'm hoping to be able to WFH for a while.

Our previous owner was a major corporation who operated with an old school mentality (offices scattered through out the country in prime real estate parts of their city, and the main offices in mid town Manhattan and CT). After the purchase our new CEO said we're moving out of mid town and heading to Jersey City and it appears that his plan is to get out of the lease in CT, possibly rent a smaller space up the 95 line, using that space to process payment, house the servers and use for face to face meetings. Otherwise, it appears that the plan is for us to primarily be working from home.

As a father of two who are just approaching the sports age, I couldn't be happier. I can now make games with ease, and I don't have to wake up at 4:30 am to get my workout in before the commute.

The one downside that I am seeing, though, is that I've been called on after hours more than I had been while in the office. It's not drastic, but our hours are 9-5 and I'm working pretty regularly from 8-5:30/6.

Been WFH since March 20th. 20% in office each day beginning June 15 through end of June and upping to 40% in July. Agree on money savings commuting and feeling less tired (2 1/2 hour commute daily) but some things I cannot do unless in the office plus miss face to face interaction. Zoom is not the same.

I'd be lying if I said I was excited to go back to the office full time. I'm fully operational in my office at home. I start working on average an hour earlier every day but i'm still able to relax in the morning without having to commute. If I need to do something in an off hour or on the weekend, it isn't a chore trying to set up since I basically have my work desk here available 24/7.

My company sounds like it's going to implement something similar to FMiC above. I think i'll be home until at least early July.

and hope to for the foreseeable future. My job doesn't require being in the office as my counterpart in the same job works from home down in Florida while we're up in Syracuse, NY.

I love working from home and as mentioned previously, the savings on gas is nice, even though I'm only ~9 miles each way. Being able to just throw on shorts/sweatpants and shirt/sweatshirt and walk 10 feet to the "office" is quite nice.

WFH is no doubt more convenient, but there's something to be said for separation of work & home. I am definitely more productive, but I'm working longer hours.

I just really want to get back to a normal Monday-Friday work week @ the office, a return to normalcy if you will. I know that might not come until there's a vaccine.

will be much more lax once we go back in. I don't mind going in at certain times and it does make working on certain tasks better. There are far more times that WFH is just as effective for me, and it gives me back 2-3 hours of time without the commute.

from home since 2007.

I used to go into the office every few weeks for meetings, trainings, etc.

but I used to travel regularly. I'd have a short-term business trip (1 - 3 nights) usually twice a month. All these trips included colleagues of mine.

So, I don't miss not going to the office, and I won't when things ease up from a restriction standpoint, but I do miss interacting with people.

And I don't expect work travel to change drastically before the end of the year. Since it's not just my company, but the company where I'd be going, and I don't expect those two policies to change and allow travel, etc.

In comment 14914006 YAJ2112 said:

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will be much more lax once we go back in. I don't mind going in at certain times and it does make working on certain tasks better. There are far more times that WFH is just as effective for me, and it gives me back 2-3 hours of time without the commute.

Same boat. When the dust settles I'm can do 100% of my job 1-2 days per week in office and 3-4 days per week home. I'd actually get more done since I commute an hour each way.

I'd also be happier, which I think companies are starting to realize....matters! I've got a kid, no idea if school will be a go this fall and I need to be able to co-teach with my wife. And if school is back then that's even more time that I get to do work without commuting.

as someone based in Manhattan but living outside the island, I hate commuting. Much prefer investing those 2-3 daily hours in my son and at the gym, rather than sitting on mass transit reading or staring out the window at the same sights.

I'd expect many progressive companies will pounce on how much money they can save by shrinking their Manhattan footprint and all the commercial rent and operational costs. I hope mine is one of them, or at least transfer me to our NJ office where a seat is much cheaper for them on a rolling basis.

And government transit budgets/revenues?

Also, if you WFH, can you also deduct expenses on your income tax?

This morning traffic seemed pretty much back to normal. Although, apparently, three months without commuting has caused people to forget how to fucking drive.

i wake up at 6am

i go get my wife a coffee

get on the exercise bike for 30 min

Log in real quick

Take a shower

Then i'm done at 5pm sharp

My old routine was get up at 5:15, leave the house at 5:45, get to my desk at 7am
Get home at 6:15, eat, and have to force myself to exercise....

Now all that being said, i hate WFH. We dont go back till Sept 1, and at that point they are prob going to put us in groups, and i'll prob be in a NJ branch

i'm most likely not going back to NYC till 2021

what I am saving/getting is more of my own time. I have an out building on my property that is a turn of the 20th century farm building. It's called a Granary, a building to store grain in. At one point it was turned into a sap house. We were using it for storage for my knife company and we converted it into a comfortable office. It has original solid maple floors that we had finished and polyurethaned, and it is 150 feet from my house. The commute is great! I make the transition to work from the house, and I can see all the same views of the farm. I installed a giant screen at the entrance (double doors) and when it's open and the windows are open - it's like being out in the country - heavenly. I am surrounded by all the things i love.

The only real drawback is that we have rural internet and I am using massive amounts of data to work virtually -- and that costs more than my commuting costs ever did -- but I am not paying rent on an office -- so I guess that is a savings when I look at it that way.

I think every company will reconsider how its employees work.

In comment 14914007 pjcas18 said:

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from home since 2007. I used to go into the office every few weeks for meetings, trainings, etc. but I used to travel regularly. I'd have a short-term business trip (1 - 3 nights) usually twice a month. All these trips included colleagues of mine. So, I don't miss not going to the office, and I won't when things ease up from a restriction standpoint, but I do miss interacting with people. And I don't expect work travel to change drastically before the end of the year. Since it's not just my company, but the company where I'd be going, and I don't expect those two policies to change and allow travel, etc.

pj, I'm in 100% agreement about missing interacting with people. That's really what I miss WFH. We're social creatures & we need to be around other people than just our immediate families.

would be a huge bonus WFH

So many more distractions at home.

We reopened last Tues at the request of the staff. We started WFH 2nd week of March. Small office keeping apart is no problem. Staff, myself included, were just tired of being home all the time.

In comment 14914019 Bill L said:

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And government transit budgets/revenues? Also, if you WFH, can you also deduct expenses on your income tax?

Its going to get beat up, which in the short term sucks but a reset was/is needed, IMO. So many companies wasting money on office space they don't need when they can instead invest in their employees, hire more/better people, provide better healthcare, etc.

The whole COVID ordeal has brought a lot of hardship but I always thought that something good would eventually come of it and hopefully this is one of them.

all the folks who were trapped in NYC now want to escape to the Hudson Valley like we did 20 years ago. It's a seller's market here right now. I don't know how long it will last, but especially with the low interest rates, it's a very attractive time to buy a country house -- I highly recommend it. And I give generous discounts on my legal services to friends and family : )

was almost an invitation for an IRS audit. That's gonna change.

Commuting expenses were never deductible. But if your office at home is now your main office, does that make travel expenses to the "big office" deductible? And what about meals in the "big office" cafeteria?

deduction on your 1040

Live in NJ. Was taking the PATH every day to work from Essex county. Have been WFH since 2nd week in March. There have been no updates given on when we will be back in the office, but some rumblings that we will be home through the summer.

We were polled on who wants to come back during the different phases. 6 said right away, 2 phase 2, 8 phase 3 or later (or never?).

Working from home has been better in every way. We were already pushing for it at our office and were allowed to do it 1-2 days a week. This whole shelter in place thing has proven that there is no reason why we can't do it full time.

I think we're seeing many major companies were considering work from home before this all began. Now that the transition cost is now a sunk cost, its made the switch that much more of a no brainer. Nationwide, Barclays, Twitter, etc.

and we're looking at about a 12 month time frame until we're back in an office setting. I personally like the office as it helps collaborating as well as the interactions.

When the subways were running, my commute was only 25 minutes so I assume I'm in the minority not having to worry about the commute

will probably look into providing an allowance to rent office space from a coworking or shared workspace. That will still be cheaper than renting the entire building. Commercial real estate is going to look very different.

In comment 14914053 gidiefor said:

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all the folks who were trapped in NYC now want to escape to the Hudson Valley like we did 20 years ago. It's a seller's market here right now. I don't know how long it will last, but especially with the low interest rates, it's a very attractive time to buy a country house -- I highly recommend it. And I give generous discounts on my legal services to friends and family : )

I'm a Fed Gov't employee who normally commuted to DC. My wife and I purchased a mountain home in WV about a year and a half ago. Little did we know handy it would come in. We have been here this whole time and its great. We have 13 acres and another 8 miles of private hiking trails. We go hiking everyday with the dogs.

We are max telework. We can go in if we want to, but are encouraged to stay home. I've gone into DC twice in the last 3 months. I can do 98% of my job from here. I will go back in a week or two. Mainly to check on our house in NOVA....We just found out today that in a couple of weeks, if you do decide to go into the office, you'll have to get your temp taken. If you are above a certain threshold (which we don't know what that will be yet) you will be turned away.

Whose families can’t wait to get you out of the house?

but not enough to outweigh all the benefits of WFH. I can get my human nature fact-to-face needs in my neighborhood and with friends/family anyway.

and make any of you jealous. But the wife and I went out to a real restaurant this past weekend, had sit down service, with a real waitress, and got to enjoy our fist real evening out since the house arrest started. True, all the staff were wearing masks, but it was so nice to get out.

The Chinese takeout place I normally use reopened about a week ago after totally closing since the beginning.. Been using another. She refuses to use the reopening place for the next month because she thinks they may be using food that was sitting a freezer for a couple of months. Is this a legitimate concern?

In comment 14914111 Beer Man said:

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and make any of you jealous. But the wife and I went out to a real restaurant this past weekend, had sit down service, with a real waitress, and got to enjoy our fist real evening out since the house arrest started. True, all the staff were wearing masks, but it was so nice to get out.

Did the same on Friday. It was great to got out for a meal. And about WFH, I've been doing that my whole life and would not have it any other way.

In comment 14914126 Stan in LA said:

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In comment 14914111 Beer Man said: Quote: and make any of you jealous. But the wife and I went out to a real restaurant this past weekend, had sit down service, with a real waitress, and got to enjoy our fist real evening out since the house arrest started. True, all the staff were wearing masks, but it was so nice to get out. Did the same on Friday. It was great to got out for a meal. And about WFH, I've been doing that my whole life and would not have it any other way.

Do your coworkers feel the same way about you working from home?

a couple days a week. I’m an extrovert - bartending in a dive between college and law school was my favorite job - and it’s been hard to be without the social aspect of my job on top of no bars, concerts, dates, etc.

One thing that has been interesting - the hearings I litigate(I represent parents of special needs kids asking for services from the DOE) have really benefitted from moving to phone. Helps scheduling of my witnesses (parent, neuropsychologists, speech therapists, etc) and moves things along much faster now that we don’t have to wait for a physical room to open at the downtown Brooklyn hearing office. No more hours of waiting for a room. So I hope that remains as an option after reopening.

The concept of everyone doing their job in an office building, unless you truly have a lot of in-person collaboration need, does not make sense. I’ve been saving 2.5 hours a day in commuting by WFH, not to mention savings hundreds of dollars a month on transit and gas expenses. It’s been amazing and not negatively impacting the business.

and it stinks to be working from home.

I'm learning a lot, but it would be much better working in the same area with other people. It will be this way for us until at least September.

I also hoped to travel a little on the job, and that's not happening.

as long as you are productive and don't get cabin fever. Also
it helps make the commute easier and less crowded for those who must go in.

In comment 14914169 Dave in PA said:

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The concept of everyone doing their job in an office building, unless you truly have a lot of in-person collaboration need, does not make sense. I’ve been saving 2.5 hours a day in commuting by WFH, not to mention savings hundreds of dollars a month on transit and gas expenses. It’s been amazing and not negatively impacting the business.

yep. at our place we had a record quarter, revenue is up this quarter and client contacts are up 33%. And if you think commuting costs are steep now, wait until they look to make up the lost revenue. Ain't gonna come from the unionized workforce. my metro north monthly is $335. I would not be shocked at a $100/month or more increase for 2021.

Until August. Then we are going on shifts, I'll be in the office 2 days a week and WFH 3 days a week. When in the office you have to get your temp taken as you enter and you have to wear a mask in public spaces like hallways/lobby. They also turned all out cubes into tall "Officles" which I'm not looking forward to because we were in a pretty open area with my entire team. Now it looks depressing.

In comment 14914135 Big Al said:

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In comment 14914126 Stan in LA said: Quote: In comment 14914111 Beer Man said: Quote: and make any of you jealous. But the wife and I went out to a real restaurant this past weekend, had sit down service, with a real waitress, and got to enjoy our fist real evening out since the house arrest started. True, all the staff were wearing masks, but it was so nice to get out. Did the same on Friday. It was great to got out for a meal. And about WFH, I've been doing that my whole life and would not have it any other way. Do your coworkers feel the same way about you working from home?

For me, I worked from home for years, and just took a new job in January that requires me to go into the office 4-days a week. Both have their +'s and -'s. I like the interaction in the office, and being in front of my clients. After several years of working at home I found myself getting barn sour (Barn Sour is a term horse ranchers use. It happens when you never take a horse out of his stall and let him move around, eventually the horse will have to be forced to leave the stall). For several years it seems like I only saw the inside walls of my home office.

Opposite from most, I find more distractions at home; I also don't like having my work computer always around; it's harder to delineate personal time from work time.

Ergonomically speaking, my office set up is way better than my home set up also.

I've always had a flexible schedule, so I figure going forward, I'll be working some sort of hybrid, but looking forward to getting to the office at least 3 days a week going forward.

I'm in Santa Clara County, so I don't expect my office to open before labor day anyway.

I'm far more motivated at home. It's been great being home. We are in the middle of renovating the house so every day I typically get up at 5:30 do a couple hours of work on the house then log on by 9. We also just got a puppy a few weeks back and it's been great for training him.

In comment 14913970 FatMan in Charlotte said:

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has instituted a three tier workforce. - Essential to be at the office/workplace - Intermittent need to be at the office - Non-essential to be at the office I'm in the 2nd group and we will still be working from home until further notice which means I can go in when necessary, but otherwise can stay at home I know of several other companies doing something similar

I am afraid that the third tier may become obsolete eventually...

that we are also home with our soon to be 5 year old which, at times, can be madness. But even with that I find that I'm more productive, which should mean long term that I can be even more productive once she's in school (whenever that happens).

I was never the WFH guy. I like my desk set up, 2 screens, disconnect from home distractions, etc but i've adapted better than I thought I would. No commute is an absolute blessing though, 2-2.5 hours of my life back every single day. And while I don't necessarily like this aspect of it on a regular basis I was able to tackle something at 7:15am this morning that I would have normally waited to do at 8:30am when I got in. Makes me more flexible for my clients which would mean a better experience for them (and hopefully more business for me).

In comment 14914246 Sec 103 said:

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In comment 14913970 FatMan in Charlotte said: Quote: has instituted a three tier workforce. - Essential to be at the office/workplace - Intermittent need to be at the office - Non-essential to be at the office I'm in the 2nd group and we will still be working from home until further notice which means I can go in when necessary, but otherwise can stay at home I know of several other companies doing something similar I am afraid that the third tier may become obsolete eventually...

I don't think that. Don't get too caught up in the terminology. Being non-essential to the office often are key positions. Our entire salesforce is non-essential to come into an office. Our service techs. People actually visiting our customer base and potential new customers are extremely essential. Just not to working in an office.

it will be taken down

Have to go back to the office. I travel a lot so that's my escape from the house. It's so much cheaper not having to take the bridge everyday and pay the toll just to go into Pennsylvania.

Added benefit of not seeing those crap Eagle fans all the time too.

In comment 14914099 UConn4523 said:

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but not enough to outweigh all the benefits of WFH. I can get my human nature fact-to-face needs in my neighborhood and with friends/family anyway.

I missed that too but after 2 weeks back I forgot how many people around the job I cant stand

works for those who have the space to do so. Many don't and WFH isn't something that is ever going to work across the board.

Let me wfh forever. I’ll be as productive as before if not more productive and have a fucking life at the same time.

If I hear one more wack job lament this wfh thing in a conference call I’m going to lose my shit. Great you wanna go in that bad? Shut your hole and wait you will get back in there soon enough.

In comment 14914335 RasputinPrime said:

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works for those who have the space to do so. Many don't and WFH isn't something that is ever going to work across the board.

Yea I’m gonna cry bullshit there. I lived in a 750 square foot condo with a wife and kid and I found a way to make it work. By a desk and figure it out.

I want childcare back. Watching a three year old, playing teacher for another kid, and trying to get 40 hours in for two parents sucks.

In comment 14913970 FatMan in Charlotte said:

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has instituted a three tier workforce. - Essential to be at the office/workplace - Intermittent need to be at the office - Non-essential to be at the office I'm in the 2nd group and we will still be working from home until further notice which means I can go in when necessary, but otherwise can stay at home I know of several other companies doing something similar

My company has proven it can function entirely WFH, at least for a short time, but not everyone wants to go to permanent WFH. Personally, I'm in a couple of high-risk categories for COVID-19 so I have no intention of returning to the office for regular hours until I'm immune, one way or another, or until the new infection rate in the area dips to zero for weeks at a time.

Conversation my wife and I are having: She lost her job right before the lockdown and is looking for a WFH job. I'm already WFH. If we are both going to be telecommuting, and if we're cut off from the pleasures of city life because of plague, why are we living in Los Angeles?

...when I moved to FL fro the MD/DC area in 2005. Have loved it. I don’t think I could ever go back to an office environment and hopefully in a little over 2 years I won’t ever have to worry about it.

Took me a long time to learn how to turn the office off at the end of the day. I would often go into my home office after dinner to just check on a quick e-mail. 2 hours later....

In comment 14914338 djm said:

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In comment 14914335 RasputinPrime said: Quote: works for those who have the space to do so. Many don't and WFH isn't something that is ever going to work across the board. Yea I’m gonna cry bullshit there. I lived in a 750 square foot condo with a wife and kid and I found a way to make it work. By a desk and figure it out.

I live in 600 sq ft place and it absolutely sucked when the gyms weren't open. I wanted to get back in office, even with an hour commute. Now with gyms open, my company announced WFH for rest of year, and I'm stoked. It's great to feel like I have free time outside of gym and work during the week and sleeping enough.

In comment 14914027 gidiefor said:

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what I am saving/getting is more of my own time. I have an out building on my property that is a turn of the 20th century farm building. It's called a Granary, a building to store grain in. At one point it was turned into a sap house. We were using it for storage for my knife company and we converted it into a comfortable office. It has original solid maple floors that we had finished and polyurethaned, and it is 150 feet from my house. The commute is great! I make the transition to work from the house, and I can see all the same views of the farm. I installed a giant screen at the entrance (double doors) and when it's open and the windows are open - it's like being out in the country - heavenly. I am surrounded by all the things i love. The only real drawback is that we have rural internet and I am using massive amounts of data to work virtually -- and that costs more than my commuting costs ever did -- but I am not paying rent on an office -- so I guess that is a savings when I look at it that way.

Well, not ALL the things you love. I’m not there. 😂

We have proven the work can be done from home, but are being brought back to the office just because.

this thread does not apply to me but my social life is improving today with a trip to the dentist for cleaning.

People will work from home. 9 offices will stay open. Guessing we will see this more.

to return. But, they have made it clear they don't want to continue WFH in general. Personally, I don't know what I am going to do because I don't want to be there. The place was not properly cleaned and maintained under normal circumstances. Then my office was redesigned to have our whole team under 1 roof using an open concept. So, there is no distancing. I requested certification in writing that it is disinfected. But, the reality is, as soon as we set foot back inside, it won't matter because they won't continue to clean.

I bring all this up because at least 2 people in other offices in the building were at work for at least a week before the stay at home orders with serious symptoms. They came every day and they were not sent home, according to protocol. When we brought this up as a concern our boss shrugged it off. Now, in NYC there are literally thousands of people from whom I could have contracted the virus. But, I have no faith or trust in my boss or the greater organization.

have you discussed with HR by any chance? Its a legitimate concern and one that people should speak up about, IMO.

I'm the type of person that wouldn't really go to HR unless it was a dire emergency but I've talked to our HR Manager a few times since quarantine started to see what she thinks will happen, updates on company policy, etc.

I was talking to my colleague yesterday that's been going to the office 1-2x per week for work that can only be done there and he said there's only 4 or 5 people there (office was built for 30 or so) and even then people are touching stuff that isn't there's making it difficult to 1. stay sanitary and 2. make others feel comfortable.

I expect going back to work with people to be an utter mess. I was already disgusted by the general public prior to COVID and now that's been magnified 10x.

Workplace ergonomics is a big thing in many offices. What do companies do for WFH folk? Is it the responsibility/expense of the worker to outfit his/her home with a setup conducive to safely work all day/week/year?

Is this a concern of those of you who WFH?

I went from a standing desk at work to my dining room table. I can go grab my 2nd screen if I want but I haven't yet.

My wife is in the office and i've adapted to my setup. While not ideal I don't think my company should be responsible for duplicating my setup for at home use. I'm already saving money and time by not commuting - if I really wanted it I can buy it myself with the savings.

If they offer, that's something I'd take them up on I guess, but I wouldn't ask about it.

In comment 14914836 UConn4523 said:

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I went from a standing desk at work to my dining room table. I can go grab my 2nd screen if I want but I haven't yet. My wife is in the office and i've adapted to my setup. While not ideal I don't think my company should be responsible for duplicating my setup for at home use. I'm already saving money and time by not commuting - if I really wanted it I can buy it myself with the savings. If they offer, that's something I'd take them up on I guess, but I wouldn't ask about it.

Agree here. I went out a bought a second monitor. Not a big deal and worth the savings on time & gas.

to deduct purchases and a portion of the house come tax time, right?

in that I have been saving a lot in time and money with no commute (2.5 hours round trip).

My company has been just as productive as before, and our boss is taking it slow with considering re-opening. We're going to wait a few more weeks and then maybe do a staggered re-opening (one department in the office Tuesdays and Thursdays, one department in the office MWF).

The one thing I don't like about WFH is I feel like it's really impacting my ability to separate myself from my competition at work. Prior to COVID, I was positioning myself for a promotion - speaking up during meetings and really taking control of our department by staying on top of things in the office and keeping in constant communication with leadership. It was easy to stop by their office and check in on things, communicate successes and share progress with them in those face-to-face conversations where non-verbal cues are sometimes really important. Now, there's no brief exchanges passing eachother in the kitchen and we live in a world where we're only communicating on chat and standing conference calls. It's a lot harder to stand out in that type of environment, and I feel like leadership isn't getting a sense of how I'm managing or how hard I'm working because they don't see it like they used to. I need to figure it out.

In comment 14914825 fkap said:

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Workplace ergonomics is a big thing in many offices. What do companies do for WFH folk? Is it the responsibility/expense of the worker to outfit his/her home with a setup conducive to safely work all day/week/year? Is this a concern of those of you who WFH?

Yes. I had to buy a second monitor and am now considering whether i want to get a standing desk and better chair similar to what i have int he office. Those pedestal standing desk suck, so i am looking at a 3' x 4' one. My company wont pay for outfitting our homes which I guess makes sense since they are still paying rent and for all of our stuff in the office.

In comment 14914895 fkap said:

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to deduct purchases and a portion of the house come tax time, right?

Ed Norton did. 25% off the rent when he used the apartment for buisness purposes. He practiced in the bath tub :-)

... more than the office itself.

I worry for all the folks who have to take mass transit.

to work from home for all of two weeks at the peak of the outbreak last week of March first week of April before getting called back into the office. Was a hell of a lot more productive working from home than I ever imagined, but still can't say with a straight face that I got more done while working from home vs being at the office. I feel like a lot of people on my project are hyping up the fact that working from home they are being more productive to try and talk their bosses into letting them work from home more often, but the reality is their production isn't matching the hype. I swear everyone you talk to its been all roses when it comes to productivity working from home, then in reality it feels like the days they come into the office are the only day that true results are being netted.

Maybe I'm just being a cynic, and a bit of a scrooge since I was made to come back much earlier than everyone else, but the ability to get an answer from someone sitting within 50 ft of you vs even thinking of needing to call someone that you don't really need to bother with every simple question leads to so much more production. Now a better question to ask for a company is would a 5% (or whatever that may be) reduction in productivity be a worth-while trade off for 25% (or whatever that may be) increase in employee quality of life.

if its a caseload, or something that people have shared access to check, approve then send off to a client that's something that's pretty easily monitored. I think plenty of people are stretching the truth with getting more done while working from home, but I'm wondering if that has to do with soft enforcement.

I very much work in a "get your shit done and we don't care about the rest" environment which works well in a WFH situation. We are the busiest we've ever been and if I (or someone else) was ignoring all the new business that needs tending to it would be pretty obvious.

A friend of mine does forensic accounting and he said so many people are just mailing it in, barely making a dent in their case loads and doing the bare minimum. So he's aware that its happening and its up to him (or his bosses) to do something about it.

In comment 14915880 UConn4523 said:

Quote:

if its a caseload, or something that people have shared access to check, approve then send off to a client that's something that's pretty easily monitored. I think plenty of people are stretching the truth with getting more done while working from home, but I'm wondering if that has to do with soft enforcement. I very much work in a "get your shit done and we don't care about the rest" environment which works well in a WFH situation. We are the busiest we've ever been and if I (or someone else) was ignoring all the new business that needs tending to it would be pretty obvious. A friend of mine does forensic accounting and he said so many people are just mailing it in, barely making a dent in their case loads and doing the bare minimum. So he's aware that its happening and its up to him (or his bosses) to do something about it.

Good post. I'm in the same type of environment as you. We are one deep, so if things get dropped, it is easy to see. The only deterrent so far to productivity has been the lack of travel. There are certain things I have to see with site visits that can't be covered on conference calls.

so we all communicate that way anyway even when sitting 10 feet from each other (this drives me nuts in person, but i'm used to it by now). Teams also integrates all of our shared files so we can work on documents at the same time, and we use it for web conferences. It works on PC and Phone so i can take company video calls from the phone.

You'd really have to not give a shit about anything to drop the ball WFH at my company. Our CIO has made it incredibly easy to get our jobs done wherever we are.

and then they talk about logging into work and then getting in more workouts, teaching the kids, quality family time....

i keep wondering about being more productive but getting paid the same for fewer (consecutive) hours committed to the employer. But I also realize every job's metrics for "working" is different and working and productivity are not necessarily the same thing.

Mainly I'm just jealous because I still have to shower every day and get dressed.

In comment 14915889 Bill L said:

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and then they talk about logging into work and then getting in more workouts, teaching the kids, quality family time.... i keep wondering about being more productive but getting paid the same for fewer (consecutive) hours committed to the employer. But I also realize every job's metrics for "working" is different and working and productivity are not necessarily the same thing. Mainly I'm just jealous because I still have to shower every day and get dressed.

You can have both happen though. Before, just out of routine, I'd get up at 5:30AM to go to the gym. And half the time, I'd think it was too early and not go. Until they closed the gym, I was getting up at 7 and going to the gym. Now, I get up at 7 and workout at home, then usually do a walk in the evening.

Instead of spending an hour for lunch, now I can walk 10 feet to the kitchen, make a lunch and eat in 30 minutes. I can play with the dog and still have conference calls on the back patio or while taking a walk if it isn't essential to be on the computer.

Instead of coming home and decompressing before making dinner and eating at 7 or going out, I can prep during the day and cook at 5:30 and eat at 6

I've probably freed up 2 hours or more from my day just because of the routine I was in.

but I attribute that to no longer commuting 2.5 hours per day.

I've been on client calls earlier and later than my normal day simply because I'm home and able to logon to view what I need to, not worrying about driving or trying to tether my phone on a train.

I'm off the clock at 4:30. I get a call from boss at 5 asking for me to look up something in the database & it turns into a 45 minute project shooting off emails, etc. If we were in normal times, I wouldn't be able to do that because I wouldn't have my work database installed on my laptop.

In the grand scheme of things, a minor inconvenience compared to everything going on. But allow me to bitch for a minute, Haha.

But the good news I guess is that we have hit a lull in our testing. Maybe NYS is turning the corner? But we’re bracing for an uptick because of the protests. Hopefully that will not come to fruition.

In comment 14915950 Bill L said:

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But the good news I guess is that we have hit a lull in our testing. Maybe NYS is turning the corner? But we’re bracing for an uptick because of the protests. Hopefully that will not come to fruition.

Bill L, hoping for your sake, there won't be.

a conference room. If they are doing something which is a waste of time or are talking about something which doesn't concern you, you can go on mute and work. In a conference room you have to sit there twiddling your thumbs.

In comment 14915889 Bill L said:

Quote:

and then they talk about logging into work and then getting in more workouts, teaching the kids, quality family time.... i keep wondering about being more productive but getting paid the same for fewer (consecutive) hours committed to the employer. But I also realize every job's metrics for "working" is different and working and productivity are not necessarily the same thing. Mainly I'm just jealous because I still have to shower every day and get dressed.

There are definitely people from my group who are doing next to nothing all day. Part of that is a lot of our seasonal work for the spring has been cancelled and part is terrible work ethic and work habits.

Personally, some days I may not completely fill my day, but am also routinely answering emails after normal hours and have 1-2 meetings scheduled beyond my normal hours. It all evens out for me. But I am very productive fro
m home because I have had VPN access and a connection directly to my desktop at work for a few years, so I have been used to working from home or other remote locations from time to time.

I am not doing workouts during my work day. But, I am able to jump right in after my hours are done, instead of an hour to get home and then unwind or eat. I am definitely more productive in my personal life as well because of this.