There is more and more proof every day that workers who are standing up to the unnecessary RTO by continuing to work remotely are making gains, with JPMorgan being the latest case. I've said it before and I'll say it again, if most of us don't show up, they can't fire us all!
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Collateralized / asset backed / run of mill commercial real estate book, across the industry.
And yes, I have had offers for more money, 100% remote, but I want to stay with my network at this point, if possible. As for the backpedaling, I personally think people will job hop in return for their time, cost of time spent away from family, loss of work productivity due to commute, realized cost of commuting, etc.
A whole nother convo - climate change and increasing commutes......we saw during summer 2020 how pollution decreased dramatically because of decreased highway gridlock. At some point pretty soon, we must decrease fossil fuel emissions, and unfortunately, electric cars are simply not ready to be a feasible answer for most people.
I agree with what you said.
Have you found another job that lets you do what you do for 100% remote? I am finding that more and more companies, after saying 100% remote in the worst of the pandemic... are now backpedaling.
And what is the "real reason" you mention towards the end of your post?
The fact is, due to Covid, our cultural rules have changed.
People now realize it is possible to have a thriving career without being in the office even three times per week, especially when most of their teammates sit in multiple places across the country. Some jobs require office presence.....but if I learned anything from Covid, it's that "time is precious." If I can see my family for two more hours per day, that means a lot to me. Enough to switch companies? Yes. Again, my job can be done successfully this way. I realize some cannot. But to have this complete idiocracy shoved down my throat re collaboration when we all know the real reason, is getting a bit hard to stomach. Candor? Transparency? Let's try that for once and actually have productive, solution based discussions.
there's some more detailed discussion about this in an adjacent thread but the bottom line is... enforcement is starting and people will end up being terminated for it - no unemployment, no severance... so go ahead and be sure to report back on how it all worked out for you and your buddies.
Sure keep holding that line…until you get fired. Good luck.
I RTO and it is a disaster! The whole group sits together including my boss! One coworker is extremely loud and will say anything that is crossing his mind at the moment like he wants KFC or the score of the latest game or this chick or that chick. It is 14 yo mentality and everybody else loves the circus except for a few off us who remain quiet. I am less than half as productive as I was WFH. Boss is the typical WF manager that just gets a paycheck and happy to be in the office with the dudes and away from the wifey. He is incapable of making any decisions or make the team environment better for everyone. Some of us have asked to move or be in a quieter space or WFH but he is just “waiting for Guidance” and just let the circus continue.
I only go in 1 day per week max
Lot of us were hired full time remote from day one, at reduced salaries because of "the cost savings benefit to you of working remote".
Now WF tears up those agreements and tells us to "return" to an office that we never had in the first place. And to incur all the costs associated with a commute, without a corresponding adjustment from the current "reduced salaries".
I added up my commute costs. It's over 10 thousand dollars a year, and gas isn't getting any cheaper. Time has value, too.
The people who argue that you are just going back to what you did before the pandemic clearly weren’t told to go into a different office location that is much farther away and now have to pay for parking in addition to more wasted time and gas.
Finding the stop-complaining-and-come-in-it's-what-we-did-prepandemic argument to be interesting. It completely discounts the pandemic as a massive disruptor that illuminated how Office Space could carry on - in some cases thrive - without offices and the layers of managers and bureaucracy that came with them.
Those arguments invariably resort to something subjective, like nostalgia for the old days or subservient obedience and reverence to the corporation, some kind of sense of duty. Thinking objectively - taking off the employee/commuter hat and putting on the shareholder hat - I'd want my ownership stake to be in the company that can do the same with less...less multiyear leases, municipal obligations, building/campus footprint, etc.
Instead, the suits pitch collaboration or partnership as motivators to return - feelgood nonsense that can't be quantified. Nobody seems to be subscribing to such foolishness which is a credit to us all.
@god+1guLER6h I agree, other than getting up earlier, putting on pants and shoes, fighting traffic for 45 minutes, finding a place to sit in open seating, driving in traffics 45 minutes home and spending about $5 a day in gas it is exactly like working from home
What you don't seem to understand is there are many people hired before the pandemic to be remote workers.
It is not a return to office for them as they had no office before the pandemic. Now their remote agreements have been torn up and they are being told to come in.
That is a material change in their job.
A recession is coming. This should be the last of our worries.
Er... there are full time remote jobs out there. Can't you get one of those?
Last time I checked, if you want to get paid for your job, you have to follow rules. If that means working in an office, that means you come into the office. The rules haven’t changed.
Do they want us back because of the floor space cost?
With little to none "in person" interaction with my team that is scattered in other states including mgr we connect very well via sykpe calls.
I understand there are some roles that do require being in the office...many don't.
Mgmt will need to think outside the box--donuts & coffee are not a perk to come back in 3x week. That's my 2 cents.
I started with three days a week then dropped down to two. I still don’t interact with anyone on my team in the office so will only be doing this for a little longer. Our director came in the same office one day and waved at me. That was my interaction.
I only am going in because I live minutes away from my office.
I honestly do not know what the big deal is about going back in the office. Tell me what the big deal is? It's what we've been doing before the pandemic. I understand wanting flexibility. I like flexibility, but to be home everyday working gets to me.
Honestly, employees cannot dictate to employers what they will do. There are plenty of people out of work, and they will fill your spot fast with that defiant attitude.
You do what you want, but don't try to tell others what to do. I can't afford to lose my job.
You are wrong. They do not have all the data right now but moving quick to curb the issue very soon. Based on what I am hearing under the COO org.
You're 100% correct! They only want you back to micro manage and make sure you're sitting in your seat for enough hours a day.