New Yorkers not returning to offices

[Dave Schwartz]

This is a great thread and you guys have all combuined to nail down reality.

Reality is...

Remote work is good for the company because...

If done permanently, they can let go of a lot of office space, which frees up big $$$.

Remote work is good for the employee because...

It allows them more freedom to do as they want & need. i.e. care for children, have a snack, etc.

It also allows them to cheat the employer out of focused work.

Remote work is BAD for the company because...
As the employees are LESS FOCUSED, the quality & amount of production falls.

This forces them to take STEPS to force the workers to show up and pay attention.

This is already happening.
I have a client who has complained that his company monitors time in front of his screen. Not precisely how this works, but the theme is, "If you're not in front of your computer, you must not be working."

Remote work is BAD for the employee because...

The above-mentioned worker has told me that the job is far worse than it was before because now he has this "Big Brother is always watching and counting the minutes." (Note: His job is over $150k per year and not easy to replace.)

California will likely try to protect their workers with stronger laws. But they can't push too hard or the tech giants will head to Austin or elsewhere.

[davew]

don't forget commute time wasted and resulting effect on catastrophic global climate disruption

good for employee and the world


average commute time is new high, 27.6 minutes one way

https://www.census.gov/newsroom/pres...ork-rises.html

[PaceAdvantage]

Originally Posted by Dave Schwartz

Remote work is BAD for the employee because...

The above-mentioned worker has told me that the job is far worse than it was before because now he has this "Big Brother is always watching and counting the minutes." (Note: His job is over $150k per year and not easy to replace.)

California will likely try to protect their workers with stronger laws. But they can't push too hard or the tech giants will head to Austin or elsewhere.

Whenever you are working on your employer's computer, they can and will monitor everything. Either remotely or in the office. Not sure how working from home really changes any of that.

If you are remoting into your PC at work, they can and will monitor you just as they would if you were sitting in the office.

[Dave Schwartz]

Originally Posted by PaceAdvantage

Whenever you are working on your employer's computer, they can and will monitor everything. Either remotely or in the office. Not sure how working from home really changes any of that.

If you are remoting into your PC at work, they can and will monitor you just as they would if you were sitting in the office.

That may be true.
However, the difference is a feeling of "invasion."

Another friend is in a similar situation - though without the level of income the first one has.

He actually brought up the idea that the job now owns his home; that it is no longer his own.

This leads me to believe that, ultimately, it comes down to losing their only (pseudo) sovereign space.

[PaceAdvantage]

Actually, if you use something like windows remote desktop to log into your work PC, you actually GAIN some freedom.

While they can monitor what you are doing on your work PC, they can't monitor what you are doing on your home pc that you are using to log into the work PC...

[boxcar]

Originally Posted by Dave Schwartz

That may be true.
However, the difference is a feeling of "invasion."

Another friend is in a similar situation - though without the level of income the first one has.

He actually brought up the idea that the job now owns his home; that it is no longer his own.

This leads me to believe that, ultimately, it comes down to losing their only (pseudo) sovereign space.

You nailed it perfectly.

Also, I know people who are remoting and showing up at the office. Some don't mind the remoting, but most do because they have a difficult time in delineating "office" space from their own personal home space. They don't like the overlap. They don't like the office invading their castle as it blurs the distinction.

[Rex Phinney]

There is no way the level of "monitoring" is the same when employees are at home vs in an office.


The employer is still going to monitor emails and have security stuff in place but in terms of checking up to ensure work production (ie counting minutes etc) it's next level when employees are working from home. The employer naturally becomes hyper sensitive about paying people to sit at home and watch Seinfeld reruns.


I've got one client who has two offices, last year he caved and allowed one of the offices to work from home. After 4 months of this arraignment those employees were doing jack shit. So much so that the ones still in an office had absorbed the workload. The work from home peeps became unemployed peeps.

[boxcar]

Originally Posted by Rex Phinney

There is no way the level of "monitoring" is the same when employees are at home vs in an office.


The employer is still going to monitor emails and have security stuff in place but in terms of checking up to ensure work production (ie counting minutes etc) it's next level when employees are working from home. The employer naturally becomes hyper sensitive about paying people to sit at home and watch Seinfeld reruns.


I've got one client who has two offices, last year he caved and allowed one of the offices to work from home. After 4 months of this arraignment those employees were doing jack shit. So much so that the ones still in an office had absorbed the workload. The work from home peeps became unemployed peeps.

Which manifests the wisdom of the old adage: When the cat's away, the mice will play.

[PaceAdvantage]

Originally Posted by Rex Phinney

I've got one client who has two offices, last year he caved and allowed one of the offices to work from home. After 4 months of this arraignment those employees were doing jack shit. So much so that the ones still in an office had absorbed the workload. The work from home peeps became unemployed peeps.

Kinda doesn't make sense that just because people work from home, they think they don't have to work (or work as hard) compared to in the office.

Either work gets done or it doesn't. Doesn't really matter where the work is being done (unless it is location-dependent).

If people think they can get away with not doing work just because they are working from home, they or their work isn't all that important to begin with.

Either that, or they are redundant, as appears to be the case in your example.

Working from home didn't change that. It just exposed it.

[Dave Schwartz]

Originally Posted by PaceAdvantage

Actually, if you use something like windows remote desktop to log into your work PC, you actually GAIN some freedom.

While they can monitor what you are doing on your work PC, they can't monitor what you are doing on your home pc that you are using to log into the work PC...

Both of the people are using their own PCs and the companies ahev agreed to pay them a small amount of money on each paycheck to agree not to use the pc for personal use while logged into the company.

BELIEVE IT OR NOT.

[boxcar]

Originally Posted by PaceAdvantage

Kinda doesn't make sense that just because people work from home, they think they don't have to work (or work as hard) compared to in the office.

Either work gets done or it doesn't. Doesn't really matter where the work is being done (unless it is location-dependent).

If people think they can get away with not doing work just because they are working from home, they or their work isn't all that important to begin with.

Either that, or they are redundant, as appears to be the case in your example.

Working from home didn't change that. It just exposed it.

You should brush up on Parkinson's business law, which essentially says, "Work will tend to spread itself out over the time allotted to it." This means that if an employer says that he expects "x" amount of work is to be done in "y" time, the vast majority of employees will either take all the time allotted or go beyond the time. Very few employees are ambitious enough or self-motivated enough to accomplish more in less time. And for that matter, very few managers or employers are smart enough to know how to increase productivity over the same time frame.

Working from home can really put a strain on the above mentioned law, since many employees would fee more relaxed at home. Home is their psychological comfort zone. Therefore, employers, at least with some workers, would have to find ways to exert pressure on employees to get them out of their comfy zone and to maintain minimum productivity levels.

[JustRalph]

One of you experts tell me how to keep the dog from barking in the middle of a conference call

[Tom]

Originally Posted by JustRalph

One of you experts tell me how to keep the dog from barking in the middle of a conference call

Jeffrey Tobin chocked his dog.
Oh, wait. That was his chicken.

Never mind.

[PaceAdvantage]

YouTube

[tucker6]

In my 35 year career, probably only 10-20% of workers can self perform without the structure and supervision that an office provides. I don't care what studies you read on the internet, common sense and experience tells us otherwise with regard to productivity.

For the newer generations born with a cell phone in their hands,, the percentage that can self perform is even lower.