Get back to the office! But why?

If shop workers, carers, NHS staff, Teachers, Police, Fire Services, Road sweepers. Rubbish collectors and many other employment sectors have to be in-situ to do their job is it unreasonable to expect office workers not to?

I'm failing to understand what you are saying here, GG13.

Are you saying that office workers should be back in their offices because all the other workers you mention have to be in situ?

I certainly wouldn't find that a valid reason to have to go into an office when it wasn't necessary.

I'm only slightly quite glad my work means I don't have all these politics to deal with.

Fishing boat skippers and crews have to go out to sea to do their work, but those who work in restaurants cooking the catch don't have to row after them in dinghies to buy it.

GrannyGravy your point is nonsensical or mean spirited. Which is it?

That made me laugh Elegran.

MaizieD if their offices are Covid-19 safe, if they have no underlying health issues which would put them in the clinically vulnerable category I cannot see why returning to the workplace is such a contentious issue.

A combination of home and office working would mean less people on public transport at any one time, less people in the office which would make it easier to be Covid-19 compliant.

suziewoozie

GrannyGravy your point is nonsensical or mean spirited. Which is it?

It is neither, as an employer we have had to ensure that our business can continue during the pandemic and in the future.

The majority of our employees were happy to return to work full time as before, some are working from home and coming in when it is deemed necessary, this has been mutually agreed.

It’s like banging your head on a brick wall isn’t it? I’ll try once more - if the work can be done at home (with the obvious proviso of going in as and when necessary) and employer and employee are happy with this, why should anyone believe it shouldn’t be acceptable - or do some posters hate their fellow human beings so much they want them unnecessarily to spent thousands of pounds on commuting and hours and hours of time?

I don’t give a fig about your employees GG that’s between you and them. You said you wanted people in general back in the office because others had to go into work to do their jobs. That’s mean and petty and frankly very silly

I understand what Grannygravy is saying about other workers, office workers do seem to be making a meal of it in comparison. I'm sure there must be some middle way where there is some working from home and some office work.

soda what GG is saying is that because some people physically have to go into work, then everyone should. That is beyond ludicrous. It’s actually quite authoritarian and totalitarian in fact.

sodapop

I understand what Grannygravy is saying about other workers, office workers do seem to be making a meal of it in comparison. I'm sure there must be some middle way where there is some working from home and some office work.

Yes that is what I gave repeatedly posted sodapop

Many Office workers have been fortunate enough to be able to work from home throughout the height of the pandemic. Easing back into offices a couple of days a week where they are Covid compliant is neither a totalitarian or authoritarian view.

But fir what purpose. If their employers have found no decrease in productivity. What is the point?

GG I see you’ve gone all Humpty Dumpty on us

‘If shop workers, carers, NHS staff, Teachers, Police, Fire Services, Road sweepers. Rubbish collectors and many other employment sectors have to be in-situ to do their job is it unreasonable to expect office workers not to?‘

Just to remind posters what GG actually posted. The rationale for going back to the office is because others have to be in-situ

unreasonable to expect office workers not to

I was asking a question, not demanding that every office worker be back at their desk at 9am Monday morning regardless.

What is wrong with going into your place of work a couple of times a week (or more so if it’s necessary for business reasons) if it is COVID-19 compliant and you are not clinically vulnerable?

If it is worse for employee and employer why on earth would you. It's like saying what's the harm in doing your job wearing wellies.

Galaxy if it is worse for employer and employees obviously you would not return to the office.

(I spend time in wellies at work by the way, especially if I have to visit a building site)

suziewoozie

It’s like banging your head on a brick wall isn’t it? I’ll try once more - if the work can be done at home (with the obvious proviso of going in as and when necessary) and employer and employee are happy with this, why should anyone believe it shouldn’t be acceptable - or do some posters hate their fellow human beings so much they want them unnecessarily to spent thousands of pounds on commuting and hours and hours of time?

Absolutely agree.

Also why put yourself needlessly in harms way?

It is nonsensical.

Dear god.

Many people can't accept change and this pandemic has brought changes that were already happening to a head. There are many jobs in the UK and beyond that can be done at home because of technology and employers are seeing the benefits to themselves of staff WFH. I don't understand why people want things to go back to how they were when they weren't that good. Commuting has been a nightmare for people for a long time now.
Taking all those people who can do their jobs effectively from home off the roads, out of the trains and buses would help people who have to commute have an easier journey.

Do you know what a rhetorical question is GG ? ( that was an example btw ?)Whether you’re wearing your wellies or not, you are in a hole and should stop digging. No one is saying never go in again - it all depends - there will certainly be no set formula. It doesn’t work like that

When I was working about 14 years ago now, I occasionally had to commute to London from the south coast.

It was an utter nightmare with time being a big issue. Having to get up at 5.30am to get a train to arrive at the various banks/offices in reasonable time. Then reversing the travel in the late afternoon/evening not getting home until between 6 or 7.

Trains were often late or cancelled. Seats were usually taken which sometimes meant standing all the way to and from Victoria.

People were doing this day in and day out before wfh. It was only a half life. Now mental and physical health must be benefiting enormously. No one should have to live that sort of working life and if it can be avoided it is a very civilising decision.

Trains and conditions have got so much worse since what a way to treat people.

suziewoozie

‘If shop workers, carers, NHS staff, Teachers, Police, Fire Services, Road sweepers. Rubbish collectors and many other employment sectors have to be in-situ to do their job is it unreasonable to expect office workers not to?‘

Just to remind posters what GG actually posted. The rationale for going back to the office is because others have to be in-situ

In many cases working from home is far less efficient than working from an office. I have already placed in this thread an instance of someone working at home failing to pass on an important message to a large food distribution loading dock supervisor due to the fact that the home worker was distracted by the families children at the time he should have been attending to the important matter at hand.

The above failure later in the evening brought about a serious safety incident which our company was requested to independently investigate. When our assignment team investigated the matter all the loading dock workers stated they felt completely abandoned by "their Bosses" and all who would normally work in support of their operation from the site offices.

Our report on the incident to the company contained that teams comments which obviously resonated with senior management in the company as the regional director visited the site very shortly after our report was submitted and I am informed she thanked all the manual workers on the loading dock for all their efforts in working throughout the crisis. She also advised them that the company would ensure that far greater support would be readily on hand in the future.

Following the visit, all office staff that work in collaboration or support of those in the distribution centre were informed that they were to return to their offices just as soon as safe Covid working procedures could be introduced within the site offices. I believe that has now been completed and all office staff are now back working on site.

However, I believe the above demonstrates the psychological impact of office workers not being on site can have on essential manual workers while they are carrying out their job roles.

I would also believe that should anyone tell those workers that office staff do not want to return because they are saving large sums of money on commuting costs may well find themselves with a riot on their hands.

Serious mistakes can be made by people working in an office too. One example is not enough to demonstrate that all office staff should return to work.
I am not sure if businesses such as distribution etc may need some of their office staff on site but organisations such as the CS are unlikely to need staff in the office. They can return if they want to but there is no pressure to do so and here in Wales people are still told to work from home.