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I look forward to seeing you in the office very soon ...

(8 Posts)
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OakDryad Sat 21-May-22 12:02:39

I love this story.

Nadhim Zahawi, the education secretary, ordered an end to working from home last month after pressure from the efficiency minister Jacob Rees-Mogg.

According to Schools Week, the DfE has [only] 4,200 desks for 8,000 full-time staff in its 12 offices across England, including just 95 desks for nearly 300 staff in Bristol, and 24 desks for 110 staff in Leeds. It reported that some staff at the DfE’s office in Sheffield had been sent home because of overcrowding, as nearly 1,500 staff tried to use the 790 desks.

As with many government departments, working from home was widely practised at the DfE before the pandemic. About 60-70% of DfE staff typically worked from home or had flexible working patterns on a daily basis, and in recent years the DfE’s office space has shrunk to reflect that.

www.theguardian.com/education/2022/may/20/department-for-education-desk-shortage-staff-working-chaotic-conditions

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Elegran Sat 21-May-22 13:01:04
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Here is a double-width stool for two people using one piano. I assume the DoE has acquired 4,000 of them for its 8,000 full-time staff to share? Or will they have to sit on one another's knees?

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Aspen Sat 21-May-22 16:24:44

While JRM is giving out his cards hoping to see more people back at their desks, maybe he could start with his boss who seems to spend most of his time touring the country with his dressing up box.

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NotSpaghetti Sat 21-May-22 16:54:18

Aspen!
grin

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Lucca Sat 21-May-22 17:50:54

So what will supercilious JRM say about this ?

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varian Sat 21-May-22 18:10:52

What utter nonsense.

We need politicians with the ability to look at the evidence before issuing decrees.

The evidence was that productivity increased when people were working from home. They saved time and money on senseless commuting , had a better quality of life and actually on average spent more hours at work.

However Rees Mogg and his friends have investments in city office blocks so working from home cannot be allowed - even if it is better for the economy, quality of life and saving the planet from uneccesary commuting journeys burning fossil fuel.

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Pantglas2 Sat 21-May-22 18:13:50

So productive working from home for DVLA in Swansea that they’ve been given bonuses...

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Dinahmo Sat 21-May-22 18:44:07

I remember working for one of the large firms back in the 80s when hot desking was introduced. The reason for this is that a large number of staff would be out of the office at clients and so their desks would often be unused for several weeks/weeks.

I can't imagine that many of the civil servants will be away from their offices for days at a time so no wonder they want to continue working from home.

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