Offices Reopening-Will you go?

Murphman88

I work for a multinational in Dublin. We can do our job fully from home as all in cloud. How do people think companies are going to reopen offices and what timeline? Until now my company had a funny attitude to any requests to wfh.' Presenteeism' was very much the rule.

My own feeling on this is that unless there is either a vaccine or therapeutic avaiible I will refuse a request to be present in the office. Will many people take this stance? I have elderly parents so feel as though I couldn't see them if I'm forced to sit in an open plan office during this crisis.

Vestiapx

Murphman88 wrote: »

I work for a multinational in Dublin. We can do our job fully from home as all in cloud. How do people think companies are going to reopen offices and what timeline? Until now my company had a funny attitude to any requests to wfh.' Presenteeism' was very much the rule.

My own feeling on is that unless there is either a vaccine or therapeutic avaiible I will refuse a request to be present in the office. Will many people take this stance? I have elderly parents so feel as though I couldn't see them if I'm forced to sit in an open plan office during this crisis.

If you can do 100% the same job then just sell it to them.

Murphman88

Murphman88 wrote: »

I work for a multinational in Dublin. We can do our job fully from home as all in cloud. How do people think companies are going to reopen offices and what timeline? Until now my company had a funny attitude to any requests to wfh.' Presenteeism' was very much the rule.

My own feeling on is that unless there is either a vaccine or therapeutic avaiible I will refuse a request to be present in the office. Will many people take this stance? I have elderly parents so feel as though I couldn't see them if I'm forced to sit in an open plan office during this crisis.

You might need to leave your job. If the office is open and policy is to work in the office and the government doesn’t forbid it, then you have to go.

trapp

Murphman88 wrote: »

I work for a multinational in Dublin. We can do our job fully from home as all in cloud. How do people think companies are going to reopen offices and what timeline? Until now my company had a funny attitude to any requests to wfh.' Presenteeism' was very much the rule.

My own feeling on this is that unless there is either a vaccine or therapeutic avaiible I will refuse a request to be present in the office. Will many people take this stance? I have elderly parents so feel as though I couldn't see them if I'm forced to sit in an open plan office during this crisis.

You do know there will might never be a vaccine.

I would imagine the office will not reopen unless social distancing is in operation.

But if it's deemed safe and you still refuse to come in?

road_high

Don’t mean to be blunt but if they want you there and you’ve signed up to it and it’s deemed safe why wouldn’t they be within their rights to expect you in ?

I work from home already in my role but I can’t wait to get out and meet colleagues and clients face to face again. Only so much you can do over the phone and emails. Sooner we are back in business the better

Atlantic Dawn

trapp wrote: »

You do know there will might never be a vaccine.

I would imagine the office will not reopen unless social distancing is in operation.

Exactly, the vaccine is a pipe dream.

pgj2015

when you think about it, the best situation for you is if you get the virus, then you can self isolate for 2 weeks, then you can visit your parents safely.

trapp

Anyone expecting to live life without risk is living a fairytale.

Without meaning to be blunt if you want to stay at home indefinitely while others get back to work you might have to give up your job.

The virus will not be going away.

Measures will be taken to ensure as little transmission happens as possible but the virus will still spread, hopefully in a limited way.

Murphman88

trapp wrote: »

You do know there will might never be a vaccine.

I would imagine the office will not reopen unless social distancing is in operation.

But if it's deemed safe and you still refuse to come in?

Do we think many offices will be able to create a safe social distancing space for employees?

Silane

We've never shut down where I work, we're required onsite, and if we don't like it we can take unpaid leave. Seems fair enough to me.

Jamie2k9

I work for a multinational and they are expecting social distancing will be required so the numbers allowed to work in the office will be reduced as a result. While exact plans are not worked unofficially lower level managers are saying any staff that have children to mind will be accommodated to continue to WFH and those who use public transport will also be accommodated to continue to WFH if they want. The latter will not be allowed back during the first phase of reopening.

Short to medium term it will probally be leadership with each department allowed to have x amount of people on site at one. If demand is high they will likely to a week in/out to meet demand.

trapp

Murphman88 wrote: »

Do we think many offices will be able to create a safe social distancing space for employees?

Thinking aloud possibly working in the office twice a week and wfh the other days

Reduces the amount of people in each day

road_high

Jamie2k9 wrote: »

I work for a multinational and they are expecting social distancing will be required so the numbers allowed to work in the office will be reduced as a result. While exact plans are not worked unofficially lower level managers are saying any staff that have children to mind will be accommodated to continue to WFH and those who use public transport will also be accommodated to contuse to WFH if they wise. The latter will not be allowed back during the first phase of reopening.

Short to medium term it will probally be leadership with each department allowed to have x amount of people on site at one. If demand is high they will likely to a week in/out to meet demand.

Won’t that cause a kind of apartheid and probably resentment amongst staff?
I know flexibility is needed but won’t that come across a special treatment? A bit like the “essential” and non essential lists where people thus see themselves as more important.
Not saying it’s right or wrong just pointing out how some staff may feel

johnmcdnl

[Deleted User] wrote: »

You might need to leave your job. If the office is open and policy is to work in the office and the government doesn’t forbid it, then you have to go.

If you speak with management along with other staff, management may realise that many staff would be happier and therefore perhaps better of working from home. I'd have a lot of respect for my employer if they took my concerns onboard and changed policy based on the concerns of workers.
If you don't ask you'll never get so regardless of what current policy might say, it doesn't mean that policies can't change. I'm sure management right across the world is considering this right now. OP is far from the only person thinking about this right now so I'm sure you'll find many employers will be happy to accommodate staff who can work from home in the aftermath of this. What company will want the bad PR of being the company thats forcing employees to work in the office and then some of those same employees later get sick or being illness back to families. And this is before factoring in that the working remotely capabilities have been much improved or tested during this period so management will be more confident that work can actually be done remotely. This is of course assuming your efficiency is remaining high now compared to office time.

So yes, if your employer forces and says you must, yes then, you probably must. But I really so imagine there won't be many employers who will put the boot down as hard as they may have done in the past.

Jamie2k9

road_high wrote: »

Won’t that cause a kind of apartheid and probably resentment amongst staff?
I know flexibility is needed but won’t that come across a special treatment? A bit like the “essential” and non essential lists where people thus see themselves as more important.
Not saying it’s right or wrong just pointing out how some staff may feel

I don't think so. Currently all staff (400 odd) can work remotely and have been since around 10 March. In May I don't expect management to say to department managers you must have staff in the building as overall I believe remote working has generally gone well. If people want to return they will be allowed however no more than 50% (my guess) of the workforce can be in the building at the same time and how to manage that. I think childcare and WFH etc is just them trying to accommodate as many as possible and to a lesser extend stagger numbers returning.

I should add we will not be allowed use meetings rooms when the office reopens and they must all be competed online.

LiquidZeb

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

Exactly, the vaccine is a pipe dream.

According to a professor at Oxford it isn't but what does she know? Especially compared to your authority on the topic.

Obvious Desperate Breakfasts

My husband’s office is provisionally saying August for the return to the office because everyone is doing really well working from home. And when they do return, they are implementing a work-from-home programme. When my husband returns, he’s probably going to work from home two or three days a week.

ILoveYourVibes

Murphman88 wrote: »

I work for a multinational in Dublin. We can do our job fully from home as all in cloud. How do people think companies are going to reopen offices and what timeline? Until now my company had a funny attitude to any requests to wfh.' Presenteeism' was very much the rule.

My own feeling on this is that unless there is either a vaccine or therapeutic avaiible I will refuse a request to be present in the office. Will many people take this stance? I have elderly parents so feel as though I couldn't see them if I'm forced to sit in an open plan office during this crisis.

I think most people will be glad to get out of the house and interact with others at this stage. I will.

ILoveYourVibes

LiquidZeb wrote: »

According to a professor at Oxford it isn't but what does she know? Especially compared to your authority on the topic.

Everything is a pipe dream until it exists.

eviltwin

I'm still working as normal, I don't have any fear about it because I know everyone is taking precautions. You have to live your life and that means going to work. I understand the concern but what's the alternative?

eviltwin

I'm still working as normal, I don't have any fear about it because I know everyone is taking precautions. You have to live your life and that means going to work. I understand the concern but what's the alternative?

Mr Meanor

One small business I know looking at some version of this in the back office for the future
Their manager comes from there.

https://www.superstaff.com/services/back-office-support/

https://www.superstaff.com/blog/outsourcing-trends-statistics/

Xertz

I’d say the social distancing measures will have to be pretty serious as there’s likely to be legal ramifications for employers who don’t bother or take shortcuts.

If someone gets covid 19, and can prove transmission occurred at work and an employer hasn’t done things to best practice and state guidelines, I would assume there would be a fairly serious risk of being sued, much like you would expect if you weren’t applying normal safety at work practices for any other area.

My guess is employers who are in anyway sensible will be able to get this to work fairly well and guidelines and measures will develop and evolve and become part of life for a time.

I’d say give it a few months and you’ll have a whole industry supporting social distancing solutions and COVID-19 risk mitigation like onsite testing, shields, office planning etc etc

Vestiapx

pgj2015 wrote: »

when you think about it, the best situation for you is if you get the virus, then you can self isolate for 2 weeks, then you can visit your parents safely.

Immunity has not been established as a definite.

Murphman88

pgj2015 wrote: »

when you think about it, the best situation for you is if you get the virus, then you can self isolate for 2 weeks, then you can visit your parents safely.

Cases of people now being infected a second time so wouldn't bet on immunity.

LiquidZeb

ILoveYourVibes wrote: »

Everything is a pipe dream until it exists.

Well it doesn't just appear from thin air so I'm not going to discount all the work it'll take. I swear some people don't want a vaccine on here.

Guy:Incognito

ILoveYourVibes wrote: »

Everything is a pipe dream until it exists.

No. A pipe dream is something that is unattainable or fanciful. Every project anyone is working on is not considered unattainable until so eureka moment out of the blue that no one was expecting.


pipe dream
noun
an unattainable or fanciful hope or scheme.

ChikiChiki

Work from home to until next year we've been told. Social distancing is not workable in an office environment and there are also big concerns about insurance liabilities.

It's working well for us to date.

The Bishop Basher

ILoveYourVibes wrote: »

I think most people will be glad to get out of the house and interact with others at this stage. I will.

This !!

I work for a large multinational and worked from home anyway before all this kicked off, only going into the office once every 2 weeks for a meeting with my boss.

I’m a bit reclusive and prefer working from home so will continue to do so but I can’t wait to have the option of going into the office again and will head in as soon as it opens.

I love how the office will be “deemed safe”. By who, the company? There really are an awful lot of gullible people around.

El Gato De Negocios

Until creches are operational I will not be setting foot in my office and my employer has said they accept this for all staff that have kids who require care. Tbh I'd like to get back in, even on a piece meal basis, just to get some sort of normality back.

Trampas

It’s not just the office. It’s how you get there. Hopefully out of this companies realise you don’t need everyone sitting in and office dressed in formal wear to make a business work. How much does office space cost?

Companies could save a fortune by reducing their required office space if more worked from home and had complete hot desk setup.

I’m already a 2-3 day week working from home and won’t be rushing back into office as long as social distance is an issue. Standing on a train for 30-40 minutes a day isn’t my cup of tea. My role isn’t a office based requirement

Unearthly

Been told unofficially that the building can't do social distancing safely with 1500 odd people so expect work from home til social distancing is eased.

I'm happy with that. Hate the office

lawred2

trapp wrote: »

Anyone expecting to live life without risk is living a fairytale.

Without meaning to be blunt if you want to stay at home indefinitely while others get back to work you might have to give up your job.

The virus will not be going away.

Measures will be taken to ensure as little transmission happens as possible but the virus will still spread, hopefully in a limited way.

What real measures can be taken in the context of a busy office if everyone has gone back to work?

Now that I think of it, this could do wonders for floor space costs and commercial investment portfolios if social distancing is to become the norm in offices.

The thought of being at home for another 6/12 months is not something making me particularly happy.

weemcd

I wouldn't be Fùckin fussed on it at this point, if we all return to work cases will skyrocket and any lockdown so far will have been for nothing.

Until transmission of cases is down, and I mean really down along with deaths, it's not a good idea.

I would think measures need to be in place for a while longer yet, and proceed with extreme caution. I wouldn't feel very safe getting public transport then getting into an office where you've no guarantee people are cleaning their hands properly, distancing properly etc etc etc.

rn

Couple of points, most raised in other posts.

Having most people back increases the risk of a sick workforce, even with social distancing. Employer will have to decide themselves if it's worth risk, as it's likely employees will be absent for 2+weeks for recovery.

Half in office, half out is the most expensive way to run office. Per head costs are doubled. If no one is in office space light and heat costs can be reduced greatly.

Every company will have to rethink their office strategy out of this. I can see a lot more IT work going across the world as a result and less reliance on local markets to fill positions. I can see a lot of IT based organisations bringing their office foot print way down.

Childcare, parent care. There's still a significant minority who have home care requirements and can't really leave home as a result.

High risk category. There's a significant minority who are recovering/recovered from cancer, cardiovascular problems and other conditions and diseases who should be cocooning right now.

Both of these groups might not be able to take unpaid leave and their employer can't afford to have them gone anyway. These will have to be accommodated via WFH.

Public transport risk. If these people are restricted from office, it will put pressure on private transport and car pooling.

Sending everyone home or calling everyone back is easiest option. Having a split is tough call and tricky to manage.

voluntary

Not really afraid that much about going back to work. Worried however about getting there. Thingking about getting on crowded DART/LUAS is terryfying at this stage.

I absolutely will go. I cycle in so no public transport challenges. I’m not staying home for a moment longer than I have to

c68zapdsm5i1ru

Murphman88 wrote: »

Cases of people now being infected a second time so wouldn't bet on immunity.

Is that true? I thought it was just that there's as yet no evidence that you can't get it again.

c68zapdsm5i1ru

By the way the Govt want a minimum of twenty per cent of public servants to be working from home in future. So I presume they're trying to lead the way in making wfh a norm in the long term.

stephenjmcd

Working from home at the moment but it's not a long term solution for me, so when the office opens I'll be going in.

amadangomor

pgj2015 wrote: »

when you think about it, the best situation for you is if you get the virus, then you can self isolate for 2 weeks, then you can visit your parents safely.

This amounts to medical advice which you cannot give here. Also he can't visit his parents under current regulations.

Hani Kosti

Still cycling to the office one day a week (and it works wonders for my sanity). Social distancing in the office is working fine, we're in a 5 storey building and access is restricted to one floor only. On site gym and café closed for time being.
The plan is to have week on/off once return to the office is allowed for several weeks.
I am trying to get WFH access for last 4 years so now will definitely fight harder than ever.

antimatterx

rn wrote: »

Couple of points, most raised in other posts.

Having most people back increases the risk of a sick workforce, even with social distancing. Employer will have to decide themselves if it's worth risk, as it's likely employees will be absent for 2+weeks for recovery.

Half in office, half out is the most expensive way to run office. Per head costs are doubled. If no one is in office space light and heat costs can be reduced greatly.

Every company will have to rethink their office strategy out of this. I can see a lot more IT work going across the world as a result and less reliance on local markets to fill positions. I can see a lot of IT based organisations bringing their office foot print way down.

Childcare, parent care. There's still a significant minority who have home care requirements and can't really leave home as a result.

High risk category. There's a significant minority who are recovering/recovered from cancer, cardiovascular problems and other conditions and diseases who should be cocooning right now.

Both of these groups might not be able to take unpaid leave and their employer can't afford to have them gone anyway. These will have to be accommodated via WFH.

Public transport risk. If these people are restricted from office, it will put pressure on private transport and car pooling.

Sending everyone home or calling everyone back is easiest option. Having a split is tough call and tricky to manage.

You do realize that just because work can be outsourced to save on costs, doesn't mean the work product is any good. It won't happen.

My old employer hired devs from India multiple times as they were cheap. He fired each dev he hired due to poor work product, and poor code.

We lost a big client because of all the bugs in the software. **** him anyway, he was a prick. But this "outsourcing" because it's cheaper will never happen to companies that people actually want to work for.

lawred2

rn wrote: »

Couple of points, most raised in other posts.

Having most people back increases the risk of a sick workforce, even with social distancing. Employer will have to decide themselves if it's worth risk, as it's likely employees will be absent for 2+weeks for recovery.

Half in office, half out is the most expensive way to run office. Per head costs are doubled. If no one is in office space light and heat costs can be reduced greatly.

Every company will have to rethink their office strategy out of this. I can see a lot more IT work going across the world as a result and less reliance on local markets to fill positions. I can see a lot of IT based organisations bringing their office foot print way down.

Childcare, parent care. There's still a significant minority who have home care requirements and can't really leave home as a result.

High risk category. There's a significant minority who are recovering/recovered from cancer, cardiovascular problems and other conditions and diseases who should be cocooning right now.

Both of these groups might not be able to take unpaid leave and their employer can't afford to have them gone anyway. These will have to be accommodated via WFH.

Public transport risk. If these people are restricted from office, it will put pressure on private transport and car pooling.

Sending everyone home or calling everyone back is easiest option. Having a split is tough call and tricky to manage.

already tried and already failed

ednwireland

ill go in as i have a lot of network works outstanding that i need to do (due to company merger)

but i have my own office

and ill be glad to get away from my home broadband wihich sturggles with most things

Cuddlesworth

antimatterx wrote: »

You do realize that just because work can be outsourced to save on costs, doesn't mean the work product is any good. It won't happen.

My old employer hired devs from India multiple times as they were cheap. He fired each dev he hired due to poor work product, and poor code.

We lost a big client because of all the bugs in the software. **** him anyway, he was a prick. But this "outsourcing" because it's cheaper will never happen to companies that people actually want to work for.

He just hired crap indian Devs, it was probably because he was paying bottom of the barrel prices. You get what you pay for, even with outsourcing. And in larger companies they wouldn't hire a single person, they hire entire teams of them.

fits

I would hope that I will be able to work from home 2 days a week after this, but who knows. I can do a lot of my work at home, no need to be in every day.

is_that_so

Know of one person who has to go to work on May 5, some things cannot be done from home. Others have been told of plans or plans in development. Most people I know expect to be in work at some point over the month of May. I don't think anyone can assume that they will be allowed to WFH all the time indefinitely.

Mitch Connor

I do look forward to going back into the office and seeing colleagues again, but I reckon we will see far more working from home in future than we saw previously.

In my office there were a few people who WFH a day a week. I think in future we will see most poeple work from home for some days of the week.

thegills

The world as we know has changed and WFH is now a part of life. MNC's will sell of most of their office space and keep the bare minimum.