you mean the pandemic that completely upended the entire global economy and society?
the one that made entire industries basically vanish? the one that no one was prepared for?
like, I been 100% remote since 2015 for orgs that were already equipped for that, and life went on just fine when COVID hit. Jr. Devs at orgs that weren't equipped for remote definitely suffered, in the same way that not having winter tiers or chains would screw you when a sudden blizzard hits Texas.
> in the same way that not having winter tiers or chains would screw you when a sudden blizzard hits Texas.
Doesn't this just prove the point, though? You seem to be saying it takes additional resources and time to make WFH work as effectively as normal, in-office work. Many workplaces are resource-constrained and may not be able to implement those practices.
How do those resources compare to the cost of maintaining offices, the costs to workers of commutes and being more or less forced into expensive and crowded urban centers, and the environmental cost of the commute and the property maintenance?
Let's be real. The reason we all love WFH is because we can slack off. It's so easy to game the system and make it look like we're working when we're not.
Funny, I have bittersweet feelings about WFH because it was so much easier for me to slack off in office. All I needed was a butt in chair for 8 hours a day.
WFH I'm expected to track my productive time and ensure it adds up to 8 hours. Maybe some people can get away with fudging their records but I think there's a pretty widespread understanding that coworkers who regularly have lengthy periods where they're neither responding to DMs nor producing output aren't actually working for the full workday.
In office, if I spent an hour to go for a walk and to a coffee-shop during my 8 hour workday, it was understood that I was probably doing some backround processing while stretching my legs.
WFH if I disappear for an hour, it's assumed I'm not working (and I'm certainly not tracking that as productive work time)
>The reason we all love WFH is because we can slack off.
Don't insult me like that.
I won't pretend I don't know people who only work 4 hours a week, but stop acting like you know me.
I love work from home because I can get actual quiet. Not music downing out distractions. Quiet.
If you want to insinuate that I don't work, or perpetuate a culture that assumes I will not work as hard because there's no hall monitor, then get bent.
I don't think it's any easier, it's just less unpleasant because you don't have to pretend to be working as actively while slacking off.
And if this is true it just proof of the merits of WFH. If everyone is 'slacking off' and productivity is basically unchanged, it just shows what a waste of everyone's lives working in the office was.
Not any more than when I was in the office. Let's be real here - it's a rare individual who can do deep and productive knowledge work for 8 hours straight. All work from home means is that now when I take a break it's to do something productive, like a load of laundry, or really relaxing, like taking a walk, instead of trying to surreptitiously browse the internet for a bit.
It's pretty easy to spot people who aren't working. We hired a guy and it was pretty obvious he was doing multiple jobs. We fired him in a week. Unfortunately my boss got cold feet and his replacement had to be in-office.
If you’re justifying this to yourself because you think everyone else is slacking off at home, you might want to rethink. I am not slacking off—my productivity is at least as good at home as it was in the office, even on days when I’m not at the computer a full eight hours. Judging from what we get done, other people on my team are also not slacking off. But if someone were regularly slacking off, I’d be able to tell—and I’m not even a manager, just a principal who listens at standup. At least wait for a better job market if you insist on playing roulette with your career.
The three big reasons for me are:
1. No more commute.
2. No need to move for a new job.
3. Way more real estate options. No longer needing to live inside a major metropolitan area near my job means I can save hundreds of thousands on a house, or pay much cheaper rent. It's a no-brainer.
Sorry to have to be the one to throw ice water on you here: most of your colleagues are in fact working hard and enjoy WFH because they enjoy spending time with their family and working from a comfortable work environment.
If we want to talk about conspiracies, let’s talk about management’s belief that everyone producing value is secretly trying to game the system
I took two hour lunches, with alcohol. I would wander into random university lectures instead of meetings. Do not underestimate my ability to fuck off from work no matter the location.
studies have repeatedly shown that office workers -- and most workers in general -- are productive for about 6 hours a day. and that's on the high end.
there are a lot of do-nothing, go-nowhere meetings that fill the gap and make it appear like things are happening.
WFH just shows that the emperor has no clothes and that a lot of time is spent doing BS tasks. there is still a ton of BS, but I can be chopping veggies and prepping a crockpot meal while on pointless 30+ people calls.
