MSE Poll: Are you working from home – and would you like to keep doing so?

MSE_Petar

Poll started 28 July 2020

With guidance on working from home now being relaxed around the UK, we want to know if you've been working from home over the past few months. And, if you have, would you like to keep doing so even when it's deemed safe to return to your normal workplace?

Click here to vote in the poll

Did you vote? Are you surprised at the results so far? Have your say below.
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Thanks!

jasdev

Anecdotally I think there's a bit of a separation between those who have children and those who do not.

I'm a childless single man and I live alone, and I'd like to return to the office for part of the week for more human contact.

Meanwhile, I expect those of my colleagues with children are delighted with the extra time they get to see their children that is no longer spent commuting, and once schools are safe to return to will no doubt be even more satisfied with working from home.

MovingForwards

I'm female, middle aged, no children, but disabled.

There's been no flexibility for me working at home.
If I had children / caring responsibilities, I could work whenever I want, for as much or little time as I had available when I worked.
As a disabled person, my health has declined yet I have to work the hours I would if I was in the office, the same start / end time, same lunchtime, same amount of work and more than when I'm in the office.
Reasonable adjustment requests get ignored or rejected.
It's not just me facing this, but numerous other disabled colleagues too.

Maybe I should start a movement #theforgottendisabled 😁 

At least the company has now revealed what it's really like behind the BS policies.

kritickel

The age regardless of gender demonstrates a significant appreciation to work from home; I’m certainly in that category, my work/life balance has excelled because I’m not travelling 1.5 hours daily and able to have real down time as soon as the computer goes off. It certainly makes me happy, and in the five months the novelty hasn’t worn off and I can still communicate effectively with my co-workers & friends just as well using zoom, emails, texts.

Afourteen

Now worked from home for 10 years. Employer closed my 'local' office. Usually had to travel to one of the other offices for a 'few' days each month - averaging less than 1 day a week except for a 12 month period when my role changed to a project management role and had to be on-site for 3 days a week.
Had a few disadvantages - not so easy to 'bounce' ideas off of colleagues, very easy to be 'forgotten' for office socials, space needed for equipment and office paperwork. Many advantages (well for me at least), no office noise distraction, better flexibility on working hours, usually start about 7:45, finish the AM round of calls & eMail by 09:00 have a quick 'Tea' break then work until 12:00; At lunch time I usually cycle for 30 mins to 1 hour and then have a leisurely lunch, in the afternoons I start about 2:30 and work through to 6PM or just after. Always available by 'phone and most of my 'reactive' work appears either first thing in the morning or between 4:30 and 5:30 in the afternoon so the 6:00PM finish means I can have a response ready for the normal work hours start in the morning.  Work 'group' meetings just as easy, in fact even easier nowadays, by phone and computer and less raucous and equally as informative. If you include the time I spent traveling to and from the office the working day had similar hours (leaving home at 07:30 returning 18:30) but I no longer work in excess of my conditioned hours.
Most important task of the day is switching the office tools off before evening meal!
Nowadays doing a more 'hands on' practical job rather than an office paperwork job but the working day is similar. 
I'd never want to go back to an office environment with a lot of people in it. 

Thrugelmir

Not surprised by the vote outcome. Perhaps poll employers. Many will have a very different viewpoint. WFH raises a lot of challenges and longer term is potentially damaging to individuals developement. Flexible working is the way forward. 

Alswife

I am enjoying working from home-no inane chatter from colleagues about things I have no interest in, I have the room temperature exactly as I like it & I have the radio on while I work. My cats think it's great too!

Iamdebtfree

I really really REALLY hope I don't have to ever go back to the office. I could write a novel on this.

elsien

Yes and no.
I was a home worker pre covid but spent most of my time out and about.
In lockdown it's been sitting at home every day with my laptop, trying to do video calls instead. I hate it. I am incredibly unmotivated.  I'm not designed to sit in frot of a screen 8 hours a day, 
The sooner I get back to my old home working the better.

[Deleted User]

Spent 12 weeks home-working, had some weird dreams! once joked that I would say who are they (about recognising my employer) Suppose the period does contribute to 6 months service now and possibly stopped me doing something daft and most like me early days. That said good to know if an emergency comes up then working from home is a highly possible viable and positive option. (((Fortunately I returned to a work place where the dynamic has changed.))) My headset waited too till back in the office to blow up and start smoking lol! I think the decision to go back as much as feared was the right thing to do. Since returning to the work place the unpaid overtime has reduced which is no bad thing, I certainly will not be taking the laptop on holiday in September. Steadily losing the lockdown weight 8lbs off in 2 weeks. I've reduced my eating which is good as the electricity bills have rocketed again. Whilst nearly taken wrong way, customer recently said a sales job was my calling.

Albertina_Geller

I have spent 4 months working from home and now I am enjoying it. When I started to work from I was a bit afraid like how I will do all the stuff. But now I am enjoying it and it also saves traveling time which I use to do other things. Hope I will get to work from home after this pandemic also