Went in and cleaned out the office today... I'm "permanent - remote" now.

[mrsilv04]

Well, I went in today and cleaned out my office, and made it official. My status is now what they call "permanent - remote". They offered it to me, and since I've already been doing it for 18 months now (starting when we were originally told the big lie to "go work from home for 2 weeks" last February), I figured why not.

For the foreseeable future, I'll just keep working from home, for at least as long as everything stays screwed up. Right now, if I go to the office... a mask is mandatory, all the time. No thanks. No masks are required inside my home. Plus, while everyone has been gone for the past 18 months, they decided to put up surveillance cameras around the entire building, inside and out. It is now creepy as all hell.

One upside of this is that I will be able to continue saving about $700 a year in parking fees... while my vehicles sit in the garage. So, the savings in parking fees and gasoline is the same as a raise for me. Plus, I am able to go for a bicycle ride on my lunch hour, every day. Can usually get in 14-15 miles. It helps that I'm only a 3 minute ride from the open countryside. That has done a lot for my mental health, and has done a lot to keep the weight off as well.

So, I guess I'll see how long this "go work from home for 2 weeks" *really* lasts...

 

[dishdude]

I've been work from home for almost 10 years now, would seem so strange to commute to an office now.

 

[Brons2]

I hate commuting in traffic, so working from home is perfect for me.

 

[dbias]

My wife has/had a 100 mile round trip to work, mostly interstate. During the initial lock down she worked from home till mid June. In the last week a bunch of boxes were delivered to the house, computers, printer, scanner, chair and desk. They moved her remote, from the house, but will occasionally have to make site visits to prepare for audits.
I'm loving the fuel and miles saved. It truly is a good raise.

 

[vavavroom]

I don't want to go back to the office three times a week. I'm more efficient when left to my own devoices and without constant distractions and without people bothering me.

 

[daves87rs]

Remote is the way to go…..

 

[fisher83]

I was remote 2-3 days a week from 2018 to the beginning of 2020 and have been fully remote ever since. There is talk of a hybrid schedule where we go in occasionally for meetings and work remote the rest of the time but nothing is set in stone at our company yet. If they let me stay remote forever that's what I'll do. I've gotten a lot of valuable time in with my family and look forward to more. There really is nothing about my job that requires me to be in the office.

 

[CharBaby]

Yes indeed!
The fuel, parking & wear saving on the vehicle is like getting a rai$e in pay along with the physical/mental health benefits for riding your bike, taking a walk/jog. And even finding some time to do a chore/task around the house or even getting in a doctor/dentist visit. These things alone are all worth it.

 

[Dave Hess]

I work from home 80% of the time and like it.

Many jobs don’t require an office building to be in.

 

[Kira]

Same CBA as above.
BONUS: The office's lease was expiring this November while plans were being made to move to an "A" property farther away.
The last 1.5 years demonstrates that remote working works.
The office is closing completely next month. It's 98% closed and empty now.
Plans for occasional meeting space needs are being made.
I suggested a nearby park with ducks and picnic tables.

 

[supton]

Nice. I stopped my 100 mile round trip commute also. Work said they were going to go back to three days in office this fall, but that got put on hold for another month—I was fine with 2 days, but three seemed a bit much.

I can see the fears though. the longer WFH lasts, the less I want to return. The occasional day in is fine, but…

 

[KenshinHimura]

I offered to my boss I had no issue working remote. But the company said that its a bit cost prohibitive taking all of their Acme Gridleys and Miyanos out of the shop and sent about 30 miles away to have them cleaned out or have small things fixed on them like fuses and small parts, not to mention the cost of having 480 run at my house to allow me to service and PM them.

 

[Astro14]

Would love to work from home.

Still not practical…

 

[mrsilv04]

Even though I'm currently less than 10 miles from the office where I used to work, this also means that I am now approved to work from *anywhere* that has a reliable internet connection. I can now sell my house and move someplace that doesn't have "Illinois" anywhere in its address, and literally take my job with me to that new address, where ever that might be.

 

[Donald]

At the company I work for if you are considered permanent remote, then you can get reimbursed for some office expenses like the cost of the internet.

I have also read that if you are one of a few remote and rest of the team is in the office you need to watch your career and make sure your are as fully engaged as the team members in the office.

For me, I am winding things down. Last job. Retire soon.

 

[wpod]

It seems if a company can get its employees to work at home. there should be a huge savings for the company.

 

[wpod]

Would love to work from home.

Still not practical…

Just think if you could take your plane home . Then maybe not, years ago when working late I would take the companies semi home and it raised heck in the neighborhood.

 

[mrsilv04]

I have also read that if you are one of a few remote and rest of the team is in the office you need to watch your career and make sure your are as fully engaged as the team members in the office.

Entire team is remote. My boss and all of my co-workers, everyone in the team. The only one in our entire department who still intends to go in, is my boss's boss. He states that he will be in the office for 2-3 days a week, but I have my doubts about that. We'll see how that develops...

 

[Kruse]

My wife is a computer programmer for a major company and has been remote and working from home since 1997. This goes back to the days when she had to use a slow dial-up modem and we had to have two phone lines. She used to be dress up and makeup and now it’s shorts and a t-shirt. My daughter is also a computer programmer and works remote for about the last 18 months for obvious reasons.
I don’t know why anyone wants to be at an office all day.

 

[555]

A long, long time ago tech companies figured out that productivity is what's important. You want to roll in at 10 a.m.? Who cares? What's important is if your work is done on time.
When working remotely became a reality, some saw the benefits and seized the opportunity and found that productivity went up.
I know not every position is a candidate for working remotely.
Some people with an older style of management have a difficult time with it.