Office Working

[MariaLynda]

I'm not back in yet but I do need to go in the next few weeks. DH is back doing 3 days in the office.

I've no issue with being in the office it is the commute I don't want to do. Aside from the loss of hours in the day again, its the trains! really don't want to use them but no option. Going in isn't too bad as we go really early, but coming home trains are pretty grim.

[Dayle]

DD is back in 3 days a week and is finding it’s the commute that is the worst. She moved house during lockdown and hasn’t had to commute from her new house until last month. If everything goes well it’s about an hour including a 30 minute walk but she says the trains are a nightmare.
At least it’s only 3 days! And lots of people apparently finding various reasons why they can only do 2. Including her last week due to a horrid cough and cold ( numerous negative tests) that she picked up no doubt in the office or on the commute.

[Donaldfan]

After being on furlough for 4 months last year I was delighted to get the call last July asking me to go back to work. I've never worked from home, only worked in the office. I work full time and my journey is 2 buses each way. It doesn't bother me. I'm just grateful I've still got a job. There were redundancies where I work.

[justacey]

I had my first day in the office yesterday. All of my team (12 people) were in so we could have a team meeting to discuss work load.
I was a bit nervous and packed my (new) bag the night before and made a flask of tea as I didn't know what the new kitchen arrangements would be.
We'd moved up to the 5th floor (4th previously) and I'd started practicing walking up and managed it 3 times so I impressed myself.
One of the first things I did was go into town to buy some work trousers as, since I'd not been doing those flights of stairs, none of my old ones fitted.
We've been asked to go in to the office twice a week so we can assist the younger and newer staff members. It must be hard for them starting with no mentors.
I might start work at home at the time I would leave for my commute, then wait for rush hour to be over and then go into the office and vice versa at the end of the day. That way I won't be sat in the traffic jams.

[Donz1979]

I survived 😆 it was very strange, so much the same, yet so much different, really quiet but loud, hard to explain but I done it, first time over with ! Just hope it stays at one day.

[Celica190]

I’m watching the situation in my office with great interest. Out of 5 managers in my unit, my boss and I were the only ones who attended the office at all during the pandemic. Then my boss took ill in May and I was expected to do everything on my own. This continued until I suffered a bleed on my brain and had to undergo emergency surgery just over a year ago. I would actually prefer to work in the office but am not prepared to go in until I know for sure that the other managers have been in and will pull their weight! This includes the lady who has a doctor’s letter stating it’s too risky for her to sit on a train for 2 hours, but who can sit on a plane to Lanzarote for 6 hours

[myaquarium]

Reading this thread I’m now understanding some of my families and friends concerns. Hope all goes well for those returning to the office or not.

[disney_l81]

I have been back at our office "full time" since about June. My company couldn't wait to squeeze everyone back and get everyone where they wanted them (unless your face fits and they let you work from home if needed) . All of us crammed into tiny offices, at least in our new office we have windows and ones that open at that! Our new office is right over the other end of the city with no public transport links at all and we had to read that we were moving offices in our local paper!

[RuthieR]

I work in a school and have had no option to continue working from home. Went back in to school office before they started to reopen, when I was unvaccinated and when we had some children in.

I don't get why people are still WFH when the majority of people are vaccinated. In a school children are not vaccinated but can carry and spread the virus. People can quite happily sit in a pub or restaurant unmasked, take the train or bus unmasked and go in to shops unmasked, go to the hairdressers unmasked. So what is the problem of being back in the office?

[loldis]

Originally Posted by RuthieR

I work in a school and have had no option to continue working from home. Went back in to school office before they started to reopen and when we had some children in.

I don't get why people are still WFH when the majority of people are vaccinated. In a school children are not vaccinated but can carry and spread the virus. People can quite happily sit in a pub or restaurant unmasked, take the train or bus unmasked and go in to shops unmasked, go to the hairdressers unmasked. So what is the problem of being back in the office?

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Nothing to do with Covid risk for me. I simply don't like the office environment personally and don't need to be there professionally. It's treated more as a social/meeting space now. I don't go to work to socialise, that's what I have friends for.