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Oh, and we've just been given free money, so there's a whole urban renewal scheme in progress. All the shops are getting new store fronts, the roads are being upgraded, loads of improvements. We're getting a Lidl or an Aldi too I think.
I'm five minutes from the M66 to Manchester, or less to the East-West M65 which takes me to the M6 inside of 20 minutes. In an hour I can be in city centre Manchester, the edge of the Lake District (circa Kendal probably), through the Yorkshire Dales and out the other side, or the Western Edge of the Peak District. Then there's Nidderdale, Bowland, North Pennines, all classed as Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Hell, if I was feeling particularly masochistic I can be in Blackpool in 45 minutes and go for a paddle.
Why the hell would anyone want to live somewhere where you can be in the city, travel for two hours and still be in the same city? Yet many people seemingly do. It'd be boring if we were all the same I suppose.
If you are thinking “ooh I can move somewhere with great mtb, walking etc from the door” I assure you there is someone else thinking the same who makes 10 times what you do who is about to price you out.
Of course. But redistribution of wealth across the country isn't necessarily a bad thing, is it?
Was talking to a PA the other day, she said that one of the main things WFH / lockdown meant was no need to book travel any more. No longer was it a case of shuffling meetings around, working out how long to leave at the station in case of delays, how long to walk to the meeting point, blocking out diary for travel, booking tickets etc.
And about time too.
This is an argument I've been having for over a decade. "Can you pop down to London for a team meeting?" I work for a gods damned telecommunications provider, we have a VC suite in every office. No, I can't just 'pop down,' I live 250 miles away, the last time I just popped down it took me something like nine hours to get home.
hopefully, suburban shared offices/co-working spaces etc become more of “a thing”
I've never understood why this isn't a thing already, especially for the civil service. We've closed small offices all round the country and lost thousands of experienced staff who couldn't travel to the new centralised sites, but 3-4 departments sharing a smaller office space should have been workable.
It's really not that easy having a couple working from home. MrsMC is a social worker, I do potential fraud investigations. We REALLY shouldn't be able to overhear each other talking on the phone. Neighbours and passersby certainly shouldn't be able to hear us if we want to have the windows open in nice weather. Fitting two proper workspaces into a busy family house gets expensive. Employers aren't going to be passing on that much of their floor space saving in salary
We REALLY shouldn’t be able to overhear each other talking on the phone
You likely legally shouldn't be able to. GDPR?
This is a great point, and it's a massive problem that no-one seems to be talking about. "Don't you trust me?" Of course I do or I wouldn't be living with you. But the stuff I work with, my partner walks in at the wrong moment and I could lose my job over it. Or worse.
If you are thinking “ooh I can move somewhere with great mtb, walking etc from the door” I assure you there is someone else thinking the same who makes 10 times what you do who is about to price you out.
Not necessarily. Within 45 mins of London there is, but that's cos everyone wants to be in London. There is enough Britain to go round as long as everyone doesn't crowd into the same corner.
When companies realise the cost of equipping home workers properly (after the first few test cases of bad back, constructive dismissal etc) they'll be gagging for a mandated return to offices.
Having to rely on the Tube or bus to get you somewhere is madness. I’m already here. (-:
I have all you described and more 2 min walk away, art house cinema, posh chocolate shop, couple of beer brew shops/bars etc etc (and the city centre 25min away), it’s the outlying small communities that are going to benefit post COVID as more flexible working means staying local for a bite to eat, longer lunch in a cafe or meal out after work, that money would have been spent nearer the office.
It’s been changing before COVID but it was mums with their huge prams but now it’s working people spending the money during the week.
The city centre will be more for destination shopping, culture and tourists.
My employer has a large office near a (fairly expensive) town, with many other towns scattered around. So I reckon most people live in a small down with a few dozen or a few hundred colleagues. They could shut the big office and hire loads of small ones in the towns, for people to meet, eat, have coffee etc. All the towns are close enough to drive between so it'd be easy to have meetings or even just go to see your colleagues for a chat every so often. This would be better and possibly cheaper than maintaining a big building. Basically, have 80% of people WFH on any given day and the other 20% scattered around mini offices in the same area.
I have a working from home job with trips away in normal times. My decision making in applying for the role two years ago was based on whether I could manage being on my own. As the trips were postponed and I spent more time alone my mental well-being has fallen apart. I am desperate for an office based job. I think this working from home business is a mental health time bomb. I really don't believe as human beings we are meant to live in isolation.
When companies realise the cost of equipping home workers properly (after the first few test cases of bad back
Is an office chair for home more expensive than an office chair for an office?
This is something else which needs to change, and the cost savings in offices should offset it. My employer generously contributes... I think it's £50 towards a chair and £60 towards a desk, and a few other sundries. Could be the other way about. Equipping my office cost me several times that.
An employer's responsibility towards its staff doesn't change because you're WFH, they're still legally bound to make sure you're safe. Can you imagine turning up at an office on your first day of work to be told to go buy a desk out of your own pocket?
I really don’t believe as human beings we are meant to live in isolation.
People are different.
There's a meme been going round, to paraphrase: "Introverts! Check on your extrovert friends! They're not used to this, they're not OK."
I'd put a baton behind the door for twelve hours a day if I thought I'd get away with it.
I really don’t believe as human beings we are meant to live in isolation.
It's a gross over simplification but.... don't live in isolation
WFH doesn't have to be that way. In more relaxed times there are loads of social outlets unless you're right out in the sticks. Even with social distancing I've got to know a whole bunch of people since the pandemic kicked off.
suburban shared offices/co-working spaces etc become more of “a thing”
This is such a cool idea. I can imagine myself and a bunch of locals in similar situations all sharing a small office space. An office full of people you already know and like. All doing jobs completely separate from each other, no competition, just a nice environment. Especially if as suggested in this thread we started being taxed to WFH...
My work (public sector) have consulted us on changing our contracts from "occasional home worker" to "occasional office worker". We'll be expected to go into the office at our own discretion but will basically work from home or wherever else as we see fit and agreed locally with line managers.
I welcome it. I'm much more productive at home, the work/home life balance is great and going forward, i'll be able to drop into the office for selective meetings or for a catch up with colleagues.
Genuinely not sure if I'd want to go back to an office, I quite like WFH.
Plus I've got various activities that I'd used to have to squeeze in before / after work during the day eg French lesson on Tues afternoon and PT session Thursday mid morning (via Zoom).
At peak staffing my team would have around 15 in one office, we’ve just sign the lease on new premises and we have 6 desks.
I hate the thought of having to go back and work in an office. However the signs are that my company is going to offer people the choice of where and how to work in future. The company branding promotes itself as being people-centric and liberal so I'm optimistic that we won't be forced back into the office. I still worry though that the flexible way of working will be kiboshed at the local level by managers who are far less people-centric and can't wait to get back to the way things were. In some ways I think what happens after all this is over will be a test of exactly how forward thinking, flexible and innovative this organisation is as a whole.
Companies that are looking to cut costs seem to be keen to embrace wfh as an option
I share an office room with two others. Whilst we're in the same team, we don't actually work on the same stuff. Senior bosses have been mentioning a two days a week office minimum. All those managers work hundreds of miles away so it'd have zero impact if I worked at home or not. One keeps mentioning 'those valuable workplace discussions' - it's utter twaddle. I just don't get what they're worried about. If you love office life then great, go in but if you don't for whatever reason then I think it's sad trying to get people to spend time in a damaging place.