‘We’ll work from home forever’: Civil servants vow to fight returning to offices despite Boris Johnson declaring war on the ‘Whitehall blob’ – as some officials even relocate out to the Cotswolds and Cornwall to WFH

34 comments

  1. The Daily Mail comments though lol…

    Typical boomers who were probably on furlough calling people who actually worked throughout the pandemic “lazy”

  3. I don’t get the full chub attitude to getting people back into offices. Given productivity doesn’t seem to have been affected, what’s the ulterior motive here?

    Nick Ferrari on LBC is another one who’s at full pitch when complaining about work from home.

    Boris literally works from home every day…

  4. What annoys me about this is these right wingers cannot point to any economic benefit to companies insisting on office working or to any downturn in productivity as a result of working more from home. Also most people do want some time in the office but his is only for a couple of days a week. Boris will be gone soon anyway, the Mail can then go beck to it’s xenophobia, phoney culture war and hatred of the poor.

  5. Wasnt Boris talking a big game at that climate change conference? Surely commuting is a good step towards reducing our emissions?

  7. This simplistic attitude doesn’t reflect the reality in some departments. People were brought in WFH from all over the country as part of the covid response and, even with the changes to restrictions, their jobs are still required for now. At this point it’s easier to retain them and their corporate knowledge, rather than bin them off and recruit people who live near an office.

  8. If they think their attitude is going to encourage people back then they are out of their minds – the administrative core of “the system” worked from home and delivered what their political masters demanded – in massively challenging circumstances.

    There is no legitimate argument to force people back into offices. There is some sense of spite on the part of older and some blue-collar workers. The older gits need to mind their own business, the blue-collar workers could change careers if they also want to work from home – it was more or less standard for many prior to the pandemic.

    The tide has turned – management up and down the land have discovered that not only does it work well – they prefer it themselves. Business owners and accountants love it because it allows employers to massively reduce overheads for property.

    With energy prices spiking, no doubt not having to pay for the levels of gas and electricity they were paying for is another bonus.

    Commerce – “Why don’t we think of Starbucks” – local shops and services have seen an increase in business as people wfh. City centre retail was dying ahead of the pandemic, trying to prevent the inevitable by forcing people back is risible. City centres will redevelop themselves to offer more than just chain stores, charity shops and bookies.

    WFH is better for those who are travelling, fewer vehicles on the roads, lower emissions and congestion making for a better experience and healthier environment.

    Collaborative working – “you can’t work well together remotely”. BULLSHIT! Most workers have multiple monitors so can see the person/people they’re working with. In most cases it is common to have multiple “meetings” (formal and informal) each day – the lack of travel time means people can take more meetings and tasks on and deal with them at least (if not more) effectively than before.

    The pandemic also forced much more agile decision-making – there simply wasn’t time in most cases for going through the “old processes” for approval – people stepped up to expedite this kind of task but without “cutting corners”.

    Often hear “but what about new staff – how will they learn the job?” – Fair point. Lets think about that – in most larger organisations, people are given inductions and training on arrival – I think in most cases these should take place in person where appropriate – getting to know your management is important.

    Thing is, this isn’t what people tend to refer to – its the “informal” support given by their colleagues. Now there is a fair point here. I’d contend that this can be achieved remotely, the issue is new staff don’t necessarily know who would be willing and able to help them.

    It’s said this happens organically in the workplace. True. But most of those team members are not employed to provide support or training. It isn’t referred to in most job specifications.

    Why is that?

    We know why –

    ​

    1. Informal support such as this has happened since time immemorial – most humans will help others “just because”. Understandably, employers took this for granted.
    2. Including training and/or support in a job specification would in many cases increase the salary.

    So, if the argument is that “experienced staff should be present in the workplace to support newer staff” what is being asked is those staff to have to submit to the daily commute, altered work-life balance and everything else.

    Where this was standard in the past that is perfectly reasonable but now, times have changed. This area, and this area alone, it seems probably does require bums on seats – question is – should workers submit to this without it being reflected in what they’re paid?

    Ultimately, that is a matter for each individual and their employer – so some will, some won’t.

  9. It’s so sad to see people who got us through the pandemic (not No.10 SPADS and staff, they were partying) being thrown under the bus for years to come to save a PMs skin.

    This decision and discussion is so political its disgusting.

    It’s also disappointing to see people falling for it.

  10. If you can do the same work without having to trek into central London then what’s the problem?

  12. Can’t comment on the civil service, but I would like to offer up a hearty ‘fuck off’ to the older generation and micromanagers who are set on arbitrarily getting people back into the office, even after everyone’s proven that they can work just as effectively from home.

    Now is the time to take a stand against being dragged back into the office for no reason other than to sooth managerial egos, at the cost of hundreds of hours of commuting, thousands of pounds in travel costs, and countless missed moments of free time/time with family and friends every year.

  14. This is purely about keeping the money flowing towards their friends. People like Dyson and Alan Sugar, who have invested in central London offices. Or crappy chains like pret. Their way of separating people from their money is threatened and they are lashing out.

    This argument about working from home being a threat to the economy is bullshit. I still spend money, but I spend more at local businesses and on my family.

  16. I think people choosing wfh is fine and that should be supported but people shouldnt be getting london weighting/allowances if they wfh

  17. The main reason they are pushing for office work for HMRC is they recently spent hundreds of millions on new regional offices which also have quite high running costs. If it wasn’t for this, the push definitely wouldn’t be as hard.
    So to sum up, money (shock).

  19. Remwmber: the government treats Civil Severants as servants. Little people to be sacrificed for their betters. They tried to force them in before there were even vaccines to save Lord Sugar et al’s commerical property empire.

    Now they’re being forced in to distract from Partygate as part operation Red Meat / Save Big Dog.

  20. The only people who can really take a stand against those that want a return to the office are the managers of people who CAN WFH.

    My place is already starting to insist that we come into the office 1 a week, going to twice very soon after. This is management pushing it – They know full well the job can be done from home, this is about ideology and meeting the needs of shareholder’s.

    Only the managerial class can steer a change on this but I suspect many wont, as they would not like to risk their own careers when it comes to climbing that oh-so-greasy pole to the top.

  22. My productivity has nose dived working at home. I live in a flat where my only personal space is my bedroom. Work, play, and sleep all in the same room lead to sleeping problems and issues with your work/life balance. If I had a home office, this would be a non issue, but I don’t. It doesn’t work for everyone because not all of us have the resources.

    The tldr here is, it should be a choice.

  23. The daft thing is, there was a large push to bring in flexible working in the civil service before the word ‘covid’ was ever a thing. The pandemic simply hastened the take up, and actually proved that it works.

    All this ‘back to work’ nonsense is just nonsense, and civil servants are damn right to ignore it best they can.

    People should work where they work best. For some that’s in the office, for some that’s at home, for others that’s at a local cafe. It doesn’t have to be difficult.

  24. Who’d want to work from home when you can spend 25% of your working week on an unpaid commute rather than spending it with your family, have to eat shit overpriced food full of preservatives for lunch, enjoy catching all your coworkers contagions that their top down cultivated presenteeism attitudes will assure you get, and do the same job you’ve proved you can do after 2 years of working remotely in your home where you can be on hand for emergencies with your kids, save energy and time by not making a pointless commute, eat home cooked food where you know the ingredients, be able to take care of small chores in your daily life like taking deliveries, putting on a clothes wash etc, and not have to endure an soul crushing commute at the end of another hard days work when you’re utterly exhausted.

    Really glad to be working for a company who’ve recognised that it’s employees well being is good for the company as a whole and have allowed everyone to make a choice that works for them.

  25. Not sure if it’s the same Daily Fail article I saw the other day that was hysterical about only 100 people being spotted going into a 1200 capacity government office on Thursday, but even if it isn’t I’m sure it’s the same right wing boomer rubbish.

    The economic argument against WFH is incredibly weak. Sure people aren’t spending a fortune on train tickets and Pret baguettes, but they’ll spend that saved money more locally or on life improvements.

  26. Reasons returning the office is bad:
    • Emotional well-being of workers
    • Financial well-being of workers
    • Physical well-being of workers
    • Environmental impact of workers travelling and energy/resource consumption of offices.

    Reasons returning to the office is good:
    • Landlord profits
    • ????

    I’m ready to die on this hill.

  27. and if the Civil service vow to WFH forever, the commercial sector won’t be far behind.

    Lets face it, the concept of the office is obsolete really.

  28. As long as they’re still productive at home I don’t see why it should matter.

    There’s this persistent narrative, not just in the Daily Mail but various other news sources too, that WFH is somehow ‘easier’ or ‘lazier’ than working in the office. The last two years have proven that to not be the case, and the sheer vitriol aimed at people who want to keep WFH is entirely undeserved.

  29. The WFH genie is now out of the bottle and its not going back in.

    Being able to do without a soul crushing, expensive commute each day is a benefit that won’t be given up easily. Then there’s not buying lunches, clothing etc.

    Its not without its problems, workspace wise and team integration but it’ll become the norm.

    Management, employers and landlords need to adjust to the new reality

  30. Little known fact (even in the civil service) but the government actually wanted civil service to move to flexible work and WFH. They wrote a really good report on it. The cost savings were fantastic not to mention the inclusion and flexibility aspects.

  31. The government should really be getting behind WFH. It spreads people across the country, which will bring money outside cities. The only reason that cities are so expensive and get so much investment is because they concentrate high-paying jobs and companies.

  32. I’m a civil servant. Offices have been rationalised for years before the pandemic because the footprint cost too much. Very few people were expected to work full time in the office and we were able to work from home 2 days. It’s now work from home at least 2 days in the office. This is all hot air.

    Boomers don’t seem to realise the reality of work in offices now with the technology available. Even 5 years ago, it was difficult to access folders and contact via phone, but now with Teams/Zoom/whatever it’s totally fine. Most of the clients I work with live and work all over the country so it makes no difference where I am.

    This boils down to commercial developers/property owners and the economies around workers in offices. But it’s short term thinking. High streets will be much more likely to return. Politicians are only saying what the loudest voice in their ear is asking for and ignoring the reality that there was an inevitable revolution down to tech. Not too unlike the industrial revolution.

  33. They’re all about “freedom” and “liberty” when it comes to wearing a mask on the bus . . . but when it comes to herding people back into offices there’s no problem at all.

  34. I could cry about how nice everyone is being in these comments – thank you. I worked very hard from home during the pandemic, often crying from stress despite the bad articles. We didn’t ‘sit at home’ on ‘full whack’ as the papers suggest, we worked very hard from home for our contractual salary amount (which has been decimated since 2010 by pay freezes). Thank you again.

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