Current Events > My new job is trying to make everyone come back into the office :(

(+) Yeah! (+)

I just started 3.5 months ago and they told me they had a hybrid model of 3 days per week in office, now theyre saying they want people in 5 days a week

sucks, I liked that job too

You need to suffer to give your managers something to do.

Zaltera posted...

You need to suffer to give your managers something to do.

Its particularly dumb because we have several people in the same role as me who are fully remote

so its literally just about putting bodies in their office space

really hate that a few months after starting a job I really like I have to start making plans to find the next place

either that or be the problem employee who refuses to follow a useless policy

Sucks.. sorry you have to deal with that.

Not surprising, but unfortunate.

Talk with the rest of your coworkers. If a lot of others feel the same, maybe you can bring it up with management

We had a poll the other week, and all but one person voted to stay remote

TeaMilk posted...

Talk with the rest of your coworkers. If a lot of others feel the same, maybe you can bring it up with management

It's likely that they won't change their mind.

Jobs that don't at least adopt the hybrid model suck

Or just go into the office? That is an option.

Why does that mean you must quit?

Suolevram posted...

Or just go into the office? That is an option.

Insightful contribution.

Try talking to management about staying remote before you decide to leave. Some managers don't like the idea of going back into offices either, so you could luck out. If they're adamant about it then yeah, I'd leave soon too.

Either way, "closed mouths don't get fed."

Complete bullshit. All because theyre probably spending too much on real estate for the office youre working at.

ya my place is doing that shit too. right now its at least 1 day a week. submitted for every Wednesday for the next six months. so far i go and leave at lunch for the day.

aurlen posted...

Why does that mean you must quit?

Because I took a job with the understanding that it was hybrid with only a few days per week in office, saving me at least 2 hours of commute per week, and now my employer is trying to change those terms

Slaya4 posted...

Try talking to management about staying remote before you decide to leave. Some managers don't like the idea of going back into offices either, so you could luck out. If they're adamant about it then yeah, I'd leave soon too.

Either way, "closed mouths don't get fed."

my immediate boss doesnt sound like he really cares, he also said that since I have a newborn son they will continue to be flexible with WFH for now

but all that means is that at some point in the future they will choose to not be flexible anymore

Imagine having a job where you stare at a computer all day

One of the contributing factors for why I quit my last job. Switched from fully remote, to hybrid, which was already a big productivity loss which I pointed out SEVERAL times since I was one of the managers there. Then I got in trouble for not caring if people stayed home to work or not, some would come and some would just stay home but they still did their jobs so I didn't give a damn. They wanted me to either write those employees up or be written up myself. Then because my department and two others had ALL become "problems with company morale", they said we were switching back to full time in office. That's when I said fuck it and dipped.

Just thinking of this shit is making me mad now. Also felt like shit about it because I felt like I fucked over my team by just abruptly quitting, they probably had to deal with some major dickhead as a result but I couldn't deal with that shit anymore. >_>

Ving_Rhames posted...

One of the contributing factors for why I quit my last job. Switched from fully remote, to hybrid, which was already a big productivity loss which I pointed out SEVERAL times since I was one of the managers there. Then I got in trouble for not caring if people stayed home to work or not, some would come and some would just stay home but they still did their jobs so I didn't give a damn. They wanted me to either write those employees up or be written up myself. Then because my department and two others had ALL become "problems with company morale", they said we were switching back to full time in office. That's when I said fuck it and dipped.

Just thinking of this shit is making me mad now. >_>

Its one of the reasons why I quit my last job as well, and started at this new place

Its baffling that companies force people to go to an office in 2023 when a job can be done fully remote, companies could save thousands, if not millions without the maintenance, leasing costs, etc of having an office.

SamsungGearS2 posted...

Its baffling that companies force people to go to an office in 2023 when a job can be done fully remote, companies could save thousands, if not millions without the maintenance, leasing costs, etc of having an office.

they just built a new office building in 2021 and want asses in seats I guess

and with what I do, I totally get the need for *some* office time. For collab meetings, needing to share hardware, etc

but to require it 5 days a week is asinine

TheGoldenEel posted...

Because I took a job with the understanding that it was hybrid with only a few days per week in office, saving me at least 2 hours of commute per week, and now my employer is trying to change those terms

If it wasn't part of a contract, it isn't terms

Wonder when they'll realize all the money they can save by keeping employees remote. Old companies could sell off the building not have to pay the electric bill anymore and so on. New companies would have no need to buy a building for office space etc. Well not one for all the lower level employees I'm sure they'd still need a HQ or whatever.

SamsungGearS2 posted...

Its baffling that companies force people to go to an office in 2023 when a job can be done fully remote, companies could save thousands, if not millions without the maintenance, leasing costs, etc of having an office.

TheGoldenEel posted...

they just built a new office building in 2021 and want asses in seats I guess

Ultimately it all boils down to this.

Companies are locked into decade-long leases with zero flexibility. So rather than just admitting the office is now a waste of money, they piss everyone off by forcing them back into the seats so they aren't stuck with a big empty building for another ten years.

Pretty bullshit of them to try and roll it back on you too, specifically if it was part of the job description/offer.

If they don't budge, try and reason with your manager is a 1 on 1. Just a friendly, hey man, I live literally an hour away and was told specifically that this role was hybrid. I hope you can agree that two hours a day is unrealistic, can we work something out? Something like that. Just open the conversation and see where it goes. Ultimately you might end up having to quit anyways, which it sounds like you're fine with. But it can't hurt to ask.

TheGoldenEel posted...

they just built a new office building in 2021 and want asses in seats I guess

That's not a good enough excuse. My company is leaving it's three building campus and moving into a five floor single building this October. Earlier this year, they officially reopened our offices with a dynamic work model. If you want to stay remote, cool no shame for not going in. If you want to go in, it's completely optional. You log into a site, pick a day, and the system will assign you an area of the office to sit in based on how many people in your department are also going in that day.

It's been fantastic. Some departments are going in every day cause that works better for them and others are fully remote cause they don't need to do in person.

Gotta justify paying middle management somehow.

TheGoldenEel posted...

they just built a new office building in 2021 and want asses in seats I guess

and with what I do, I totally get the need for *some* office time. For collab meetings, needing to share hardware, etc

but to require it 5 days a week is asinine

Building a new office in 2021 is insane, and really fucking stupid. If I was the owner of or on the board of that business, I never would have authorized that decision, and I would have fired any managers who were pushing for it.

Once all the geezers who are primarily the ones pushing for this eventually retire or die, and long term leases start to run their course, were going to see a lot of this nonsense die down.

Sure, theres plenty of younger extroverted C-suite folks who are also pushing hard for the return to office, but theyre clearly in the minority of the current workforce generation and - at the end of the day - the numbers are the numbers and if the financials show that it makes zero sense to pay for office space, then eventually that mantra will take hold and be the norm, I guarantee it.

If a company is willing to bait and switch their new hires on this, they're likely to screw you in other ways too in the future.

BuzzKilljoy posted...

Insightful contribution.

Likewise