Rishi's warning

[AtW]

"People may quit if forced to work from home, Rishi Sunak warns

The chancellor has warned bosses that staff may quit if they are not allowed to work from the office as the UK emerges from lockdown.

Rishi Sunak told the Telegraph that employees would "vote with their feet" and could consider leaving for a rival if made to work from home full time.

A number of companies have announced plans to close offices prompting fears for city centres.

But now the chancellor has urged firms not to abandon the office altogether.

Mr Sunak told the newspaper that home working is no substitute for an office environment with "people riffing off each other".

"You can't beat the spontaneity, the team building, the culture that you create in a firm or an organisation from people actually spending physical time together," he said.

The chancellor argued that an office environment was particularly important for younger workers looking to understand how a company works."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-56535575


He could have warned that he will be forced to tax people working from home more because they are dirty tax avoiders

[SueEllen]

Rishi has it wrong.

People will quit if they are made to go into the office more than one to two days a week maximum.

Eat out to spread Covid anyone?

[mattster]

Rishi has it wrong.

People will quit if they are made to go into the office more than one to two days a week maximum.

Eat out to spread Covid anyone?

I agree with you, now, but it all depends on circumstance. Now that I am an old fart with a family, live a longish commute from potential work, have a garden office and no desire to socialise, I'd really prefer at least 3x days a week from home. Go back 25 years to my mid twenties, when I was working the city, living in a flat in central London and on the sherbets with work and other mates 3-4x a week, I would have absolutely hated it.

[vetran]

Yeah heard that this morning I suspect we will go in once a week if that. Last two places office parking was 50% of what was needed, we had to park about a mile away.

[SueEllen]

I agree with you, now, but it all depends on circumstance. Now that I am an old fart with a family, live a longish commute from potential work, have a garden office and no desire to socialise, I'd really prefer at least 3x days a week from home. Go back 25 years to my mid twenties, when I was working the city, living in a flat in central London and on the sherbets with work and other mates 3-4x a week, I would have absolutely hated it.

Interesting those in their 20s in my family prefer to WFH.

They like choosing who they socialise with and don't like being forced to socialise with work colleagues.

They also don't like work eating into their socialising time.

[ladymuck]

As ever, reality is somewhere in the middle. Some will walk if forced into the office, others will walk if forced to stay at home.

Of course, the "walking" implies there's a boyant job market...

[mattster]

Yeah heard that this morning I suspect we will go in once a week if that. Last two places office parking was 50% of what was needed, we had to park about a mile away.

I know Rishi wants us all to support city centre coffee shops, but with all of this imploring us to go back to the office talk I don't think they are taking enough time to consider the benefits of, say, a 30-50% reduction in office working. Your parking space is one such, but also rush hour traffic (it only takes a relatively small reduciton to improve traffic considerably - witness school holidays), train capacity effectively doubles for no cost etc. Don't forget the global warming benefits of reduced travel either. If it's going to happen anyway (and it will - cost savings are too tempting for many companies), then might as well embrace the positives. I think 2 days a week in the office is plenty for our sort of work, but that won't be the same of everyone of course.

[mattster]

Interesting those in their 20s in my family prefer to WFH.

They like choosing who they socialise with and don't like being forced to socialise with work colleagues.

They also don't like work eating into their socialising time.

I can imagine that is true for many, but I can also imagine what a flat share with a bunch of other 20 somethings would actually be like if everyone was WFH. Of course if everyone was WFH then they might not need to be crammed into some London tuliphole flat in the first place.Sad to say in some ways, but a lot of my socialising around that time was work related - but we were a young team (managed by some older heavy drinkers), and times were different in the City. WFH days would have been hangover days.

[OwlHoot]

"People may quit if forced to work from home", Rishi Sunak warns ..

He definitely has it arse about face for a majority of people, although I dare say a few would like a day or two in the office every now and then for variety, and some may find the distractions of home working (in a multi-occupancy poky house or flat for example) compromises their efficiency.

Obviously the reason he is trying to get workers back to offices is to maintain commercial rent levels, on which pension funds largely rely.

[LondonManc]

Rishi is correct about the benefits of working in the office.

Also don't forget that long term permies probably haven't had an office at home like many/most contractors will have done and will have been working from the kitchen table rather than a dedicated home office. We're using our box room as my office at the moment but would ideally kit it out as a guest bedroom. Not possible due to working from home so we're compromised by the current arrangement.

It may also be worth companies looking at converting failed local retail outlets to contain work pods where people can have a five minute walk to work and keep their homes intact. By that I'm talking an old run of shops on the main road rather than a failed Debenhams or something.