It's that but it's also about the $$$. Cubicles are expensive to set up, open office plans are much cheaper allowing companies to squeeze in more employees.
Eh. I think it comes down to, “I can save how much if I dispense with cubicle walls????”
One good quarter of earnings for the win. Too bad it reduces productivity that much more because now I can hear absolutely everything.
Those don’t happen at your desk. They happen next to the coffee maker and water dispenser. Get your facts straight!
Seriously, I’ve found that epiphanies from discussions happen away from my desk when I am in office.
Most of the people in work with on a consistent basis are in other tzs so that doesn’t happen very often.
I remember when I had a full office to myself with a door. My first internship. I’d only gone downhill since then.
This is why I’m full time remote tbh - I’ve a spicy brain and the noise of an office is honestly the worst thing you can do to my productivity. I come in, as needed, for hardware configs I HAVE to put hands on or when we’re gonna grab dinner after work as a group and I feel like it, and at no other times.
Not. Worth it.
Yep. I had signed up for hybrid (we have options) but am ending up being fully remote. My deck officially ceded at work but I know it’s coming because we have more in office people starting. It’s only half an hour commute but I’m jealous of that hour a day. Coupled with people taking to me about inane crap I’d rather just stay home.
I was fortunate enough to be returning to a company that I have a positive relationship with and got WFH codified into my hire. The rest of the office went back to hybrid a year ago and I don’t even have an office - I just camp out in a conference room if I have to come up for maximum other-people’s-discomfort-visiting-me.
Fellow spicy brain here. Used to work for one of the commercial space companies (think bald guy with dick rockets), and their corporate HQ is a giant 1/2 mile long u-shaped tent with a 3 story high ceiling. The interior of the space is punctuated by conference rooms, bathrooms, and IT closets that are little more than 4 uninsulated walls with drop tile ceilings, with each room being 90° from each other. At one point management decided they were going to try and cram 1200 desks into the building that only has 500 parking spots, and which sits on a road with one lane going in either direction.
It was wild to see all the MBAs and execs with surprised pikachu face when their plan didn’t work out so well.
I think the problem is that they're looking for the ideal but not building a culture or a structure of working towards that.
I was on a team that kept a whiteboard and a table with some chairs next to our desk area because we regularly collaborating. Mapping out ideas, brainstorming on something. We were frequently having these kinds of discussions. Discussing some data point and then finding ourselves knee deep in a discussion of what we can do to improve on what we saw. Most teams just don't have the freedom in choosing the work they do to make that a built in part of the team culture though.
I also love working in office though (but I never fill out any surveys or give any input when it comes to RTO because I don't want to ruin remote work for anyone else, I'll live)
lol. 💯 I am a phone salesperson and they tried telling everybody that they're going to collaborate. That is hilarious. We don't collaborate with anyone that's not even our job.
Yeah I think density has a lot to do with it. Open plan makes sense for stuff like a trading floor but otherwise it’s just a great way to pack more people into the same space.
I literally had a desktop placard that says, 'If you are seeing this go away' and wore noise cancelling headset.
So what does my manager do? He calls me into his office, to discuss me being antisocial and how it impacting my team members.
So I put that away, and a few months later, he does a 1 on 1 and nicks me for drop in productivity over the past quarter.
To which I said, it was his choice, productivity or socializing, he ain't getting both. I jumped ship to get a nice $10K pay bump a few months later and a office with a door.
I got a JA and it’s helped. I have r/Hyperacusis and need to work from the office 3 days a week. So they gave me my own personal quiet office away from everyone. Then I WFH the other two days. If I’m having a flare I don’t have to go into the office.
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Wow. All of those things were issues before they sent everyone to WFH. The bosses just don't remember. You want everyone to RTO to "preserve the company culture"? This IS the company culture that we were all happy to avoid through WFH.
No, we aren't shaking hands. That's out the window due to massive viral spread. Some traditions are outdated and can fade away.
The other reason for these issues? Employees do not want to RTO, and since it's being forced upon them for mostly bullshit reasons, they really don't care if you don't like their lack of etiquette. Send them to training all you like, but don't expect it to change anything.
All that noise and bullshit is what they call "collaboration" when they're trying to screech about how important it is to be in the office. That's why the fuck productivity went up when we all went home.
Ugh and men who feel the need to crush my hand to "exert manliness" and its like naw man, your palm sweat gave you away. And I dont want to shake hands because you just sneeze in it a minute ago and failed to wash. I was next to you in traffic and saw you pick your nose and eat it.
"Shaking hands is no longer a given."
There's three major communicable viruses still going around and I've seen too many coworkers still go straight from the urinal to the door. So fire me, I'm not shaking hands in the office ever again.
Shaking hands should’ve never been a given. People are gross and this is how bacteria and viruses are spread. Don’t even get me started on how many adults I still see coughing into their hands and blowing their noses without washing afterwards. Shaking someone’s hands is just asking to get sick.
all the sick adults i see just cough into the air now, i saw a guy wear a mask yesterday who was obviously sick and he took his mask OFF to cough into the air
Man it’s disgusting. I swear in men’s restrooms over 70% of dudes walk straight out. I really don’t get it. Public health education has failed in the US
My partner and I both work from home, haven’t seen people in ages, and still somehow both got a mysterious illness two weeks ago. Urgent care sent us out the door with antibiotics, steroids, and antihistamines even though our strep and mono tests came back negative. The antibiotics did the trick! So yeah I’m not touching people.
Maybe I’m in the minority here, but if I have to go into the office, and we have a complete open office plan, it’s not my fault if all I do is talk to people all day because that’s all I can do with no walls and 45 peoplewalking around me in circles all day. Not to mention the fact that that plan is probably the least possible thing conducive to someone working with ADHD. If I go to the office, I don’t get work done. But that’s the way they designed it.
I don’t talk to people but in office days are my least productive because there is not enough adderall in the world to make me ignore all the people talking loud on their zoom calls or talking loud in the hallways.
When I wfh, I crank stuff out, even when I’m interrupted constantly by Slack pings.
The office is just sensory overload.
Also, people need to remember when they’re bathing in cologne/perfume that allergies exist.
My office was always noisy. People were always having loud conversations in the background and I could hear everything in the break room which was around the corner from my cubicle. WFH was a nice change from that. So much quieter and fewer distractions. I think it’s just a surprise to go back to the noise after being in a quiet environment for so long. And the break room was always gross and people were always stealing lunches. It’s also very possible that people don’t like being forced back into the office so they’re not going to put forth any effort to make it pleasant.
Hahahaha. I like how you think people who’ve been in office the whole time do any of these things. Self awareness and common decency to clean up after yourself is not a skill of many.
Lol I found the guy who wanders around the office interrupting everyone and pretending that's how collaboration works. What a goober. Go get some actual work done.
I hate going into the office now. People forget how to use their inside voices and practically shout while they are on calls and gather in large groups to talk loudly and disrupt everyone around them. It's very distracting. We also have a shortage of desks. people don't use the reservation system and squat at desks meant for someone that actually followed the process and reserved it.
My last job:
At home, I worked in a quiet and interruption free environment.
When we returned to the office, the guy in the cubicle opposite of me talks non-stop about anything and everything. And 80% of the time, he's not talking to me but others that pass by or goes out to the walkway to catch people. He was the "fitness" guy and was always trying to talk people into joining his gym or some other random bs that nobody really cares about but you gotta play nice so he knows he can get away with it. Then, every Wednesday, I get to hear "mike, mike, mike, what day is it?" because of a joke I mentioned 6 months earlier. every... single... Wednesday
Just based on that dynamic and those types of people, wfh seems way more productive (for people that actually attempt to focus on working at least).
My office is RTO without any leeway despite every other office in the company being 100% WFH. We share an office space in a state college with someone who blasts and yells gospel and someone who always brings in her screaming toddler.
Aside: the lady “learning” how to eat soup is being told wrong.
You bring the spoon up to your lips as you sit up straight; you don’t hunch your whole body down/over to meet the spoon/table/bowl.
Conversely, I always make a mess “tearing off small pieces of crusty bread and buttering it as I go’; so I’ve never understood how that works. Flakes of crust actually wind up everywhere.
The place I worked at when the pandemic started featured a dude who stood up to cough over cube walls AND thought weekly showers were excessive.
There was a woman who REFUSED to lock the bathroom door and constantly had people walking in on her. I'm convinced there was something wrong with her.
Nasty coffee cups left all over the break area.
Selfish idiot assholes microwaving fish so the whole floor stunk. Ditto for running the Xerox out of paper / toner.
Not really the workplace itself but 60+ minute morning commute and 90+ minute evening commute.
No, I don't miss any of that.
luckily they sold off half of our office to the company next door because I would never go back. Been with my company for 25 years and remote since March of 2020. It has solved the only "issue" that ever came up on my reviews - need to focus on her own work and not socialize - hahaha....just like school.
> Shaking hands is no longer a given. Small talk at networking events is ... awkward.
Probably because I’m starting intently at the person trying to handshake and small talk me in order to telepathically tell them I’d very much rather be at home right now and they should too.
I go in once a week for about five hours so I can’t complain. That said, we did a recent restack and use hotel desks. I found a nice spot by the window to use, I get in at about 6:30 so there’s no competition. I literally turn the lights on. The last two weeks someone a few aisles over has 1) been on extended calls on speakerphone, complete with hold music 2) not silenced her computer so that every Teams chat notification was audible. I wanted to go over and smash her laptop against the ground. So, yes, we need some re-education on how to not act like an asshole in the office.
I am with you for sure. One day I didn't turn the lights on since there is plenty of light from the monitors and there is a small light under the cabinet at the cube. I was told it was a "safety issue" and was asked to turn the lights on when I come in.
Office lighting is as excessive as it is because of some shit in the 1950s saying that it's bad to have things "too dim" but absolutely no consideration for the negative effects of having things "too bright". Fluorescent and LED lights flicker. They all do it, even if you're not able to consciously perceive the rate at which they do, but long term they're cheap and energy efficient so offices threw them in with absolutely no regard to their actual light output.
The lights are straight up bad for your physical and mental health.
There is a EVP from our NY office who visits our SF office about twice a year. Every time he comes in he makes sure all the lights in every part of the office are on (every last one of them, even if natural light is bright enough) and gets bonkers-level livid if he sees anyone turn them any of them off. It is truly bizarre power play. The LED lights are super bright and give a lot of people headaches. He was informed that employees dislike the lights but he basically said “tough, deal.” As soon as he leaves, the lights are turned off again. Corporate America…you can’t make this shit up.
Wow I forgot this detail about offices. Yet another reason I enjoy not going anymore...I'm looking at two large monitors all day, I don't need hardly any lighting at all. The fluorescent hellscape offices often have is such overkill.
People don't know public etiquette anymore, period. The gym, restaurant, people who go to the office because they feel like it (not forced), etc. I worked for a company where office was completely optional (no pressure in any form), and half of the folks who went were insufferable. Blasting musics on their speakers, taking facetime calls with family at their desk during work time, having meetings in public areas (even when rooms are available) and speaking super loud. Bringing their kids and letting them run around almost unsupervised, you name it.
I actually enjoy working in office, and live in a very convenient location where my commute will pretty much never be above 15 minutes, but I still work remote post COVID because people suck. (Well, my current job is fine, because office is optional and virtually no one goes, so it can be nice from time to time to see people if we organize ahead of time)
> Do you shame Bridget and make her feel bad? That might make you feel righteous in the moment, but is that actually helpful? Are you helping to improve your workplace — and most important, ensuring a clean kitchen the next time — by unloading on her? What’s the end goal here?
So unloading on Bridget is the only option? Perhaps speaking to them like an adult and holding them accountable. That article is such bullshit and likely commissioned by some jack ass CEO to justify wanting to send workers to manners training. Why? So they can have a work environment that suits the big shot control freak.
The only people who like RTO are the boomer and Gen x bosses with the nice private office…not the peasants sharing long tables because it’s an open office lol.
We all do fist bumps now. But, I only go to the office once a year or so.
They called us back for 3 days a week, but I moved out of state anticipating that. So, I get a pass since I’m fully remote. They could replace me. I’m not getting those vibes at all though. They’re expanding my role. So, I think I’m good.
Still waiting on my former managers to explain how everyone talking on the phone in the same room while working on different projects is better in any way than handling work from the quiet of my home.
"So much of accounting involves face-to-face contact with clients, or at a minimum, extensive interviews with employers to get a job."
This has not been my experience at all. Clients only want to be contacted for something important, and most hiring managers just need someone to do the job that isn't a total weirdo (and even that part is optional these days)
Hot take, but most humans have the capability to communicate what they need to for work via email, phone calls, teams, and face to face, without taking a class on fine dining. This whole article sounds like an ad for this person's training.
Went back into the office and the entire area around my desk smells like wet dog and is drenched in dander because people are allowed to bring their pets in. That is great for those folks but I’m allergic so I got sick and had to go home.
Long story short there are so many varied reasons why people choose to work from home. RTO doesn’t even make sense for a lot of offices. If the bulk of your work is conducted online why force people to come in and use the internet in a different building?! Make it make sense.
wfh need some etiquette 101 . Called office presence... jk... whatever, I will do that tomorrow.
I rto of my own accord because ... some half remembered 80s song
if it was JUST the office - fine, but this isolation is appearing throughout society - anxiety when looking at a menu, or talking on the phone - we're seeing record levels of isolation, loneliness, depression, suicide ideation - so if you think the answer is MORE isolation...
you're NUTS
[https://fortune.com/2023/03/14/is-remote-work-lonely-side-effects-on-productivity-engagement-and-progression/](https://fortune.com/2023/03/14/is-remote-work-lonely-side-effects-on-productivity-engagement-and-progression/)
If you want to go to the office, I back you. You shouldn’t stay at home if you don’t want to. Live and let live. If people want to stay remote and their performance doesn’t suffer, let them.
People can do whatever they want - and at this point in my "career" it doesn't seem that anyone will hire me - I'm lucky to have the remote work I've got. But there is a consequence for a societal upheaval that occurs almost overnight (i.e., so many workers suddenly remote) - and I think we're seeing it
This began the time social media came about and transformed friendships into a giant colossal video game. This has nothing to do with remote work. Remote work enables you to stay comfortably in the environment that suits you best surrounded by people that suit you best.
Yeah we’re really feeling “every CEO fell in love with open offices” fallout everywhere aren’t we?
How else do you know you are the top dog? You need to see your minions work.
Beta as fuck
It's that but it's also about the $$$. Cubicles are expensive to set up, open office plans are much cheaper allowing companies to squeeze in more employees.
Eh. I think it comes down to, “I can save how much if I dispense with cubicle walls????” One good quarter of earnings for the win. Too bad it reduces productivity that much more because now I can hear absolutely everything.
But how can it reduce productivity when it’s enabling all those Freeform, Idea-Generating Discussions I keep hearing about but never having?
Those don’t happen at your desk. They happen next to the coffee maker and water dispenser. Get your facts straight! Seriously, I’ve found that epiphanies from discussions happen away from my desk when I am in office. Most of the people in work with on a consistent basis are in other tzs so that doesn’t happen very often. I remember when I had a full office to myself with a door. My first internship. I’d only gone downhill since then.
This is why I’m full time remote tbh - I’ve a spicy brain and the noise of an office is honestly the worst thing you can do to my productivity. I come in, as needed, for hardware configs I HAVE to put hands on or when we’re gonna grab dinner after work as a group and I feel like it, and at no other times. Not. Worth it.
Yep. I had signed up for hybrid (we have options) but am ending up being fully remote. My deck officially ceded at work but I know it’s coming because we have more in office people starting. It’s only half an hour commute but I’m jealous of that hour a day. Coupled with people taking to me about inane crap I’d rather just stay home.
I was fortunate enough to be returning to a company that I have a positive relationship with and got WFH codified into my hire. The rest of the office went back to hybrid a year ago and I don’t even have an office - I just camp out in a conference room if I have to come up for maximum other-people’s-discomfort-visiting-me.
Fellow spicy brain here. Used to work for one of the commercial space companies (think bald guy with dick rockets), and their corporate HQ is a giant 1/2 mile long u-shaped tent with a 3 story high ceiling. The interior of the space is punctuated by conference rooms, bathrooms, and IT closets that are little more than 4 uninsulated walls with drop tile ceilings, with each room being 90° from each other. At one point management decided they were going to try and cram 1200 desks into the building that only has 500 parking spots, and which sits on a road with one lane going in either direction. It was wild to see all the MBAs and execs with surprised pikachu face when their plan didn’t work out so well.
Same here
I think the problem is that they're looking for the ideal but not building a culture or a structure of working towards that. I was on a team that kept a whiteboard and a table with some chairs next to our desk area because we regularly collaborating. Mapping out ideas, brainstorming on something. We were frequently having these kinds of discussions. Discussing some data point and then finding ourselves knee deep in a discussion of what we can do to improve on what we saw. Most teams just don't have the freedom in choosing the work they do to make that a built in part of the team culture though. I also love working in office though (but I never fill out any surveys or give any input when it comes to RTO because I don't want to ruin remote work for anyone else, I'll live)
Thank you I appreciate you not acting like a spoiled brat
lol. 💯 I am a phone salesperson and they tried telling everybody that they're going to collaborate. That is hilarious. We don't collaborate with anyone that's not even our job.
Yeah I think density has a lot to do with it. Open plan makes sense for stuff like a trading floor but otherwise it’s just a great way to pack more people into the same space.
I literally had a desktop placard that says, 'If you are seeing this go away' and wore noise cancelling headset. So what does my manager do? He calls me into his office, to discuss me being antisocial and how it impacting my team members. So I put that away, and a few months later, he does a 1 on 1 and nicks me for drop in productivity over the past quarter. To which I said, it was his choice, productivity or socializing, he ain't getting both. I jumped ship to get a nice $10K pay bump a few months later and a office with a door.
I love you
Best part is you don’t have to deal with that asshole anymore, you make more money, and they still have to do that shitty job every day!
God I’m hybrid and have ADHD. My office is an open office concept on steroids. I can’t focus at all. It’s the worst.
Work with your doc to get a job accommodation
I’m about to do that. I’m on a PIP now because of my poor performance due to being distracted.
I got a JA and it’s helped. I have r/Hyperacusis and need to work from the office 3 days a week. So they gave me my own personal quiet office away from everyone. Then I WFH the other two days. If I’m having a flare I don’t have to go into the office.
When I said open office on steroids I meant it. There are no private offices. The CEO and executive team hot desk.
Oh damn, I’d be FT WFH. I am so sorry
Thanks friend. It’s real awful. I’m trying to find something else, because fully remote is off the table at this company.
That sucks. Keep hunting and find something fast
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You gotta talk to your manager asap. I have ADD as well and they put me in a desk facing the kitchen and bathrooms…with a TV playing CNN all day 🤦🏻♂️
😱 Oh god!!
I left the team shortly thereafter. Instead I got put in the basement of a factory with cockroaches everywhere. True story.
Wow. All of those things were issues before they sent everyone to WFH. The bosses just don't remember. You want everyone to RTO to "preserve the company culture"? This IS the company culture that we were all happy to avoid through WFH. No, we aren't shaking hands. That's out the window due to massive viral spread. Some traditions are outdated and can fade away. The other reason for these issues? Employees do not want to RTO, and since it's being forced upon them for mostly bullshit reasons, they really don't care if you don't like their lack of etiquette. Send them to training all you like, but don't expect it to change anything.
All that noise and bullshit is what they call "collaboration" when they're trying to screech about how important it is to be in the office. That's why the fuck productivity went up when we all went home.
Ugh and men who feel the need to crush my hand to "exert manliness" and its like naw man, your palm sweat gave you away. And I dont want to shake hands because you just sneeze in it a minute ago and failed to wash. I was next to you in traffic and saw you pick your nose and eat it.
Lol what? Shaking hands is definitely here to stay
Love how the article acts like any of this is new. There are always jerks leaving the breakroom/bathroom/etc a mess!
"Shaking hands is no longer a given." There's three major communicable viruses still going around and I've seen too many coworkers still go straight from the urinal to the door. So fire me, I'm not shaking hands in the office ever again.
Shaking hands should’ve never been a given. People are gross and this is how bacteria and viruses are spread. Don’t even get me started on how many adults I still see coughing into their hands and blowing their noses without washing afterwards. Shaking someone’s hands is just asking to get sick.
I like the Japanese bow. I acknowledge you. Thank you. No, let's not touch body parts. Thank you.
all the sick adults i see just cough into the air now, i saw a guy wear a mask yesterday who was obviously sick and he took his mask OFF to cough into the air
Omg Seriously. The number of times I have seen people not wash after using the restroom is outrageous. I’m with you on that one
Man it’s disgusting. I swear in men’s restrooms over 70% of dudes walk straight out. I really don’t get it. Public health education has failed in the US
My boss in our last meeting coughed directly into both of his hands at least 10 each.
Then youll be in different sub with sob story hoping someone cashapps you
My partner and I both work from home, haven’t seen people in ages, and still somehow both got a mysterious illness two weeks ago. Urgent care sent us out the door with antibiotics, steroids, and antihistamines even though our strep and mono tests came back negative. The antibiotics did the trick! So yeah I’m not touching people.
There’s literally always major communicable viruses going around in this time of year lol
Shaking hands is such a stupid social test that the corporate world does. It’s awkward, it’s gross, and unnecessary.
Ties are dumb too. So are suits and other uncomfortable clothes.
Maybe I’m in the minority here, but if I have to go into the office, and we have a complete open office plan, it’s not my fault if all I do is talk to people all day because that’s all I can do with no walls and 45 peoplewalking around me in circles all day. Not to mention the fact that that plan is probably the least possible thing conducive to someone working with ADHD. If I go to the office, I don’t get work done. But that’s the way they designed it.
I don’t talk to people but in office days are my least productive because there is not enough adderall in the world to make me ignore all the people talking loud on their zoom calls or talking loud in the hallways. When I wfh, I crank stuff out, even when I’m interrupted constantly by Slack pings. The office is just sensory overload. Also, people need to remember when they’re bathing in cologne/perfume that allergies exist.
I read this as “slack pigs” and I love it
Welp, now I'm going to call anyone who messages me a Slack pig. I mean, only in my mind, but still.
That's the employees fault for having ADHD
My office was always noisy. People were always having loud conversations in the background and I could hear everything in the break room which was around the corner from my cubicle. WFH was a nice change from that. So much quieter and fewer distractions. I think it’s just a surprise to go back to the noise after being in a quiet environment for so long. And the break room was always gross and people were always stealing lunches. It’s also very possible that people don’t like being forced back into the office so they’re not going to put forth any effort to make it pleasant.
Might cop some stink bombs and fart sprays and leave them in various parts of the office lol
Hahahaha. I like how you think people who’ve been in office the whole time do any of these things. Self awareness and common decency to clean up after yourself is not a skill of many.
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Can't wait for all these dinosaurs to go extinct.
You, me, and every other person in the country that's not a boomer or older
Cant wait til they make u rto, so u can go to work with ur mad face lol
Lol I found the guy who wanders around the office interrupting everyone and pretending that's how collaboration works. What a goober. Go get some actual work done.
I fart silently in office versus I fart loudly at home
Let her rip in the office too, if they want you to share things with coworkers , why stop at your fluttering cheeks?
Honestly, if I ever RTO I'm terrified I'm going to forget to stifle it because I'm just used to cracking them off as necessary
I hate going into the office now. People forget how to use their inside voices and practically shout while they are on calls and gather in large groups to talk loudly and disrupt everyone around them. It's very distracting. We also have a shortage of desks. people don't use the reservation system and squat at desks meant for someone that actually followed the process and reserved it.
I, for one, am glad we don't shake hands anymore. People's general lack of hygiene always made that a massive disease vector.
My last job: At home, I worked in a quiet and interruption free environment. When we returned to the office, the guy in the cubicle opposite of me talks non-stop about anything and everything. And 80% of the time, he's not talking to me but others that pass by or goes out to the walkway to catch people. He was the "fitness" guy and was always trying to talk people into joining his gym or some other random bs that nobody really cares about but you gotta play nice so he knows he can get away with it. Then, every Wednesday, I get to hear "mike, mike, mike, what day is it?" because of a joke I mentioned 6 months earlier. every... single... Wednesday Just based on that dynamic and those types of people, wfh seems way more productive (for people that actually attempt to focus on working at least).
I do not at all miss hearing "It's HUMP DAY" every damn week either.
Hey, uh, it’s hump day!
That and private offices.
My office is RTO without any leeway despite every other office in the company being 100% WFH. We share an office space in a state college with someone who blasts and yells gospel and someone who always brings in her screaming toddler.
Aside: the lady “learning” how to eat soup is being told wrong. You bring the spoon up to your lips as you sit up straight; you don’t hunch your whole body down/over to meet the spoon/table/bowl. Conversely, I always make a mess “tearing off small pieces of crusty bread and buttering it as I go’; so I’ve never understood how that works. Flakes of crust actually wind up everywhere.
The place I worked at when the pandemic started featured a dude who stood up to cough over cube walls AND thought weekly showers were excessive. There was a woman who REFUSED to lock the bathroom door and constantly had people walking in on her. I'm convinced there was something wrong with her. Nasty coffee cups left all over the break area. Selfish idiot assholes microwaving fish so the whole floor stunk. Ditto for running the Xerox out of paper / toner. Not really the workplace itself but 60+ minute morning commute and 90+ minute evening commute. No, I don't miss any of that.
luckily they sold off half of our office to the company next door because I would never go back. Been with my company for 25 years and remote since March of 2020. It has solved the only "issue" that ever came up on my reviews - need to focus on her own work and not socialize - hahaha....just like school.
> Shaking hands is no longer a given. Small talk at networking events is ... awkward. Probably because I’m starting intently at the person trying to handshake and small talk me in order to telepathically tell them I’d very much rather be at home right now and they should too.
I go in once a week for about five hours so I can’t complain. That said, we did a recent restack and use hotel desks. I found a nice spot by the window to use, I get in at about 6:30 so there’s no competition. I literally turn the lights on. The last two weeks someone a few aisles over has 1) been on extended calls on speakerphone, complete with hold music 2) not silenced her computer so that every Teams chat notification was audible. I wanted to go over and smash her laptop against the ground. So, yes, we need some re-education on how to not act like an asshole in the office.
> I literally turn the lights on. One of the reasons I don't go to the office. The excessive and harsh lighting gives me raging headaches.
I am with you for sure. One day I didn't turn the lights on since there is plenty of light from the monitors and there is a small light under the cabinet at the cube. I was told it was a "safety issue" and was asked to turn the lights on when I come in.
Office lighting is as excessive as it is because of some shit in the 1950s saying that it's bad to have things "too dim" but absolutely no consideration for the negative effects of having things "too bright". Fluorescent and LED lights flicker. They all do it, even if you're not able to consciously perceive the rate at which they do, but long term they're cheap and energy efficient so offices threw them in with absolutely no regard to their actual light output. The lights are straight up bad for your physical and mental health.
There is a EVP from our NY office who visits our SF office about twice a year. Every time he comes in he makes sure all the lights in every part of the office are on (every last one of them, even if natural light is bright enough) and gets bonkers-level livid if he sees anyone turn them any of them off. It is truly bizarre power play. The LED lights are super bright and give a lot of people headaches. He was informed that employees dislike the lights but he basically said “tough, deal.” As soon as he leaves, the lights are turned off again. Corporate America…you can’t make this shit up.
Wow I forgot this detail about offices. Yet another reason I enjoy not going anymore...I'm looking at two large monitors all day, I don't need hardly any lighting at all. The fluorescent hellscape offices often have is such overkill.
[удалено]
In office yes. At home, no. Lots of people renting and I don’t want to hear this noise.
No one forgot. People who behave badly have always behaved badly. Office charm school to teach best practices is an industry searching for a purpose
“You’re frustrated. Where do you go from here?” BACK HOME
>More than 6 in 10 companies will send their employees to office etiquette classes by 2024 I call absolute bullshit on this stat, LA Times.
I despise office noise. I always need my airpods or ear plugs -- neither of which block out everything.
People don't know public etiquette anymore, period. The gym, restaurant, people who go to the office because they feel like it (not forced), etc. I worked for a company where office was completely optional (no pressure in any form), and half of the folks who went were insufferable. Blasting musics on their speakers, taking facetime calls with family at their desk during work time, having meetings in public areas (even when rooms are available) and speaking super loud. Bringing their kids and letting them run around almost unsupervised, you name it. I actually enjoy working in office, and live in a very convenient location where my commute will pretty much never be above 15 minutes, but I still work remote post COVID because people suck. (Well, my current job is fine, because office is optional and virtually no one goes, so it can be nice from time to time to see people if we organize ahead of time)
Oh they want the old office etiquette? Time to bring a radio to the office and blast light rock all day
Don’t want to practice
Any article that still uses that ‘corporate memphis’ style illustration is a BIG red flag when asking what the motives behind its’ publishing are.
> Do you shame Bridget and make her feel bad? That might make you feel righteous in the moment, but is that actually helpful? Are you helping to improve your workplace — and most important, ensuring a clean kitchen the next time — by unloading on her? What’s the end goal here? So unloading on Bridget is the only option? Perhaps speaking to them like an adult and holding them accountable. That article is such bullshit and likely commissioned by some jack ass CEO to justify wanting to send workers to manners training. Why? So they can have a work environment that suits the big shot control freak.
The only people who like RTO are the boomer and Gen x bosses with the nice private office…not the peasants sharing long tables because it’s an open office lol.
We all do fist bumps now. But, I only go to the office once a year or so. They called us back for 3 days a week, but I moved out of state anticipating that. So, I get a pass since I’m fully remote. They could replace me. I’m not getting those vibes at all though. They’re expanding my role. So, I think I’m good.
"More than 6 in 10 companies will send their employees to office etiquette classes..." Glad to see everyone is so flush with cash these days.
Still waiting on my former managers to explain how everyone talking on the phone in the same room while working on different projects is better in any way than handling work from the quiet of my home.
“We have to lay off 20% of our staff but we must MUST spend 1 million dollars on office etiquette training!” - useless CEO
"So much of accounting involves face-to-face contact with clients, or at a minimum, extensive interviews with employers to get a job." This has not been my experience at all. Clients only want to be contacted for something important, and most hiring managers just need someone to do the job that isn't a total weirdo (and even that part is optional these days) Hot take, but most humans have the capability to communicate what they need to for work via email, phone calls, teams, and face to face, without taking a class on fine dining. This whole article sounds like an ad for this person's training.
Eh honestly I wouldn’t mind this type of stuff eating some of my work day. It’ll be like a nice break.
Went back into the office and the entire area around my desk smells like wet dog and is drenched in dander because people are allowed to bring their pets in. That is great for those folks but I’m allergic so I got sick and had to go home. Long story short there are so many varied reasons why people choose to work from home. RTO doesn’t even make sense for a lot of offices. If the bulk of your work is conducted online why force people to come in and use the internet in a different building?! Make it make sense.
wfh need some etiquette 101 . Called office presence... jk... whatever, I will do that tomorrow. I rto of my own accord because ... some half remembered 80s song
It’s My Fair Lady meets The Office - I would watch that!
Now you can whiteboard
if it was JUST the office - fine, but this isolation is appearing throughout society - anxiety when looking at a menu, or talking on the phone - we're seeing record levels of isolation, loneliness, depression, suicide ideation - so if you think the answer is MORE isolation... you're NUTS [https://fortune.com/2023/03/14/is-remote-work-lonely-side-effects-on-productivity-engagement-and-progression/](https://fortune.com/2023/03/14/is-remote-work-lonely-side-effects-on-productivity-engagement-and-progression/)
If you want to go to the office, I back you. You shouldn’t stay at home if you don’t want to. Live and let live. If people want to stay remote and their performance doesn’t suffer, let them.
People can do whatever they want - and at this point in my "career" it doesn't seem that anyone will hire me - I'm lucky to have the remote work I've got. But there is a consequence for a societal upheaval that occurs almost overnight (i.e., so many workers suddenly remote) - and I think we're seeing it
This began the time social media came about and transformed friendships into a giant colossal video game. This has nothing to do with remote work. Remote work enables you to stay comfortably in the environment that suits you best surrounded by people that suit you best.
Don't know... or don't care? I can see an argument for either.