| Here's what I have in my home office: - a view of gardens in my back yard and that of the neighbor behind me. - privacy in which to do some bodyweight exercise if I'm bored or stuck on a problem. - the ability to not wear a shirt in the summer unless I'm on a Zoom call and absolutely must turn on video. - the ability to prepare and eat fresh homemade meals with my wife, even if we just make sandwiches together. - the ability to do laundry during the day (I carry the wash to and from the basement and swap it between the washer and dryer; she folds). - not having to share a bathroom with strangers - I don't need to wear headphones all day to drown out noise from my coworkers. - I have cats to keep me company when I'm working. - I don't spend nearly as much time driving. - I don't buy nearly as much gasoline. - I've all but eliminated my consumption of sugary drinks and fast food. - I've lost over 100lbs of body fat and gained 10lbs of muscle mass. - I've reversed my type II diabetes. - CATS! I'd give all of that up if I went back to onsite work, and for what? Half a desk in an open-plan hellscape? Inane conversation with coworkers who don't give a fuck about me unless I make a mistake that makes their jobs harder? Managers pushing for workers to "return to the office" don't have workers' interests, needs, or desires at heart. They just miss the sense of control they had from being able to walk around and look over people's shoulders. If my employer insisted I return to onsite work, I'd quit. I don't get paid enough to drive at least half an hour each way and still have to do Zoom calls because half my team is in another office on the other side of the fucking continent. You don't get paid enough for that shit either. None of us get paid enough for that shit, and we should stop tolerating it. Businesses can either go async or go out of business. It's the 21st fucking century and managers need to get with the program; they need us a lot more than we need them. |