Agree very strongly. It's a disaster for young people, working on wobbly little desks in the corners of grim bedrooms in shared flats. Even for oldies - I've worked from home for 28 years and it's why I've become so dysfunctional.
That's so interesting to hear. I do think it is possible to work from home and not be at a disadvantage but it requires a level of investment and care and thought that most companies are not prepared to make. Also self=awareness, never a coroporate strong suit. Thanks so much for reading and commenting
30 years ago, in 1994, I on a “telecommuting” pilot team at the company I worked for at the time. I was on the pilot team because I had volunteered for other special projects involving new technologies and was a high performer. It helped that I lived in the tiny section of town where the phone company could run an ISDN line to my house, and I was fairly close to the office.
The company’s problem at the time was staff retention. Mostly women in their 30s and 40s who lived out in the burbs and exurbs and had a lengthy commute. Some men, too, including one with Type 1 diabetes and other serious health issues.
For two years, I worked with IT staff to deal with security, technical, and social challenges of telecommuting. At the end of the pilot, in 1996, at least 70 employees were working from home, at least occasionally. The vast majority were women. All were on dialup phone modems except me. Anybody working from home could opt to stop doing it and come back into the office full-time. They were a very forward-thinking and accommodating company.
I enjoyed working on the tech side so much that I pivoted to IT, mainly in the areas of software testing and technical business analysis, and left the company. Like all companies, the owner eventually died and things got all ‘corporate” and they had layoffs, and I bet it’s like everywhere else these days.
At the time, I thought it was special, and I have nothing but good memories. I thought the future of work involving the internet was going to be different than how it turned out to be.
From 2001 to 2022, I worked for a different company. They forced me to work remote in 2020. Then they gave me the option to work remotely on a permanent basis. Thinking they were going to close our location, I agreed. They did close our location in 2022, but then they also laid me off without warning even though I was on one of their bread and butter products. I guess they invoked their “soft ageism” policy and I accepted the severance. Looking back, I now believe that their offer for me work remote FT was a trap. Because that’s how companies behave these days.
Today, I’m at a different company. Love it. Love the work. I could WFH on Monday and Friday, but I almost always go into the office on those days. In the back of head, I have scarring after what happened in 2022. People ask me, “Why don’t you work from home on Mondays and Fridays?”. What am I going to say? It’s a “trust” issue.
Agree very strongly. It's a disaster for young people, working on wobbly little desks in the corners of grim bedrooms in shared flats. Even for oldies - I've worked from home for 28 years and it's why I've become so dysfunctional.
+ laughing emoji +
Where else do you get the chance to photocopy yet backside...(asking for a friend)
This was in 1980 at British Leyland in Solihull.
BL, my part in it's downfall (apologies to Spike)
That's so interesting to hear. I do think it is possible to work from home and not be at a disadvantage but it requires a level of investment and care and thought that most companies are not prepared to make. Also self=awareness, never a coroporate strong suit. Thanks so much for reading and commenting
30 years ago, in 1994, I on a “telecommuting” pilot team at the company I worked for at the time. I was on the pilot team because I had volunteered for other special projects involving new technologies and was a high performer. It helped that I lived in the tiny section of town where the phone company could run an ISDN line to my house, and I was fairly close to the office.
The company’s problem at the time was staff retention. Mostly women in their 30s and 40s who lived out in the burbs and exurbs and had a lengthy commute. Some men, too, including one with Type 1 diabetes and other serious health issues.
For two years, I worked with IT staff to deal with security, technical, and social challenges of telecommuting. At the end of the pilot, in 1996, at least 70 employees were working from home, at least occasionally. The vast majority were women. All were on dialup phone modems except me. Anybody working from home could opt to stop doing it and come back into the office full-time. They were a very forward-thinking and accommodating company.
I enjoyed working on the tech side so much that I pivoted to IT, mainly in the areas of software testing and technical business analysis, and left the company. Like all companies, the owner eventually died and things got all ‘corporate” and they had layoffs, and I bet it’s like everywhere else these days.
At the time, I thought it was special, and I have nothing but good memories. I thought the future of work involving the internet was going to be different than how it turned out to be.
From 2001 to 2022, I worked for a different company. They forced me to work remote in 2020. Then they gave me the option to work remotely on a permanent basis. Thinking they were going to close our location, I agreed. They did close our location in 2022, but then they also laid me off without warning even though I was on one of their bread and butter products. I guess they invoked their “soft ageism” policy and I accepted the severance. Looking back, I now believe that their offer for me work remote FT was a trap. Because that’s how companies behave these days.
Today, I’m at a different company. Love it. Love the work. I could WFH on Monday and Friday, but I almost always go into the office on those days. In the back of head, I have scarring after what happened in 2022. People ask me, “Why don’t you work from home on Mondays and Fridays?”. What am I going to say? It’s a “trust” issue.
Always happy to see your writing drop into my inbox, Anna. More power to your elbow!
Spot on. Couldn't agree more.