topic Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic.... in Community Chat

For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

San Antonio Gal — Thu, 10 Nov 2022 02:10:41 GMT

Did you go back to the office full time or maybe a few times during the week?

For my job, it worked out so well that we will remain working from home. It's interesting how the pandemic changed the work struture for many. Even with the Q, many vendors are continuing to work remote. Technology is wonderful!

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

On It — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 14:29:47 GMT

My son worked from home until recently. He goes into the office 3 days a week (Tuesday-Thursday) and works from home 2 days (Monday and Friday.)

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

Caaareful Shopper — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 14:38:36 GMT

@San Antonio Gal Before the pandemic, I worked from home 2 days a week for about 5 years. The pandemic changed that to 100% telework.

Like you, we all performed fantastically during telework. In fact the changes we were forced to make proved extremely efficient. Our measured workload reports are consistently excellent!

Yes, we are are still 100% telework. In our group, there's a very small few (about 10 out of 300) that either volunteered to go back into the office, or their specific job really does require them to be in the office at least a couple days a week.

Any of us can go back into the office on any day, just let senior management know beforehand.

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

Desert Lily — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 14:43:32 GMT

I worked from home in 2020. By the end of the year, I joined the Great Resignation. My work had doubled. I was asked to come back in 2021, but when I finally agreed they were shut down for another week due to the new covid strain then. So, I retired a couple years earlier than I had planned.

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

DJs mom — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 14:55:16 GMT

I worked from home during the pandemic, but now I am back in the office 4 days a week (M-Th) and wfh on Fridays.

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

CANDLEQUEEN — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 14:59:30 GMT

I worked from home from March 2020, until April 2021. We came back into the office 3 days a week, and then after about a month we came back full time. I enjoy working in the office more so than from home. I know most people prefer working from home, but I am one that does not!

I prefer seeing people face to face and being in an office setting. There are however, some definite benefits to wroking from home!!!

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

Jersey Born — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 15:00:22 GMT

@San Antonio Gal - I am glad you are doing well and were personally unscathed financially during this pandemic. At the same time, I am devastated for all of those who experienced the shut down and compelled demise of their small and medium sized businesses while nonsensical regulations permitted all big box store chains to remain open and thrive, earning billions.

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

northiie57 — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 15:02:24 GMT

I've worked from home since 2008 pre pandemic and will never have it any other way. Now retired and disabled, I enjoyed my WAH position. JUst do what is best for you!

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

Nancy Drew — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 15:03:43 GMT

A lot of vendors probably don't want to go to the state of Pennsylvania, not exactly a tourist state. The good thing about technology is it allows those that want to stay home can. Less traffic also.

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

mimomof4 — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 15:13:41 GMT

I worked from home for almost a year prior to the pandemic. I have no plans to return to the office as long as I stay with my current employer.

At the moment I won't consider a new job unless I can work from home. Part of that is because I do not live in an area with lots of employment prospects so I have to drive at least 45 miles and I don't want to do that anymore.

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

santorini — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 16:17:04 GMT

We're all back at the office. We can work from home one day a week but no one does it. I love getting dressed up and being around people. I hated being at home so much during the pandemic.

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

Snowpuppy — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 17:03:06 GMT

Sill on WFH.

We have been asked for 1 person fom each team to come in 1 day a week for year end close out. Strictly on a volunteer basis. Only a couple of people with serious health issues have not come in.

It's a tremendous cost savings not only to corporate but to employees who don't have to commute or pay for daycare.

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

deepwaterdotter — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 17:16:25 GMT

I have never been a parent nor worked from home. So this question can be considered extremely unenlighened and fairly stupid. How can an employee devote all their time and energies to their job performance while fulfilling their resposibilities as an attentive parent at the same time?

Thanks in advance for taking the time to inform an old woman.

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

Harpa — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 19:04:06 GMT

My classes still meet on line for half the time; the other half we meet face-to-face.

This is not the ideal arrangement! I've had to re-structure everything! I'm talking more than a mile a minute, there really is no time to review, and it takes away from some of the fun things we used to do.

Technology is wonderful, though! But when I zoomed in full time and played music for illustration, I had no idea what the students' speaker set up was. No doubt terrible! Then I had to use a virtual keyboard instead of the real thing. Oh, that was fun, too! Ever play a piano with a mouse?

There are a whole lot more negative things, but...life goes on. I get the winter session all on-line, and those classes always go well!

It is nice being home, too. Glad you are enjoying "home" work, @San Antonio Gal !

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

On It — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 17:27:00 GMT

I wonder if it is as simple as introverts enjoy working from home. Extroverts prefer working in the office.

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

Cumbercookie13 — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 17:29:16 GMT

So...as a 12 month school employee we were going to work at the office while everyone else worked virtually. I was actually at the office the day our govenor declared a total shutdown and announced anyone that could work from home should. So the board had an emergency meeting and said all 12 month employees would be working from home for the foreesable future.

I worked from home March 2020 through the end of February 2021. It probably would have been longer, but the school board was pressured by the state education department and the governor to open buildings back up. So 12 month employees came back hybrid. I would work 4 half days at the office in the morning and then work from at home in the afternoon. Everyone, including teachers, returned full time September 2021.

Schools really can't be remote. We had and continue to have so many behavorial problems with kids because of virtual learning. And with my job, it is customer service oriented. I just don't do data entry and emails, we have to answer phones, we still have people who prefer to fax documents and medical records instead of emailing them, we do hearing evaluations for little ones, and we have therapists who see kids in daycares and their homes. We're grabbing files all the time. So when we would get requests to send information, we weren't there to do it.

There were a lot of nice things about working at home but there were also some cons about it too, especially when 12 month workers have to do 4 10 hour days in the summer. And summer can be slow, so there were days where I had nothing to do so I would go for walks, piddle around the house, I felt like I was playing hooky. My boss told me not to worry, she'd walk her dog and do laundry.

We still do most meetings virtually, which I like. I'm not a fan of big group meetings and that was before Covid.

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

jeepgrl — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 17:32:05 GMT

Before the pandemic I worked from home maybe once a week. Since our office shutdown in Feb 2020, the powers that be decided that we were just as productive working from home so our office closed and we are now permanently WFH. I LOVE it. I no longer have to get up at 5am and when I'm done working, I just walk out of my office into the living room. I only put gas in my car every two months and even then it's only at about 1/2 tank so I'm extremely happy how it has worked out.

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

qbetzforreal — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 17:31:13 GMT

My division now works permanently from home.

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

JeanLouiseFinch — Thu, 10 Nov 2022 02:25:55 GMT

I retired many years ago, DH has been working from home since March 2020. His office remained vacant, with only a security person there through the shutdown. The company opened up the option to return to the office earlier this year but DH is staying home. Being part of an international team, it makes no sense for him to go to the office when none of his people are there anyway and he can do his meetings from his home office. I am happy that he's safe here at home rather than being downtown (Chicago) everyday where there's lots of crime and violence. Once in awhile he may have an in person day of meetings but it's rare. If he would have been required to be there in person daily he probably would have retired. Fortunately he likes what he does and is an asset to the company, so he'll keep working since this arrangement is so ideal for us.

Re: For those that worked from home during the pandemic....

spumoni99 — Wed, 09 Nov 2022 18:30:45 GMT

I have been working from home 100% since March 2020, before that we worked from home 3 days a week. We were told to clean out our offices because it would be permanent.

Now with a new CEA they are saying they want us in the office 1 day a week (I work for the state I believ its political) but luckily I am retirning at the end of the year.