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Nearly 40% of software engineers will only work remotely

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Re: Nearly 40% of software engineers will only work remotely

#361
A lot of people here voicing displeasure for in office work - so I'll add a counter point:

I really miss the in person communication and relationship building of office work. I would love to be back in office 3 or 4 days a week, but have a medical condition (DVT) that basically requires me to be up and moving constantly or keep my leg elevated.

Have a custom set up at home that allows me to recline at my desk for most of the day with a standing desk, keyboard tray and down tilted monitor on an arm.

Could only imagine trying to get this sort of setup in an office (although - if I asked, I'm sure they'd oblige, but would just be an awkward set up since the office is now optional in a "hot desk" sort of fashion).

Re: Nearly 40% of software engineers will only work remotely

#363

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> You're not forced to work at any particular company This is just false. People can be stuck at a company for a variety of reasons.

Stuck != Force

Functionally what's the difference?

Re: Nearly 40% of software engineers will only work remotely

#364
post #298

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My father was a chemical engineer. Back in the 60s & 70s, the company would pay to relocate our family to wherever they needed him (this included purchasing the house if we didn't sell it before the moving trucks showed up). That included several foreign countries. In my family's experience, that included England, Iran, Ireland & Saudi Arabia. During the 80s, his industry stopped relocating engineers. This correspond…

>Great, that's now a "voluntary quit" That's actually a constructive dismissal, which counts as an involuntary resignation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constructive_dismissal

reading that...

> An employer showing favoritism to another employee without reason or explanation

Sometimes "you just like people" or "you just don't like people"; and it turns out that liking the people you work with makes you more productive, so where's the room for that irrational dynamic, where there may not BE a "rational" reason to dismiss one over another?

Re: Nearly 40% of software engineers will only work remotely

#366

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If companies start buying upside-down homes, they're probably going to start holding them until they can at least wash out. I'd hate to see a trend of employers becoming landlords.

I wonder if the company actually took ownership of the house or just managed a purchase for the employee. I knew someone who worked for the federal government and relocated for a job and took advantage of this kind of benefit. But I don't believe the federal government actually took ownership of the house - I think it was more like, they found the best quick cash offer, and then paid out the amount between that and t…

In our case, we put the house on the market through a realtor of our choosing. Once we had a finalized offer, the company (probably a third party of some sort) took ownership of the house and paid us the offer price. At that point, had the buyer pulled out it would have been the companies problem.

This was a like three housing market cycles ago and the market was in an upturn, so there really wasn't much risk to the company. Another buyer would have been along right behind the first.

Re: Nearly 40% of software engineers will only work remotely

#367

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Stuck != Force

Functionally what's the difference?

The former represents self-limitation.

Edit: Unless one finds themself forcefully bound and therefore literally stuck.

Re: Nearly 40% of software engineers will only work remotely

#368
post #190

It is called an "Office" if you want to provide one I am happy to talk. If you want me to work in a noisy communal room I am happy to walk.

Agreed. I mostly work from home but on occasion if I go in (for some forces reason) i do absolutely no work. I chit chat, go on long walks, chit chat more, go on a long lunch, look at the internet a little and then leave early enough so that i am still home at the time I normally home when I WFH. Your tax dollars hard at work.

In my experience chit chatting lays the groundwork for extemporaneous collaboration, the kind that turns a week of work into an hour of work, because you happened to remember that one guy said he did something like this at a previous job.

Re: Nearly 40% of software engineers will only work remotely

#369
post #298

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>Great, that's now a "voluntary quit" That's actually a constructive dismissal, which counts as an involuntary resignation. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constructive_dismissal

reading that... > An employer showing favoritism to another employee without reason or explanation Sometimes "you just like people" or "you just don't like people"; and it turns out that liking the people you work with makes you more productive, so where's the room for that irrational dynamic, where there may not BE a "rational" reason to dismiss one over another?

[deleted]

Re: Nearly 40% of software engineers will only work remotely

#370

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> people fake work sitting in their homes People fake work sitting in offices. If someone is going to fake work in the office, why not let them fake work from home and safe everyone a hassle. Or maybe incentivize real work over fake work. I worked with someone in the office next to mine for a few years and he was running a side business the whole time. It was bizarre how brazen he was, but people are interesting and…

I keep saying - if they aren't doing the job you'd fire them even if they were in office. If you think they are working two jobs but they are getting their job done you have to ask yourself - are you paying for someone to get the job done (which in this scenario they are) or someone you force to sit in a seat for x amount of time each week?

Exactly! As a manager if you hire someone to do X, Y, and Z, and he does X, Y, and Z with high quality and up to your expectations in 20 hours, why do you care if he spends his other 20 hours working for Facebook? Assuming performance is good and no confidential information is being shared, the guys second job doesn't hurt you.

I think they just don't want to admit the reason: That if they knew the worker was getting their job done in 20 hours, they'd simply raise their expectations to squeeze more out of the worker for the same pay.

When a service worker or retail clerk does multiple jobs, it's seen as hard-working and hustling, but when an office worker has multiple jobs it's somehow taboo.

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