Companies that are not WFH flexible will be less competitive in the jobs market. It’s that simple.
Apple's director of machine learning resigns due to return to office work
401–410 of 734 posts
Re: Apple's director of machine learning resigns due to return to office work
#402Earlier quoted context omitted.
That was a direct quote from Steve Jobs, except the last bit at the bottom. The whole point of the comment, I think, is how this goes against the old Apple ethos of encouraging non-conformity (to an extent).
It was ad copy, written by Rob Siltanen for that campaign[1]. [1] https://www.forbes.com/sites/onmarketing/2011/12/14/the-real...
My mistake. I should've been more diligent. I knew it was associated with Apple and the first result on DDG associated it with Jobs.
Re: Apple's director of machine learning resigns due to return to office work
#403Whether you favor in office or remote, you have to admit our cost structures have fundamentally reoriented the last 2 years. Think of the commuting costs, living near/far from the office, the different types of day care options, etc etc that have shifted in the last two years. Imagine being told you’re going to get a 10% cut in pay due to the need to go in the office? That’s what RTO probably feels like to peoples po…
Or you can work at a place that will give you a pay cut if you move out of the immediate Bay Area counties. Then you get the pay cut either way.
My company will pay me more if I work from home in a different city that also doesn't have a local office or any of my team nearby.
It's pretty frustrating.
Re: Apple's director of machine learning resigns due to return to office work
#404Some people are extremely sensitive to the issue of the remote work, like it is some kind of inalienable right, and any (perceived) threat to it makes them want to grab a pitchfork and proteat. I don't get it. Things are simple. The employer sets the terms, where you work and how the work is paid. The employee either accepts the terms or walks away. Sometimes the sides engage in negotiations, where the side with more…
Because the collective bargaining power of people who prefer to work in offices has been shattered and the remote workforce is fighting back as a collective. There's a lot of drama because the stakes are incredibly high. Pro-office workers had successfully promoted the idea that their model of work should be subsidised by an average of 10 hours a week of unpaid labour (called commuting) and massive government infrastructure spending. That is asking workers to sacrifice north of a year of their lives unpaid. Somebody going from a WFH job to a 1 hour commute at the same salary is de facto taking a massive hourly paycut in the middle of high inflation while having their work hours greatly extended. It's easier to push for a change in work conditions than an increase in pay because working in an office is such a massive inefficiency that cutting it is the easiest place for a company to save money. "Voting with your feet" is less useful than getting a bunch of others to vote with theirs.
Collective action being used to bargain a better deal for workers is a simple enough concept.
Re: Apple's director of machine learning resigns due to return to office work
#405Earlier quoted context omitted.
> A union's interests are probably not completely aligned with mine Sure, but the company's interests are almost completely opposed to yours in most ways. It's _possible_ for you to be worse off in a union, but rare.
> Sure, but the company's interests are almost completely opposed to yours in most ways. You do know that your employment depends on the success of the business, right? The relationship with an employee is no more adversarial than your relationship with the local grocery store when you buy a bag of potatoes.
The behaviour, motivation, and goals of individuals (including your boss and CEO) working for a business very rarely has anything to do with the goals of the business itself. There is a lot of pretend going on, but that is mostly just surface BS. Why do you think CEO’s spend billions buying back shares instead of using that money to invest in new products and other innovations that will make the business more successful long term? Could it perhaps be (gasp! horror!) that they care more about personal enrichment than making the business successful long term?
Re: Apple's director of machine learning resigns due to return to office work
#406I don't know about Apple, but I do have a ton of experience consulting for multiple F500's. Many at these companies who want people to come back to work are just middle managers who find it harder to justify their jobs since remote work has become so prevalent. They simply can't grasp how work can get done without them telling people what to do. And of course the easiest way to do that without requiring much thought is to see their underlings in person.
Re: Apple's director of machine learning resigns due to return to office work
#407I'm not sure remote work is for me, but if justice can be done to a position with little, or no, in-office time... then why force employees into the office? Money can be saved on all the accomodations necessary for office workers, so it would seem like a win-win if remote work arrangements are viable for a position.
Management is often not convinced that justice can be done.
Re: Apple's director of machine learning resigns due to return to office work
#408Good for him. These companies touting their solutions for creating a more connected world can't have it both ways. Apple was able to ship the M1 and roll out new iterations of many other offerings since the pandemic hit. They're just fine. Apple didn't collapse since the pandemic hit, and the flexibility offered by remote work is far more valuable to lots of people than the loss of in-person collaboration opportuniti…
I have a strong dislike for remote work and will only work at companies with offices where people are expected to go to the vast majority of days. I absolutely understand that it's the opposite for some people.
Yep I fell the complete opposite. I suspect that long term people who prefer in-office will gravitate towards companies that are in-office and the opposite will be true for people who prefer WFH. I personally will never ever work for a company that isn’t WFH flexible.
Re: Apple's director of machine learning resigns due to return to office work
#409Earlier quoted context omitted.
The free-rider problem applies to basically any system with cohorts. It's part of the incentive structure, for sure, but it's not the only part. As long as you accept utility in collective systems (ie if you're anything but a pure anarcho-capitalist), you recognize that in some cases (such as public roads) the value outweigh the costs of the free-rider problems. Once you're past that point, it should be all about tra…
I have noticed in the US more than anywhere else I've lived, the most important thing to everyone seems to be that no one gets anything unfairly. I've noticed more with Conservatives because of the noise they make about things like welfare freeriders, election fraud etc, but i imagine it applies to Liberals as well when talking about other issues. People seem to genuinely prefer letting poor people starve over accide…
It’s a perennial wedge issue in American politics. These wedge issues ultimately benefit the two party system at the expense of the governed, as the underlying issues are never resolved, just papered over for a term or so.
Re: Apple's director of machine learning resigns due to return to office work
#410Earlier quoted context omitted.
Not-so-subtle threats of violence. Another reason not to like labor unions.
People should really stop with the hyperbole. It makes people not take you seriously and ruins the message, even if valid.
Completely agree. Generally, when hyperbole is used, the underlying argument is week or poor, and the writer is trying to argue from emotion.
Sadly, it often works.