Dispatch

‘Think of the economy’: More Hub readers respond to the work-from-home phenomenon

Architectural designer Erica Shannon, front, works at a computer as accounting manager Andrea Clark, top, speaks with a colleague at the design firm Bergmeyer, Wednesday, July 29, 2020, at the company's offices, in Boston. Steven Senne/AP Photo.

Here at The Hub we are convinced that delays in getting back to the office and now the rise of so-called “quiet quitting” risk having significant consequences for individual Canadians, the economy, and our broader society that need to be better understood and debated.

We recently ran an editorial that made the case for getting back to the office, but we don’t want to have the last word on the subject. We put out the call for Hub readers to respond with their own experiences and are delighted to share the latest sample of comments and feedback. We will continue to share your feedback as it comes in.

If you would like to tell us about your own empty office experience or contribute to this discussion, please email us at [email protected] or contact us anonymously via our online submission form.

Think of the economy

Apart from whatever one can say about WFH or in the office, I do (alas) think we need to go back. It is better for the overall economy that we are out consuming stuff!

Not everyone can work from home

Good morning. Here is a somewhat different perspective on working from home. I work in heavy construction, on projects like smelters, power generation, tunnels, and roads. To us, working from home means being within driving distance from the worksite and being in your own bed at night, instead of a camp.

Work from home can actually work

Dear The Hub, I am a little disappointed with the podcast and the written content almost religiously adhering to the concept of the office as it was.

As someone who runs a remote team of 40, I do understand the value of both remote work and also in-person interactions. While there are many criticisms of remote first working environments, they are hardly the barren, idea-less, dysfunctional places that have been described.

I understand that the past and our own nostalgia can be comforting, but the benefits of a large worker pool, cost savings, and efficiency of work should not be ignored simply because some organizations are implementing remote work poorly.

If the point of The Hub is to explore new ideas then let this be one that you entertain seriously.

Business as usual

I have never worked in an office. I went to work as usual with no change in my work pattern at all. I have no boss. I have no employees. I have no co-workers. I do not have to deal with the public. The pandemic was not difficult at all except for the shortages of needed inputs. The only time the pandemic was noticeable was when I ventured into town to do retail business, even then, masks and distancing were easy.

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