Covid has had many devastating consequences but — as far as business goes — the most damaging is the secondary plague it has unleashed: Working From Home.
Last week, the accountancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers offered its 22,000 UK staff Friday afternoons off during the summer months — assuming they have got their work done by lunchtime that day.
What about the clients and colleagues they serve around the globe? We hope that they aren’t trying to finish a project that includes PwC UK employees on Friday afternoons.
It’s a sign of a modern initiative by a 30 year old executive who believes that they are inclusive and modern.
But it’s not. It’s divisive. It’s divisive. What about security staff, post-room workers and canteen staff? This will lead to them losing their jobs.
Yet an increasing number of large corporations are trying to ingratiate themselves with both their staff and new recruits by promising ‘hybrid working’ — which allows them to work from home for part of the week — or full-on WFH.
It’s unfair towards small businesses who rely on people multi-tasking — filling in here and there — something that’s impossible to do from home. They can’t compete.
LORD SUGAR – Larger corporations are increasingly trying to win over their staff by promising “hybrid work”
LORD SUGAR: However, the pandemic has unleashed a workshy, entitled culture in which people demand — and are allowed — to work from home. (Above, Jacob Rees Mogg’s photo of the empty Ministry offices. While civil servants are still working from home, it is shown below.
The default situation was workers going to work before Covid. People are the lifeblood of every business — that shouldn’t just be a corporate slogan, but a reality.
Certainly, in the companies I own, the interaction between people — colleagues, customers and clients — is key to their success.
Because I work everyday and can see this, I am certain of it.
Also, my staff comes in. It is better to work together for your staff’s morale and development, as well as for your business.
However, the pandemic has unleashed a workshy, entitled culture in which people demand — and are allowed — to work from home.
This trend is bad news for business, for employees — and for the sandwich shops, cafes and taxi drivers who rely on people going into the office.
I would never have built my business empire if I had been working from home half the week, because creativity thrives in company — the company of your colleagues that is, not your cat.
Interaction is essential, especially for younger generations. You learn from observing your colleagues, listening to how they talk to customers, copying the methods of those who work effectively — and learning from the mistakes of those who don’t.
This is not something you can learn from any course.
These are the interactions you have as you pass someone’s desk or make to your colleagues nearby that will spark great ideas, resolve problems, and build rapport. It’s not enough to have a chat in a Zoom meeting.
It’s not just my opinion. Microsoft conducted a study of over 61,000 workers between December 2019 and June 2020, finding that WFH decreases creativity, communication, and teamwork.
LORD SUGAR: It’s naive to expect that everyone works as hard when no one is looking. WFH has become a common practice, especially in the public sector. (stock image)
It was reported that it was more difficult to obtain and share information between different departments. This can have consequences for companies’ productivity and innovation.
It should have been obvious. But it appears that it isn’t.
Some things might have improved over time: VPNs, virtual private networks (or broadband) may be better. No one needs to go home school now.
But human nature doesn’t change overnight. Human beings are more successful around each other than they are alone. Let’s face it, there are many lazy people.
Their bosses are not required to monitor them and they can spend their time shopping online or even watching cricket.
To expect that everybody works the same amount of hard as everyone else is unrealistic. WFH, in particular the public sector is now the norm.
A newspaper undercover investigation revealed last December that managers of the DVLA had claimed they watched Netflix box sets during their work hours.
Driving licence applications were piling up in abandoned offices. Some people couldn’t use their vehicles and lost their jobs.
WFH was a benefit for even the most senior civil servant at the Department for Digital Culture Media and Sport. She could ride her Peloton bicycle more often, according to the official.
Some of her staff refused to go to meetings with ministers and this brought an abrupt halt to departmental business. It was a complete sham.
Only 10% of public sector employees are present in offices. The rest are working from home, while the paperwork accumulates on their desks.
For civil servants it is all fine, but for us who are trying to start businesses, and can’t get hold of HMRC or Passport Office personnel, it’s an absolute nightmare.
All levels of staff, including the top-ranking mandarins as well as junior clerks seem to take it easy, but they need to change.
Yet when Brexit minister Jacob Rees-Mogg tried to encourage absent civil servants to return to the office two weeks ago by leaving wry notes on their desks, he was accused of being ‘bullying’ and ‘patronising’ — just for asking them to turn up to work!
LORD SUGAR: I would never have built my business empire if I had been working from home half the week, because creativity thrives in company — the company of your colleagues that is, not your cat. (Pictured in London: Commuters)
It would be tempting to say, “You’re fired!” But even though I would be tempted to tell them, “You’re fired!”
Just as some people are suffering from Long Covid, businesses are suffering from Long Laziness — the hidden side-effect of the pandemic.
Stories of bosses trying to return their employees to their desks are horrifying to me. They often get refused.
And with the economic news as grim as it is — inflation soaring, growth stalling and interest rates going through the roof — we need everyone to pull together and put their shoulders to the wheel, working as a team, not in individual bubbles.
The fact that so many young people believe that being able to work remotely is their right worries me greatly.
It is having a devastating effect on the business. An advertising agency that I own a financial stake in is performing extremely well but can’t find the employees. Although there are 70 desks available, only 15 people are currently occupied.
He is in tears because almost every interviewee asks him the same question: “Can you work at home?”
I asked him to inquire: “Did your mom work at home?” Your grandfather and father worked from home. You shouldn’t, because your father or grandfather didn’t work from home.
It was common during the pandemic to allow people to work remotely if possible. Now that most people have been vaccinated there is no reason not to visit the office.
They might have bought a puppy in a shelter, moved far away from work, or they simply don’t want to commute. Too bad.
WFH might make people happier and healthier in the short-term, but how about for their businesses? Do they make their business more productive?
It doesn’t, I swear. They will be so happy if their company goes bankrupt, I’m sure.
They should set an example for others, including the Prime Minister and PwC executives. To put it simply, they should ‘grow two’ instead of kowtowing the WFH mob.
This has been going on far too long. It is detrimental to the economy and the country, as well as the health of employees, so it must end.
It’s time for everyone to get off their backsides — and their Pelotons — and get back to work. Your company — and your country — needs you!