#Remote work

[animentality]

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Return to office and dying on the job

Denise Prudhomme's bosses at Wells Fargo insisted that the in-person camaraderie of their offices warranted a mandatory return-to-office policy, but when she died at her desk in her Tempe, AZ office, no one noticed for four days.

That was in August. Now, Wells Fargo United has published a statement on her death, one that vibrates with anger at the callously selective surveillance that Wells Fargo inflicts on its workforce:

https://www.reddit.com/r/WellsFargoUnited/comments/1fnp9fa/please_print_and_take_to_your_managersite_leader/

The union points out that Wells Fargo workers are subjected to continuous, fine-grained on-the-job surveillance from a variety of bossware tools that count their keystrokes and create tables of the distancess their mice cross each day:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/02/24/gwb-rumsfeld-monsters/#bossware

Wells Fargo's message to its workforce is, "You can't be trusted," a policy that Wells Fargo doubled down on with its Return to Office mandate. Return to Office is often pitched as a chance to improve teamwork, communication, and human connection with your co-workers, and there's no arguing with the idea that spending some time in person with people can help improve working relationships (I attended a week-long, all-hands, staff retreat for EFF earlier this month and it was fantastic, primarily due to its in-person nature).

But our bosses don't want us back in the office because they enjoy our company, nor because they're so excited about having hired such a swell bunch of folks and can't wait to see how we all get along together. As John Quiggin writes, the biggest reason to force us back to the office is to get a bunch of us to quit:

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/sep/26/in-their-plaintive-call-for-a-return-to-the-office-ceos-reveal-how-little-they-are-needed

As one of Musk's toadies put it in a private message before the Twitter takeover, "Sharpen your blades boys. 2 day a week Office requirement = 20% voluntary departures":

https://techcrunch.com/2022/09/29/elon-musk-texts-discovery-twitter/

The other reason to spy on us is because they don't trust us. Remember all the panic about "quiet quitting" and "no one wants to work"? Bosses' hypothesis was that eking out a bare minimum living on from a couple of small-dollar covid stimulus checks was preferable to working for them for a full paycheck.

Every accusation is a a confession. When your boss tells you that he thinks that you can't be trusted to do a good job without total, constant surveillance, he's really saying, "I only bother to do my CEO job when I'm afraid of getting fired':

https://pluralistic.net/2024/04/19/make-them-afraid/#fear-is-their-mind-killer

As Wells Fargo United notes, Wells Fargo employees like Denise Prudhomme are spied on from the moment they set foot in the building until the moment they clock out (and sometimes the spying continues when you're off the clock):

Wells Fargo monitors our every move and keystroke using remote, electronic technologies—purportedly to evaluate our productivity—and will fire us if we are caught not making enough keystrokes on our computers.

The Arizona Republic coverage notes further that Prudhomme had to log her comings and goings from the Wells Fargo offices with a badge, so Wells Fargo could see that Prudhomme had entered the premises four days before, but hadn't left:

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/tempe-breaking/2024/09/23/wells-fargo-employees-union-responds-death-tempe-woman/75352015007/

Wells Fargo has mandated in-person working, even when that means crossing a state line to be closer to the office. They've created "hub cities" where workers are supposed to turn up. This may sound convivial, but Prudhomme was the only member of her team working out of the Tempe hub, so she was being asked to leave her home, travel long distances, and spend her days in a distant corner of the building where no one ventured for periods of (at least) four days at a time.

Bosses are so convinced that they themselves would goof off if they could that they fixate on forcing employees to spend their days in the office, no matter what the cost. Back in March 2020, Charter CEO Tom Rutledge – then the highest-paid CEO in America – instituted a policy that every back office staffer had to work in person at his call centers. This was the most deadly phase of the pandemic, there was no PPE to speak of, we didn't understand transmission very well, and vaccines didn't exist yet. Charter is a telecommunications company and it was booming as workers across America upgraded their broadband so they could work from home, and the CEO's response was to ban remote work. His customer service centers were superspreading charnel houses:

https://pluralistic.net/2020/03/18/diy-tp/#sociopathy

That Wells Fargo would leave a dead employee at her desk for four days is par for the course for the third-largest commercial bank in America. This is Wells Fargo, remember, the company that forced its low-level bank staff to open two million fake accounts in order to steal from their customers and defraud their shareholders, then fired and blackballed staff who complained:

https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/09/26/495454165/ex-wells-fargo-employees-sue-allege-they-were-punished-for-not-breaking-law

The executive who ran that swindle got a $125 million bonus:

https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2016/09/wells-fargo-ceos-teflon-don-act-backfires-at-senate-hearing-i-take-full-responsibility-means-anything-but.html

And the CEO got $200 million:

https://money.cnn.com/2016/09/21/investing/wells-fargo-fired-workers-retaliation-fake-accounts/index.html

It's not like Wells Fargo treats its workers badly but does well by everyone else. Remember, those fake accounts existed as part of a fraud on the company's investors. The company went on to steal $76m from its customers on currency conversions. They also foreclosed on customers who were up to date on their mortgages, seizing and selling off all their possessions. They argued that when bosses pressured tellers into forging customers on fraudulent account-opening paperwork, that those customers had lost their right to sue, since the fraudulent paperwork had a binding arbitration clause. When they finally agreed to pay restitution to their victims, they made the payments opt-in, ensuring that most of the millions of people they stole from would never get their money back.

They stole millions with fraudulent "home warranties." They stole millions from small businesses with fake credit-card fees. They defrauded 800,000 customers through an insurance scam, and stole 25,000 customers' cars with illegal repos. They led the pre-2008 pack on mis-selling deceptive mortgages that blew up and triggered the foreclosure epidemic. They loaned vast sums to Trump, who slashed their taxes, and then they fired 26.000 workers and did a $40.6B stock buyback. They stole 525 homes from mortgage borrowers and blamed it on a "computer glitch":

https://pluralistic.net/2021/09/29/jubilance/#too-big-to-jail

Given all this, two things are obvious: first, if anyone is going to be monitored for crimes, fraud and scams, it should be Wells Fargo, not its workers. Second, Wells Fargo's surveillance system exists solely to terrorize workers, not to help them. As Wells Fargo United writes:

We demand improved safety precautions that are not punitive or cause further stress for employees. The solution is not more monitoring, but ensuring that we are all connected to a supportive work environment instead of warehoused away in a back office.

Tor Books as just published two new, free LITTLE BROTHER stories: VIGILANT, about creepy surveillance in distance education; and SPILL, about oil pipelines and indigenous landback.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/09/27/sharpen-your-blades-boys/#disciplinary-technology

[dispatchesfromtheclasswar]

[macmanx]

Unispace found that nearly half (42%) of companies with return-to-office mandates witnessed a higher level of employee attrition than they had anticipated. And almost a third (29%) of companies enforcing office returns are struggling with recruitment. In other words, employers knew the mandates would cause some attrition, but they weren’t ready for the serious problems that would result.

Meanwhile, a staggering 76% of employees stand ready to jump ship if their companies decide to pull the plug on flexible work schedules, according to the Greenhouse report. Moreover, employees from historically underrepresented groups are 22% more likely to consider other options if flexibility comes to an end.

[ilikeit-art]

Remote workers have their own way of not visiting a psychologist.

[covid-safer-hotties]

Also preserved in our archive

From a public health and a scientific perspective, Back to Office is nothing but bullshit meant to control us and waste our time.

[unbfacts]

An Indian software engineer recently went viral for holding four remote startup jobs at once, working up to 140 hours per week. He reported earning $30,000 to $40,000 per month, which totals about $480,000 annually. He described himself as a "serial nonsleeper," coding nearly non-stop to manage all his roles.

[insummerigrieve]

𓇼𓏲*ੈ✩‧₊˚The week is almost over. Hang on.

[muspellssynir]

Heya, I know I'm insistent on this but it's what I can do while I do for someone to call from some job.

I'm currently owing usd700 and need money even to feed my family right now. I can do anything remotely, but specialize in writing and translations. You can see my AO3 for even a taste of my original writing. There's a bunch of stuff there.

If you wanna help and don't care about getting something written for you, you can through my PayPal account. It won't tell me I got something so I'd appreciate the DM to let me know.

At the moment I got the equivalent of 2usd to figure out something, don't get anything until the 9th and it won't be enough to pay the debt either. My roof is on the line so anything you can do to help is a lot.

I'm sorry I keep asking. I've been looking for steady job for months. Again, if you know of anything please do point me in the right direction.

Thank you.

PayPal Ko Fi

[divyx]

A co-working space for remote workers & students in غaza needs our help💡

I am coordinating with a team on the ground running a co-working space, Spark Space, which provides internet, electricity, and a bit of shelter to workers connecting to remote jobs and students connecting to their classes.

🛜 This has been an important lifeline enabling people to earn an income and feed their families amidst catastrophically increasing prices for basic goods. Meanwhile, students have a free way to continue their educations and build their futures.

🛜 Before the entry of aid was stopped, we were able to secure them a generator and fuel for the generator through your kind support. The aid stoppage has also driven up the cost of fuel, so last week the space had to stop providing electricity, meaning that the workers & students can no longer charge devices and there are no lights on.

🛜 Now, the space is running on a shoestring—the team is using their own money to run it, despite needing those funds to feed their own families, because they know this service is a real lifeline to numerous families. Spark Space is on the brink of closing.

This space isn’t a business—it’s a mutual aid initiative and one on which countless people rely to literally survive.

💡Support will go to:

Securing a solar panel

Paying for internet costs

Paying the team members a wage

💡How to give: Chuffed

If you give $10+, you can use your donation receipt in my ‘shop,’ kurkar.

💡 Want to help sustainably?

If you run a co-working space, tech company, library, student group, or similar and would like to twin with Spark Space, I can send you flyers and more. Email me at contact@divyampersaud.com.

£64/1,000

[silvermoon424]

There are so many things to hate about the surge of return to office (aka RTO) policies, but I especially hate it because of how it's disproportionately affecting disabled people.

Remote work is a godsend for disabled people. Speaking as a disabled person myself (I have a rare autoimmune disease), my remote job saved me. I started having a really bad flare a few months ago, and I straight-up would have been fired if I had to go into an office every day; I would have called out all the time. Instead I was able to take things easy and recover in a comfortable environment while still getting my work done.

The surge of remote work jobs during the pandemic led to a huge increase in disabled people in the workforce, but now companies- and the federal government- are forcing employees to come in again. Needless to say, disabled workers are the most affected by this.

It just fucking kills me because RTO policies are exclusively being mandated by power-tripping assholes in management or executive positions. There's no actual reason for them, as productivity is higher than ever and employees (both abled and disabled) overwhelmingly prefer remote or hybrid work. But you can't spy on people as effectively when they're not right under your nose so clearly employees just HAVE to come in!!!

Anyway I wish every single asshole who's been pushing RTO policies against the wishes of their workforce a very GET BLOWN UP BY MY LASER EYES

[rottingpileofartist]

I don’t understand this corporate need for in office productivity. My mother has been a remote worker since 1998. She is not only an excellent employee but she also got to be there for me as my mom. Remote work gave her the ability to drive me and my siblings to school. The hypocrisy of the right to force you to have a family then not let you be there to raise one.

[princesscolumbia]

Adventurer (me) Seeking Quest (employment)

Is anyone working for an employer that does remote work and is based in Seattle, WA, USA? I need to stay in Arizona until July 2026 for family reasons, but I would LOVE to move and lend my skills to a company who could use them, supports queer folk, and will pay me what I'm worth.

What I can do:

I know enough HTML, CSS, and Javascript to piss off people on dev teams who count on the rest of the company not knowing what they're doing

I'm an Excel GODDESS (VLookup is legacy garbage, use Xlookup or, even better, pipe the data through Power Query and use Power Pivot)

My current job is a combination Salesforce power-user, data analyst, devops, and project manager. Does my job title reflect ANY of that? Of COURSE not...

Prior to that, I was a Team Lead in charge of the Florida market, something I did while working remote. I worked with two others to manage a team of approx. 30 people.

I'm a member of the Pride ERG for the company and was selected to attend the Washington D.C HRC Dinner in 2024.

In 2022 I won an award from my current employer for creating a new, streamlined process for scheduling appointments.

Before that I was a Customer Care agent for the same company and went from a temp worker to the Top 5 performers in 6 months

Before I switched to Customer Care I was a "generalist" I.T. worker for 15 years, working as break-fix, housecalls, working as part of an I.T. team, being "the Mac guy" for a print shop, managing the I.T. for an insurance agency, and even working for Apple (retail, don't get too excited)

Why you should hire me:

If you're wrong, I'll tell you as much. I don't care if you're the same pay scale or the Owner/CEO. You're paying me and part of the value is when my expertise helps me see a red flag. Whether you listen to me or not is up to you.

If I don't know something, I won't bullshit you. I'll tell you to your face, "I don't know." I will then turn my Superpowers on the question and proceed to find out the answer, or at least get somewhat closer to the answer than you might have been before.

My superpowers are being Neurodivergent. I WILL hyperfocus until a project is done

I require little in the way of praise. So long as you're paying me enough to pay my bills and take care of my family and have enough left over for retirement and hobbies, I almost never ask anything

I strongly believe in making the boss look good. If you look good, you'll like what I do for you to make you look good

My Philosophy:

I believe in being ambitiously lazy. I will do as much work as needed to get the job done so I don't have to do it again. Having to do a thing a second time for anything short of prior failure means you've wasted people's time and money the first time

I would rather do MASSIVE amounts of work NOW if it means it will make my workload/job easier tomorrow

If you're in "emergency" mode for longer than 24 hours, you're doing something wrong. If you're in "crisis" mode for longer than 7 days, you're doing something wrong.

Unless you need to physically touch something in a building for the purpose of getting that specific thing to someone else that needs the physical thing, there is no need to work in an office. Remote Work is correct, as is Hybrid. Information workers do NOT need to work in an office.

There is no such thing as unskilled workers, only under-valued workers

The difference between me and anyone else is time and space. I am not inherently worth more or less than anyone else

Conversely, nobody gets "special treatment," everyone gets the same excellent treatment, period

Things to know about me:

I write fiction. If you're seeing me here you likely can find my work with a few clicks. Yes, that includes NSFW stuff. No, I won't work for a discount if you read my stuff, but read it anyway and leave a comment. 😋

I have a polycule and a daughter

I'm a pretty darn good home cook

If you want to hire me:

DM me to get my phone number and direct email

Prepare to help with moving expenses if at all possible. No matter what I'll be moving to Seattle after July 2026, how fast that goes depends on how quickly money can be applied directly to the problem of getting me there (Moving assistance == faster, no moving assistance == slower)

Be ready for me to jump in as soon as you have an opening and say, "Yes." My current employer has passed me over for promotion 3 times in the last 5 years even when my direct boss has been pushing for it repeatedly

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Dave Jamieson at HuffPost:

President-elect Donald Trump said Monday that he plans to fire federal employees who continue to telework rather than show up in person at government agencies. “If people don’t come back to work, come back into the office, they’re going to be dismissed,” Trump said in a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida. Trump and his advisers have said they want to institute mass layoffs in the federal workforce and will strip away remote work options so that people quit. But firing federal employees for working from home is easier said than done, since many federal union contracts allow for remote or hybrid work schedules. The incoming president lashed out at such arrangements and appeared to reference a new deal reached between the Social Security Administration and the union representing more than 40,000 employees. Social Security Commissioner Martin O’Malley, an appointee of President Joe Biden, recently agreed to a contract that extends telework scheduling into 2029, Bloomberg reported.

[...] Like other workplaces, many federal agencies instituted remote work during the pandemic and have not fully returned to in-office scheduling. A lot of workers cherish the flexibility, so their unions have been trying to lock in hybrid arrangements in their collective bargaining agreements. The president-elect’s new “Department of Government Efficiency,” an advisory body run by Trump allies Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, is already recommending remote scheduling be taken away. Musk and Ramaswamy have openly said the aim is to prompt federal workers to resign. (Editor’s note: Ramaswamy owns a stake in HuffPost’s parent company, BuzzFeed.) “Requiring federal employees to come to the office five days a week would result in a wave of voluntary terminations that we welcome: If federal employees don’t want to show up, American taxpayers shouldn’t pay them for the Covid-era privilege of staying home,” the pair recently wrote in The Wall Street Journal.

Deluded fascist lunatic Donald Trump endorses firings of government employees who refuse to return to in-person office work.

This is nothing more than an attack on workers’ rights and tool to erode morale at work.