Would Working Moms Prefer a Hybrid Model of Remote and In-Office?

[rachele14]

@yuliette I'm betting they will. And as the blog post advocates, express this to your employer if they don't.

 

[yuliette]

@rachele14 I absolutely am adding this to my arsenal. I’m actually currently on maternity leave for another few weeks, so I’m going to really rely on the current flexible model we have in place for my sanity when I go back!

 

[awesomegamer1337]

@rachele14 I'm currently doing 2 days at home, 2 days at the office and love it.

 

[ke1220]

@rachele14 Not all jobs can be done 100% at home, and IMO the hybrid days would have to be consistent or it would make finding childcare very difficult. I worked from home for 4 months (3 of them with twin 5 yr olds at home) and man was it a mess. I can't care for them solo while also working from home. So care would still be needed. It was nice getting a bit of extra sleep during quarantine but things got so much better (for them and us) when they went back to daycare.

 

[mark46]

@rachele14 I feel that every job and every person are going to be different. But with my personal situation I would love a hybrid. It would allow me to take a break to go pick up the kids or go to a school event more often. I’ve also enjoyed just being home more. It does save me time in the morning getting ready and it also allows me to juggle both motherhood and work a little more. But I also value the face time that I have in the office building relationships and being around everyone. I work with a lot of younger staff that like to pick my brain and ask questions all day long, and in a technical field it’s important for them to have that resource. I also supervise someone and would like to keep that facetime. And sometimes I just have a massive deliverable and don’t need my kids bugging me every 5 minutes. I just think that a hybrid schedule would allow me so much more flexibility, I do well with multi tasking and while it may create more moving parts, I could manage the two sides to my life more effectively.

 

[inheretic]

@rachele14 I'd prefer employers to offer better benefits (family leave, paid time off) more flexibility, understanding, possibly part time hours, as well as reducing there engrained sexism towards women being the ones bearing the brunt of this mess.

The problem is parents dont want their kids to get sick, but they also cant afford to not work. It's a lose lose situation, because corporate america doesnt really give a shit about its employees.

 

[rachele14]

@inheretic Extremely true. Part of the problem I've had in the past is working with a lot of single 20-somethings that think its fine to just stay in the office until 7pm to meet a deadline.

 

[mimicap46]

@rachele14 I would not like a hybrid model. I feel like trying to remember when I'm in office and when I'm not (especially when others are on the same model but on different days) and trying to schedule accordingly would just be one more moving part I don't want to manage. #teamallremote

 

[rachele14]

@mimicap46 Fair enough!

 

[wolfe_007]

@rachele14 It seems like different models work for different families so it would be nice to see options given. I’m not optimistic I will get an option but my husband’s company is more progressive so they may do something similar.

 

[nw82]

@rachele14 Our company sent out a survey a month or two ago and I said I’d like to come in to the office 2 days a week. I do miss my desk and the collaboration being in the office provided. I also enjoy the flexibility of WFH.

(That’s all post pandemic, I’m good not going in the office anytime soon, especially because we couldn’t all be back at the same time)

 

[sowingtheword]

@rachele14 I’ve done 50/50 in the office and at home for the last 5 years. It’s truly the best of both worlds and,for me, ideal for having a young child. If we stay 100% remote I’ll miss the office but not as much as I’ll appreciate not commuting.

 

[cowfan1966]

@rachele14 When my office surveyed, my answer was a request to continue as I had before the pandemic: work from home 2 days each week and in the office for 3. But then the survey results came back and 90% of my coworkers opted for full remote and no way in heck am I going to work in an empty cube farm.

So our department is fully remote now. We each went in and cleaned up our desk space. They're giving our spots to people who can't work remotely for whatever reason. And there's no going back, pandemic or otherwise. The org is using it to cut the operational budget for office space.

Which is fair, and better than losing our jobs completely. It's just not really the arrangement I'd prefer. I haven't really had much adult human interaction since March. Like, I've not seen my coworkers in months. I forget what my boss looks like.

When this is over I worry about being a full time hermit. The only saving grace is that my kid is so hyperactive that we have to go run around the yard and play when he's home from daycare. That at least gets me out in the sun some.

 

[rachele14]

@cowfan1966 THIS response is exactly why I posted this blog. I think a lot of people feel like decisions about their professional lifestyle are being made for them. It's one thing to do that now in a pandemic, but carrying it over indefinitely has others asking...wait, what happened...?

 

[lillypilly]

@rachele14 My job has always been flexible in terms of being able to control my hours and WFH when I want to, but I do really like that meetings are online now and no one expects to see me in person. I love being able to do mindless house tasks while listening to seminars or meetings.

 

[rachele14]

@lillypilly It's funny you say that because most everyone I speak to say, "WHY does every call have to be a video call now!?" I miss being able to do what you just described.

 

[leaderturk]

@rachele14 I'm absolutely a fan of the hybrid office/homeoffice with the utilization of daycare. Luckily, after doing all homeoffice during corona lockdown, this is a very valid opportunity for me now.

As the author mentions: Getting away from home, seeing other grown-ups who are not parents, talking about grown-up-stuff is awesome.

Working from home at least part of the week, saving commute time, being able to quickly run the washing machine in a work break and having the opportunity to drop my kid up later and pick him up earlier because of said saved commute time is awesome, too.

 

[rachele14]

@leaderturk In the past, I felt this was only possible through having a part-time job. But I like that we can do this split now while earning full-time income.

 

[adastrasalem]

@rachele14 I’m going to be allowed in my office/lab one day a week soon. Granted, we are keeping density levels very very low, but I am frankly glad I’ll be going back. I need a space outside of the house.

Edit: full disclosure I am very much looking forward to the day that we are mostly back in the office, although I wouldn’t mind working from home one day a week or something. My commute is minuscule which plays a role.

 

[purposelychosen86]

@rachele14 I worked mornings in the office, and afternoons from home for 2 months. It was the best two months of my life! I felt like I finally had balance, my house was clean, I even started working out! I hate that I had to come back lol. I definitely would take working from home in the afternoon with toddler twins again in a heartbeat.