NYT on "boundaries" instead of telework

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone else find this article really problematic?

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/02/opinion/women-work-force-flexibility-shifts.html

How can the author completely ignore that complete RTO was the first tool that DOGE used to try to drive people out with the Fork, VERAs, dissolving unions and CBAs, etc? So obviously yes telework is something people care about and that can be used as a weapon.

This. Also, fed workers had no choice, but I can't believe how quickly the private sector just caved to RTO. Even the comments on the article act like no TW is just fine. WTF?? Why are we regressing??

I am curious why you think fed workers have no choice, but private sector workers have choices?

Private sector workers can be fired if they don’t RTO. Federal workers can quit if they don’t want to RTO. Everyone is free to quit and everyone can be fired if they don’t follow employer’s requirement.

DP. Fed workers are bearing the brunt of a politicized attack on the civil service. The RTO had nothing to do with what Fed offices actually needed. Private sector RTO generally corresponds to legitimate office needs or office cultures and retains flexibility. My private sector friends are shocked to hear that we are 100% RTO with no flexibility to an absurd extent - like not even to work from home with a sleeping, sick kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone else find this article really problematic?

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/02/opinion/women-work-force-flexibility-shifts.html

How can the author completely ignore that complete RTO was the first tool that DOGE used to try to drive people out with the Fork, VERAs, dissolving unions and CBAs, etc? So obviously yes telework is something people care about and that can be used as a weapon.

This. Also, fed workers had no choice, but I can't believe how quickly the private sector just caved to RTO. Even the comments on the article act like no TW is just fine. WTF?? Why are we regressing??

I am curious why you think fed workers have no choice, but private sector workers have choices?

Private sector workers can be fired if they don’t RTO. Federal workers can quit if they don’t want to RTO. Everyone is free to quit and everyone can be fired if they don’t follow employer’s requirement.

It would be better to say that Fed leaders had no choice, but private sector leaders had a choice but are still demanding RTO, for reasons that are not always clear.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone else find this article really problematic?

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/02/opinion/women-work-force-flexibility-shifts.html

How can the author completely ignore that complete RTO was the first tool that DOGE used to try to drive people out with the Fork, VERAs, dissolving unions and CBAs, etc? So obviously yes telework is something people care about and that can be used as a weapon.

This. Also, fed workers had no choice, but I can't believe how quickly the private sector just caved to RTO. Even the comments on the article act like no TW is just fine. WTF?? Why are we regressing??

I am curious why you think fed workers have no choice, but private sector workers have choices?

Private sector workers can be fired if they don’t RTO. Federal workers can quit if they don’t want to RTO. Everyone is free to quit and everyone can be fired if they don’t follow employer’s requirement.

It would be better to say that Fed leaders had no choice, but private sector leaders had a choice but are still demanding RTO, for reasons that are not always clear.

+1 I think this is what that PP meant. Agency heads were bound my OPM and the WH but these private sector companies took advantage of the situation to bring on their own RTO mandates (or they suck).

[Anonymous]

This was one of the worst articles I’ve read on NYT. Almost made me want to cancel my subscription.

[Anonymous]

I'm in the minority but I can relate. I am 45, have kids at home, work in corporate management and am considering quitting and working at the garden store. I saw a for help sign there recently and cannot stop thinking about it. I get paid a lot and my job is interesting. I dont mind working. But I am getting really burnt out on the late night emails, travel, and sense that my job is never done. Getting paid $18 hour for a set shift and then leaving sounds so nice to me. Literally I'm doing to math to see if I can make this work. If I could have a corporate job that ended at 5pm I would take large pau cut. I would work in person. I just don't want to be lying in bed writing emails.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm in the minority but I can relate. I am 45, have kids at home, work in corporate management and am considering quitting and working at the garden store. I saw a for help sign there recently and cannot stop thinking about it. I get paid a lot and my job is interesting. I dont mind working. But I am getting really burnt out on the late night emails, travel, and sense that my job is never done. Getting paid $18 hour for a set shift and then leaving sounds so nice to me. Literally I'm doing to math to see if I can make this work. If I could have a corporate job that ended at 5pm I would take large pau cut. I would work in person. I just don't want to be lying in bed writing emails.

I can relate. I am an attorney and recently quit my "part time" law firm job due to the stress of handling client crises after-hours. I would love to find a job with set hours where I didn't have to bring work home.

My problem with the article is that I think the comparison with healthcare jobs where set hours and on call people make sense does not translate well to professional services like law firms or corporate management.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nurses can work from home depending on what they are doing.

When I was in the hospital with a high risk pregnancy the doctors were monitoring me and writing orders from home ( there was a snow storm...)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nurses can work from home depending on what they are doing.

But they get paid zero. My daughter is a nurse and charting, training, doing time sheets etc if done at home is zero pay. She has to clock in and on site to get paid .

[Anonymous]

My friend works at a bank in New Jersey.

Starting Jan 1 is FULL RTO. With these rules.

Come to headquarters in expensive part of NJ full pay.

Go to satelite location in lower cost of living area in NJ get a 10 percent haircut in salary.

Want to continue to work from home a 20 percent haircut in salary.

The choice is yours.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My friend works at a bank in New Jersey.

Starting Jan 1 is FULL RTO. With these rules.

Come to headquarters in expensive part of NJ full pay.

Go to satelite location in lower cost of living area in NJ get a 10 percent haircut in salary.

Want to continue to work from home a 20 percent haircut in salary.

The choice is yours.

Is the 20% pay cut for working from home full time?

This is a good way to handle this. So people can choose based on their priorities.

People who are forced to RTO always resent people who can work from home for “reasonable accommodation”. This solves it.

Wish the federal government implements the same.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My friend works at a bank in New Jersey.

Starting Jan 1 is FULL RTO. With these rules.

Come to headquarters in expensive part of NJ full pay.

Go to satelite location in lower cost of living area in NJ get a 10 percent haircut in salary.

Want to continue to work from home a 20 percent haircut in salary.

The choice is yours.

Is the 20% pay cut for working from home full time?

This is a good way to handle this. So people can choose based on their priorities.

People who are forced to RTO always resent people who can work from home for “reasonable accommodation”. This solves it.

Wish the federal government implements the same.

Yes 20 percent for full time remote.