Senior Feds Sharing Offices

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you from the CFTC? I’ve heard they mostly have their own offices there and when they move to the SEC’s building in the next year or so they will have to share. I’ve also heard they are a bunch of divas who are likely to pitch a fit about this.

Most people either share an office or have cubes. That goes for gov and non gov. It’s not a big deal. It’s noisy and a PITA and sometimes your office mate can’t get to the restroom and lets a stinky one rip. Eventually, you get used to it.

People who normalize things like this should be first in line for shared office space.

The whole “you should deal with it because other people deal with it” mentality is what has driven benefits and job security to be cut repeatedly for decades across industries. It’s exactly what managements everywhere want their employees to say.

Is IS normal. And I do share an office like the vast majority of Americans. It is a stretch to say that someone who chooses not to complain about having to share an office is the downfall of American worker pay and benefits. You sound really out of touch.

No, sorry, the out of touch person here is the one normalizing their co-workers farting around them and saying “it’s not a big deal” and “eventually you get used to it.”

The second part about benefits is not about complaining about the office, it’s about the attitude of blindly accepting things that suck and assuming “that’s just how it is.” That’s how it is because you all don’t do anything about it, and you call people who do “a bunch of divas.”

Enjoy your fart cubicles.

Most Americans don’t care about offices and are just trying to feed their families and pay bills. American workers are not going to go on a mass strike because office sharing is the hill to die on when it comes to untenable working conditions or declines in pay and benefits. That is why your complaining sounds out of touch. It wouldn’t be the globalization of manufacturing or the outsourcing of professional jobs to India, for example, where they will happily work in crowded offices. It’s not the evolution of corporations as people or Super PACs funding politicians and then lobbying for worker unfriendly policies. There are bigger issues than your solo or shared office working conditions.

Except, as I already said once, it’s not about complaining about the office but about simply accepting crap from your employer and then expecting other people to as well. Whether it is office space or cuts to leave/retirement benefits or whatever else.

Again, I’m not OP, I don’t know what you’re talking about with “your complaining.” I have an office so I’m not complaining. But I sympathize with people getting downgraded to crappier situations.

OP basically said they were going to quit over it. People are calling that an overreaction. Yeah it sucks, but I consider the rising cost of health insurance premiums and lower raises a much bigger deal

Let's be real, op is not going to quit over this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My worst space ever as a fed was in a windowless filing room with 3 shoved into it, no ventilation, and one partially blocked means of egress. I’m fairly certain I would have died in a fire.

Half of the people here would read that and use “well, okay, but did you die in a fire?” as the new benchmark for whether a person can complain about their office arrangement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My worst space ever as a fed was in a windowless filing room with 3 shoved into it, no ventilation, and one partially blocked means of egress. I’m fairly certain I would have died in a fire.

Half of the people here would read that and use “well, okay, but did you die in a fire?” as the new benchmark for whether a person can complain about their office arrangement.

But did you die?

[Anonymous]

I think it depends. Our jobs involve a lot of conference calls, and it would drive me crazy for that reason. At a prior job, there was more time spent on research and writing, and sharing would have been okay.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We just found out that our federal agency is losing space one year from today. Will mean many employees will have to share offices. I’ve been working for over 20 years. I can’t imagine working in the office every day and sharing an office.

Feds who are already there - how is it going and how are you managing it? Should I give myself 1 year to leave?

lol

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:At my agency they’re moving everyone that isn’t a GS-15 supervisor (read: GS-14 supervisors and GS-15 non supervisors (mostly attorneys and PhD economists)) into small cubicles. Colleagues with 25+ years of experience who have had offices, even window offices, for years will join the most junior staff in the cubicle farm. We’re expecting resignations and retirements.

I have worked for a large nonprofit that moved from offices to cubicle farms as well as a fed agency that moved into open concept workspace. Everyone complains and the loudest say they will quit. They never do. They are just complainers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At my agency they’re moving everyone that isn’t a GS-15 supervisor (read: GS-14 supervisors and GS-15 non supervisors (mostly attorneys and PhD economists)) into small cubicles. Colleagues with 25+ years of experience who have had offices, even window offices, for years will join the most junior staff in the cubicle farm. We’re expecting resignations and retirements.

I have worked for a large nonprofit that moved from offices to cubicle farms as well as a fed agency that moved into open concept workspace. Everyone complains and the loudest say they will quit. They never do. They are just complainers.

I'm a fed who isn't a complainer. But open concept is just wrong. I do a lot of detailed analytical work and need it to be quiet. Headphones in a cubicle are good enough. In open concept, I'd be distracted by everyone moving and talking all day.

We have all our meetings in meeting rooms now. It's encouraged to have fewer, more meaningful meetings, but to have them in person.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At my agency they’re moving everyone that isn’t a GS-15 supervisor (read: GS-14 supervisors and GS-15 non supervisors (mostly attorneys and PhD economists)) into small cubicles. Colleagues with 25+ years of experience who have had offices, even window offices, for years will join the most junior staff in the cubicle farm. We’re expecting resignations and retirements.

I have worked for a large nonprofit that moved from offices to cubicle farms as well as a fed agency that moved into open concept workspace. Everyone complains and the loudest say they will quit. They never do. They are just complainers.

At least they aren’t sitting there saying “thank you, sir, may I have another?”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:At my agency they’re moving everyone that isn’t a GS-15 supervisor (read: GS-14 supervisors and GS-15 non supervisors (mostly attorneys and PhD economists)) into small cubicles. Colleagues with 25+ years of experience who have had offices, even window offices, for years will join the most junior staff in the cubicle farm. We’re expecting resignations and retirements.

I have worked for a large nonprofit that moved from offices to cubicle farms as well as a fed agency that moved into open concept workspace. Everyone complains and the loudest say they will quit. They never do. They are just complainers.

At least they aren’t sitting there saying “thank you, sir, may I have another?”

I guess we recognize complaining is counterproductive and pointless. The only action worth doing is either getting promoted to an office role, or leave. Quitting without a new job over sharing a private office is pretty far up the first world problems.

It’s not like this isn’t happening everywhere, thanks to Reagan and his neutering of unions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you from the CFTC? I’ve heard they mostly have their own offices there and when they move to the SEC’s building in the next year or so they will have to share. I’ve also heard they are a bunch of divas who are likely to pitch a fit about this.

Most people either share an office or have cubes. That goes for gov and non gov. It’s not a big deal. It’s noisy and a PITA and sometimes your office mate can’t get to the restroom and lets a stinky one rip. Eventually, you get used to it.

People who normalize things like this should be first in line for shared office space.

The whole “you should deal with it because other people deal with it” mentality is what has driven benefits and job security to be cut repeatedly for decades across industries. It’s exactly what managements everywhere want their employees to say.

Is IS normal. And I do share an office like the vast majority of Americans. It is a stretch to say that someone who chooses not to complain about having to share an office is the downfall of American worker pay and benefits. You sound really out of touch.

No, sorry, the out of touch person here is the one normalizing their co-workers farting around them and saying “it’s not a big deal” and “eventually you get used to it.”

The second part about benefits is not about complaining about the office, it’s about the attitude of blindly accepting things that suck and assuming “that’s just how it is.” That’s how it is because you all don’t do anything about it, and you call people who do “a bunch of divas.”

Enjoy your fart cubicles.

Most Americans don’t care about offices and are just trying to feed their families and pay bills. American workers are not going to go on a mass strike because office sharing is the hill to die on when it comes to untenable working conditions or declines in pay and benefits. That is why your complaining sounds out of touch. It wouldn’t be the globalization of manufacturing or the outsourcing of professional jobs to India, for example, where they will happily work in crowded offices. It’s not the evolution of corporations as people or Super PACs funding politicians and then lobbying for worker unfriendly policies. There are bigger issues than your solo or shared office working conditions.

Except, as I already said once, it’s not about complaining about the office but about simply accepting crap from your employer and then expecting other people to as well. Whether it is office space or cuts to leave/retirement benefits or whatever else.

Again, I’m not OP, I don’t know what you’re talking about with “your complaining.” I have an office so I’m not complaining. But I sympathize with people getting downgraded to crappier situations.

OP basically said they were going to quit over it. People are calling that an overreaction. Yeah it sucks, but I consider the rising cost of health insurance premiums and lower raises a much bigger deal

Let's be real, op is not going to quit over this.

I am OP. I asked what I thought was a simple question and then watched this thread become a nasty competition of who can be the most dismissive.

I actually might quit, I don’t know. My income as a fed is a tiny fraction of my household income and I’ve been trying to make it work for the sake of my career. I’m finding it harder and harder to do so because (1) it’s taking away too much from my family and (2) I find it hard to motivate myself in an environment where leadership has a brazen indifference to staff.

Whether or not I quit, though, has nothing to do with the genuine question I asked. But thanks for your opinion anyways.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you from the CFTC? I’ve heard they mostly have their own offices there and when they move to the SEC’s building in the next year or so they will have to share. I’ve also heard they are a bunch of divas who are likely to pitch a fit about this.

Most people either share an office or have cubes. That goes for gov and non gov. It’s not a big deal. It’s noisy and a PITA and sometimes your office mate can’t get to the restroom and lets a stinky one rip. Eventually, you get used to it.

People who normalize things like this should be first in line for shared office space.

The whole “you should deal with it because other people deal with it” mentality is what has driven benefits and job security to be cut repeatedly for decades across industries. It’s exactly what managements everywhere want their employees to say.

Is IS normal. And I do share an office like the vast majority of Americans. It is a stretch to say that someone who chooses not to complain about having to share an office is the downfall of American worker pay and benefits. You sound really out of touch.

No, sorry, the out of touch person here is the one normalizing their co-workers farting around them and saying “it’s not a big deal” and “eventually you get used to it.”

The second part about benefits is not about complaining about the office, it’s about the attitude of blindly accepting things that suck and assuming “that’s just how it is.” That’s how it is because you all don’t do anything about it, and you call people who do “a bunch of divas.”

Enjoy your fart cubicles.

Most Americans don’t care about offices and are just trying to feed their families and pay bills. American workers are not going to go on a mass strike because office sharing is the hill to die on when it comes to untenable working conditions or declines in pay and benefits. That is why your complaining sounds out of touch. It wouldn’t be the globalization of manufacturing or the outsourcing of professional jobs to India, for example, where they will happily work in crowded offices. It’s not the evolution of corporations as people or Super PACs funding politicians and then lobbying for worker unfriendly policies. There are bigger issues than your solo or shared office working conditions.

Except, as I already said once, it’s not about complaining about the office but about simply accepting crap from your employer and then expecting other people to as well. Whether it is office space or cuts to leave/retirement benefits or whatever else.

Again, I’m not OP, I don’t know what you’re talking about with “your complaining.” I have an office so I’m not complaining. But I sympathize with people getting downgraded to crappier situations.

OP basically said they were going to quit over it. People are calling that an overreaction. Yeah it sucks, but I consider the rising cost of health insurance premiums and lower raises a much bigger deal

Let's be real, op is not going to quit over this.

I am OP. I asked what I thought was a simple question and then watched this thread become a nasty competition of who can be the most dismissive.

I actually might quit, I don’t know. My income as a fed is a tiny fraction of my household income and I’ve been trying to make it work for the sake of my career. I’m finding it harder and harder to do so because (1) it’s taking away too much from my family and (2) I find it hard to motivate myself in an environment where leadership has a brazen indifference to staff.

Whether or not I quit, though, has nothing to do with the genuine question I asked. But thanks for your opinion anyways.

Now you just sound shady AF. Like if you have to share an office, your side hustle that you’ve been doing on govt. time that you never got approval to do in the first place will no longer be kept a secret.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you from the CFTC? I’ve heard they mostly have their own offices there and when they move to the SEC’s building in the next year or so they will have to share. I’ve also heard they are a bunch of divas who are likely to pitch a fit about this.

Most people either share an office or have cubes. That goes for gov and non gov. It’s not a big deal. It’s noisy and a PITA and sometimes your office mate can’t get to the restroom and lets a stinky one rip. Eventually, you get used to it.

People who normalize things like this should be first in line for shared office space.

The whole “you should deal with it because other people deal with it” mentality is what has driven benefits and job security to be cut repeatedly for decades across industries. It’s exactly what managements everywhere want their employees to say.

Is IS normal. And I do share an office like the vast majority of Americans. It is a stretch to say that someone who chooses not to complain about having to share an office is the downfall of American worker pay and benefits. You sound really out of touch.

No, sorry, the out of touch person here is the one normalizing their co-workers farting around them and saying “it’s not a big deal” and “eventually you get used to it.”

The second part about benefits is not about complaining about the office, it’s about the attitude of blindly accepting things that suck and assuming “that’s just how it is.” That’s how it is because you all don’t do anything about it, and you call people who do “a bunch of divas.”

Enjoy your fart cubicles.

Most Americans don’t care about offices and are just trying to feed their families and pay bills. American workers are not going to go on a mass strike because office sharing is the hill to die on when it comes to untenable working conditions or declines in pay and benefits. That is why your complaining sounds out of touch. It wouldn’t be the globalization of manufacturing or the outsourcing of professional jobs to India, for example, where they will happily work in crowded offices. It’s not the evolution of corporations as people or Super PACs funding politicians and then lobbying for worker unfriendly policies. There are bigger issues than your solo or shared office working conditions.

Except, as I already said once, it’s not about complaining about the office but about simply accepting crap from your employer and then expecting other people to as well. Whether it is office space or cuts to leave/retirement benefits or whatever else.

Again, I’m not OP, I don’t know what you’re talking about with “your complaining.” I have an office so I’m not complaining. But I sympathize with people getting downgraded to crappier situations.

OP basically said they were going to quit over it. People are calling that an overreaction. Yeah it sucks, but I consider the rising cost of health insurance premiums and lower raises a much bigger deal

Let's be real, op is not going to quit over this.

I am OP. I asked what I thought was a simple question and then watched this thread become a nasty competition of who can be the most dismissive.

I actually might quit, I don’t know. My income as a fed is a tiny fraction of my household income and I’ve been trying to make it work for the sake of my career. I’m finding it harder and harder to do so because (1) it’s taking away too much from my family and (2) I find it hard to motivate myself in an environment where leadership has a brazen indifference to staff.

Whether or not I quit, though, has nothing to do with the genuine question I asked. But thanks for your opinion anyways.

Now you just sound shady AF. Like if you have to share an office, your side hustle that you’ve been doing on govt. time that you never got approval to do in the first place will no longer be kept a secret.

This is so unhinged it doesn’t deserve a response but my household income comes from my spouse’s income. I don’t have a side hustle. Ridiculous.

[Anonymous]

I actually might quit, I don’t know. My income as a fed is a tiny fraction of my household income and I’ve been trying to make it work for the sake of my career. I’m finding it harder and harder to do so because (1) it’s taking away too much from my family and (2) I find it hard to motivate myself in an environment where leadership has a brazen indifference to staff.

This is a champagne problem. I'm sorry that you no longer feel motivated to work at job where your family doesn't need the income. I'm a Fed and a single mom, I have never had an office, even a shared one, and have always dealt with indifference to staff.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you from the CFTC? I’ve heard they mostly have their own offices there and when they move to the SEC’s building in the next year or so they will have to share. I’ve also heard they are a bunch of divas who are likely to pitch a fit about this.

Most people either share an office or have cubes. That goes for gov and non gov. It’s not a big deal. It’s noisy and a PITA and sometimes your office mate can’t get to the restroom and lets a stinky one rip. Eventually, you get used to it.

People who normalize things like this should be first in line for shared office space.

The whole “you should deal with it because other people deal with it” mentality is what has driven benefits and job security to be cut repeatedly for decades across industries. It’s exactly what managements everywhere want their employees to say.

Is IS normal. And I do share an office like the vast majority of Americans. It is a stretch to say that someone who chooses not to complain about having to share an office is the downfall of American worker pay and benefits. You sound really out of touch.

No, sorry, the out of touch person here is the one normalizing their co-workers farting around them and saying “it’s not a big deal” and “eventually you get used to it.”

The second part about benefits is not about complaining about the office, it’s about the attitude of blindly accepting things that suck and assuming “that’s just how it is.” That’s how it is because you all don’t do anything about it, and you call people who do “a bunch of divas.”

Enjoy your fart cubicles.

Most Americans don’t care about offices and are just trying to feed their families and pay bills. American workers are not going to go on a mass strike because office sharing is the hill to die on when it comes to untenable working conditions or declines in pay and benefits. That is why your complaining sounds out of touch. It wouldn’t be the globalization of manufacturing or the outsourcing of professional jobs to India, for example, where they will happily work in crowded offices. It’s not the evolution of corporations as people or Super PACs funding politicians and then lobbying for worker unfriendly policies. There are bigger issues than your solo or shared office working conditions.

Except, as I already said once, it’s not about complaining about the office but about simply accepting crap from your employer and then expecting other people to as well. Whether it is office space or cuts to leave/retirement benefits or whatever else.

Again, I’m not OP, I don’t know what you’re talking about with “your complaining.” I have an office so I’m not complaining. But I sympathize with people getting downgraded to crappier situations.

OP basically said they were going to quit over it. People are calling that an overreaction. Yeah it sucks, but I consider the rising cost of health insurance premiums and lower raises a much bigger deal

Let's be real, op is not going to quit over this.

I am OP. I asked what I thought was a simple question and then watched this thread become a nasty competition of who can be the most dismissive.

I actually might quit, I don’t know. My income as a fed is a tiny fraction of my household income and I’ve been trying to make it work for the sake of my career. I’m finding it harder and harder to do so because (1) it’s taking away too much from my family and (2) I find it hard to motivate myself in an environment where leadership has a brazen indifference to staff.

Whether or not I quit, though, has nothing to do with the genuine question I asked. But thanks for your opinion anyways.

So…. If the office sharing is not why you would quit, why did you even ask a question about it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you from the CFTC? I’ve heard they mostly have their own offices there and when they move to the SEC’s building in the next year or so they will have to share. I’ve also heard they are a bunch of divas who are likely to pitch a fit about this.

Most people either share an office or have cubes. That goes for gov and non gov. It’s not a big deal. It’s noisy and a PITA and sometimes your office mate can’t get to the restroom and lets a stinky one rip. Eventually, you get used to it.

People who normalize things like this should be first in line for shared office space.

The whole “you should deal with it because other people deal with it” mentality is what has driven benefits and job security to be cut repeatedly for decades across industries. It’s exactly what managements everywhere want their employees to say.

Is IS normal. And I do share an office like the vast majority of Americans. It is a stretch to say that someone who chooses not to complain about having to share an office is the downfall of American worker pay and benefits. You sound really out of touch.

No, sorry, the out of touch person here is the one normalizing their co-workers farting around them and saying “it’s not a big deal” and “eventually you get used to it.”

The second part about benefits is not about complaining about the office, it’s about the attitude of blindly accepting things that suck and assuming “that’s just how it is.” That’s how it is because you all don’t do anything about it, and you call people who do “a bunch of divas.”

Enjoy your fart cubicles.

Most Americans don’t care about offices and are just trying to feed their families and pay bills. American workers are not going to go on a mass strike because office sharing is the hill to die on when it comes to untenable working conditions or declines in pay and benefits. That is why your complaining sounds out of touch. It wouldn’t be the globalization of manufacturing or the outsourcing of professional jobs to India, for example, where they will happily work in crowded offices. It’s not the evolution of corporations as people or Super PACs funding politicians and then lobbying for worker unfriendly policies. There are bigger issues than your solo or shared office working conditions.

Except, as I already said once, it’s not about complaining about the office but about simply accepting crap from your employer and then expecting other people to as well. Whether it is office space or cuts to leave/retirement benefits or whatever else.

Again, I’m not OP, I don’t know what you’re talking about with “your complaining.” I have an office so I’m not complaining. But I sympathize with people getting downgraded to crappier situations.

OP basically said they were going to quit over it. People are calling that an overreaction. Yeah it sucks, but I consider the rising cost of health insurance premiums and lower raises a much bigger deal

Let's be real, op is not going to quit over this.

I am OP. I asked what I thought was a simple question and then watched this thread become a nasty competition of who can be the most dismissive.

I actually might quit, I don’t know. My income as a fed is a tiny fraction of my household income and I’ve been trying to make it work for the sake of my career. I’m finding it harder and harder to do so because (1) it’s taking away too much from my family and (2) I find it hard to motivate myself in an environment where leadership has a brazen indifference to staff.

Whether or not I quit, though, has nothing to do with the genuine question I asked. But thanks for your opinion anyways.

Oh of course you like to complain, you don’t actually need your job because you married into wealth.