The directors-general from DG HR, DG Interpretation (SCIC) and DG Digital Services (DIGIT), together with the the Director of the Office for Infrastructure and Logistics in Brussels (OIB) and the one for Luxembourg (OIL) met with staff in a hybrid Town Hall meeting 20.11.2023. The occasion was the publishing of the evaluation of the eighteen months since the implementation of the Working Time and Hybrid Working Decision (WTHW). The answers given to staff questions there echo still in our ears.
Brownie points for a ‘not-so-flexible’ flexibility meeting.
The moderator dished out brownie points applauding panellists for nailing the scripted intro questions which stole the spotlight taking almost… yes: one quarter of the meeting time. While the meeting was held in a hybrid format (we attended from various Commission sites), colleagues not physically present in the room might easily have felt like second-class citizens: they had no possibility to react or participate meaningfully in the discussion in real time. Why? The Teams chat was deactivated and the panel devoted barely 20 minutes to answering a selection of the many Slido-submitted questions.
Misinterpretation saga
Let’s be fair: the colleagues connected online had, in fact, a couple of minutes more than those there in person to ‘voice their opinion’ (contribute to a word cloud) as they were able to answer an online (Slido) general question i.e. what flexible work meant to them in a couple of words.
‘Since word clouds work best when the responses are just one or two words, it’s worth considering if this is the appropriate choice for your open-ended question. If you want to give your team enough space to go into detail when expressing their thoughts, then an open text poll is a much better option.’ (Slido, 27.04.2023)
Key words such as: trust, work balance, efficiency, productivity, choice flooded the screen. Little did colleagues know that their input would then be misinterpreted read as overwhelmingly positive and applied to the situation at the European Commission, portraying the Commission as the superhero of flexible working.
‘I think this is […] what we’ve sort of heard from people along the listening period around telework or hybrid working’ or ‘I think this shows the strength of the European Commission’ were the direct reactions from the panellists.
‘I dreamed a dream in time gone by’
It is known that some other institutions enjoy more (others fewer) teleworking days from outside their place of employment (teleworking from anywhere (TWA)), and the Commission was declared to stand firmly in the middle ground neither the most generous nor the least generous[1]. The members of the panel, our guardians of European unity, emphasised the importance of having colleagues of all nationalities side by side for impactful collaboration (in a hybrid meeting with more colleagues connected remotely than physically present). In a moment that echoed in the Charlemagne halls, the director general tried to put an end to ideas ‘Misérables’ of more days of telework from abroad saying, ‘Just don’t dream about it at this point in time.’ We could continue linking the meeting to Victor Hugo’s novel, but we believe you’ve got the idea.
Remember that the 10 TWA days are not transferable: use them or lose them! You have until 31.12.2023, please request them even if you’re not 100% sure of being able to use them! Also, if you need more than 10 days for specific and exceptional circumstances, check out your options.
Utility-bills phenomenon
Hold onto your ergonomic chairs! The director of OIB and OIL proudly declared that working from home miraculously reduced his utility bills. Instead of replying to the questions on addressing the additional costs of teleworking (e.g. via an allowance) he offered participants his experience on how to reduce energy bills at home, completely ignoring the fact that our households have inevitably absorbed some of the costs previously incurred by the Commission. Reduce your energy consumption to show solidarity with Ukraine, but do not expect any contribution from the employer. And after all, ‘Nobody is obliged to telework’[2]. Well… given that colleagues are sitting at desks in their outdoor clothes (some even with gloves on) we tend to disagree…
The director of HR again stated that the teleworking lump sum mentioned in the WTHW decision (Article 13(4)) was subject to budgetary availability and that there is no budgetary availability at the moment.[3]
In quest of a meeting room
Rumour has it that the Commission suffers from a shortage of meeting rooms. Is there no appropriate meeting room available in your building? Fear no more! The solution is a daring expedition to a different building. A brand-new app will allow you book it in another building! Who cares about the time needed for every attendee to reach it. Is this really an efficient use of resources?
We would like to see a more evidence-based, inclusive dialogue on this topic with meaningful participation from all. How about you? We encourage you to read the WTHW evaluation for yourselves and to decide whether your find your own experience represented there, be ready for the next forum on this topic!
As always, we would love to hear from you. Please do not hesitate to get in touch with us or leave a comment below.
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[1] The working time and hybrid working (WTHW) evaluation comparison (p.55) does not support this claim and suggests that the Commission is at the less-generous end of the scale: of the 10 institutions evaluated for comparison, 6 had more TWA days than the Commission, 2 had the same number and of the remaining 2, one had only 5 days and one had none at all.
[2] While ostensibly true (Article 9(3), WTHW decision), Is working from home really voluntary? Given the summer/winter closure of buildings, the lowered temperatures (legal minimums, measured centrally), having tasks which are difficult to reconcile with hot-desking in open spaces (‘dynamic, collaborative spaces’ (DCS)), being unable to reserve an appropriate workspace, having no (or limited) canteen facilities (e.g. LACC, Luxembourg) or being unable to reserve a parking place.
[3] We question whether there will ever be budget availability, given the frequency of this response and its ‘catch-all’ nature. This same excuse justification has been given for doing nothing on many of the issues we raised with the Commissioner and also on the 12 Actions for Luxembourg (see particularly action number 5).
To all those who listened in on the town hall and followed the ensuing discussion on myintracomm, it should be clear that a SUBSTANTIAL INCREASE OF TELEWORK OUTSIDE THE PLACE OF EMPLOYMENT (TWA) is one of the HIGHEST PRIORITIES FOR STAFF. It is also clear that the COMMISSION IS BEING UNREASONABLY STRICT COMPARED TO OTHER INSTITUTIONS or services such as the EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK (90 DAYS) and EPO (60 days), or the Belgian public service for that matter (60 %).
Some PECULIAR ARGUMENTS were put forward by HR, for example on the average use of TWA reflecting a limited need for days, and concerning benchmarking that clearly focussed on the Brussels-based institutions, with whom the Commission actively communicates and aligns telework, while IGNORING THE POLICIES OUTSIDE THE BUBBLE. The TWA subject was generally pushed aside, and anecdotal and unsubstantiated “we are expats”/European spirit claims were floated or general satisfaction with increased teleworking possibilities was equated with satisfaction with the 10 days limit to TWA, even if the evidence of the evaluation report clearly suggests otherwise.
While I am happy to see Generation 2004 reporting on this meeting and the evaluation, it is TIME FOR GENERATION 2004 to BECOME MORE VOCAL on the subject of TELEWORK FROM OUTSIDE THE PLACE OF EMPLOYMENT. The subject and the clear case for change is often tucked away and drowns in other subjects communicated by Generation 2004, while it SHOULD BE TOP OF THE AGENDA with ANALYSIS AND FOLLOW-UP provided in newsletters, also REFUTING UNSUBSTANTIATED ARGUMENTS as the ones mentioned above.
Furthermore, A REVISION OF THE GENERATION 2004 TWA GOAL TO 90 DAYS OF TELEWORK FROM OUTSIDE THE PLACE OF EMPLOYMENT is now overdue, IN ALIGNMENT WITH WHAT THE TRADE UNION OF THE ECB HAS ACHIEVED WITHOUT ANY CONSEQUENCES FOR THEIR IDENTICAL EXPATRIATION ALLOWANCE RULES. Going forward, I hope to see Generation 2004 giving this issue the attention it deserves, ARGUING WITH FORCE AND INSISTING ON IMPROVEMENTS IN THE LIGHT OF THE MASSIVE BACKING BY STAFF.