*Update 29.01.2024: there are no geographical limitations on where to do TWA: see Article 11(1) of the WTHW Decision [1].* We are unable to find any geographical restrictions on travelling with EU IT equipment. We have asked DIGIT COMM for clarification.* Update 15.11.2023 HR has published an evaluation [2] of the working time and hybrid working decision.**Update 09.08.2023 please declare the TWA days you use! See footnote [*] for how and why.* Original article: We ask you to participate in a follow-up survey about teleworking, hybrid working and teleworking from outside the place of employment [3] (TWA) in order to make a comparison with the answers you provided to our two original surveys: Working time and teleworking [4] (and the results [5]) and Survey on teleworking from abroad [6].
We want to know your opinions of the implementation of the Working time and hybrid working (WTHW) decision [7] (March 2022), 18 months after its entry into force. Your ideas and recommendations are very valuable for us in future negotiations with the administration: they make it possible to compare the opinions you have expressed in all surveys with those expressed by a sample group in the official evaluation [8].
Your input is important: the official evaluation is being done with the intention of making modifications to the current rules as necessary. For example, our own Corporate Management Board (23.01.2023 [9]) has already expressed its desire to see more presence in the office, it’s possible a new version of the rules would decrease the amount of time available to telework (for those with compatible roles).
There is certainly a push-back around the world to generalised working from home, with recent articles showing that certain domains might have suffered a drop in productivity (The working-from-home illusion fades, It is not more productive than being in an office, after all [10], 28.06.2023) even though employees are demonstrably happier when working from home (‘The fight over the hybrid future of work, People like working from home. Bosses want them back in the office [11]’, 08.11.2021) [**]. We continue to watch what is happening both outside the institutions and within: ‘The fight over working from home goes global, Employees want to toil in the kitchen. Bosses want them back in the office [12]’, 10.07.2023).
As always, we would love to hear from you. Please do not hesitate to get in touch with us [13] or leave a comment below.
If you appreciate our work, please consider becoming a member of Generation 2004 [14].
[*] Here’s how to encode TWA days [15]. We’re aware of colleagues working from abroad without formally declaring it in sysper. Be aware of the potential repercussions e.g.
- on the individual: if you become sick and your certificate/bills show that you are outside your place of employment, can you justify this? The Investigation and Disciplinary Office of the Commission took disciplinary action against a colleague found to be working from abroad without authorisation, see activity report 2021 [16], page 12.
- on all staff: it looks like staff are not using the full 10 days available so there is no need for any increase. This argument has already been used by HR to justify maintaining the limit at 10 days.
As per our December 2021 checklist [17]:
Please try to use up your full 10 days, even if you’re not 100% sure you’ll actually be outside your place of employment: HR states that the majority of staff do not use their full quota of 10 days, therefore there is no need for our suggested 60 days of TWA [18], the 10 days are more than sufficient for current needs [19]. So, even if you can only use up 2 of those days in what remains of the year, please do so!
[**] Update 10.08.2023 more opinions:
Articles:
- Forcing workers back to the office may be backfiring: Flexible workplaces are hiring talent twice as fast as those requiring full-time attendance [20] (07.08.2023)
- The forced return to the office is the definition of insanity [21] (26.06.2023)
- Workers Are Less Productive Working Remotely (At Least That’s What Their Bosses Think) [22](03.11.2022)
- A hybrid working model will not solve employers’ challenges around employee engagement and retention. Unless it is part of a bigger picture [23]. (21.01.2022)
-
The future of work is anywhere, any time – not everywhere, all the time [24](12.07.2023)
Studies:
- The Power Of Proximity To Coworkers [25] (23.07.2023)
- Executives feel the strain of leading in the ‘new normal’ [26] (October 2022)
- Hybrid Work Is Just Work. Are We Doing It Wrong? [27] (22.09.2022)
Obsolete updates:
Update 20.11.2023: the HR staff survey 2023 [28] is open until 24.11.2023.