Don't want to RTO but also want employers to pay for WFH

[dora_da_destroyer]

Workers are suing their bosses to get their work-from-home costs reimbursed

As many white-collar employees enter a third year of working from home, lawsuits demanding reimbursement for home-office expenses are on the rise.

www.latimes.com

so this seems silly, employees are fighting a return to office but also demanding employers pay for WFH (which i guess there are some CA specific, yet murky laws that require some types of reimbursement). at some point I'd assume the trade off of no commute (money, time and stress savings), less eating out (for some, i supposed the non-cooks are ordering more), plus more "me time" outweigh WFH drawbacks (like ok, you spend $100 more on utilities but save $200-300 in gas/commuting - are you still not at a net positive?). how do you force money for internet - something you'll have regardless (miss me with the handful of white collar workers who had to upgrade their plan for an extra $10-20/month to accommodate two people on zoom, most people had internet plans that could have multiple people doing heavy gaming and streaming content at the same time)? Cell phone reimbursement makes sense tho if you need to use your personal line for work...

I mean some of this is employees wanting payment for having to buy more groceries or their own delivery for lunch because they're no longer getting free lunch in offices you honestly can't defend that type of entitlement. If this is how it's gonna go, I'd like a toilet paper and paper towel stipend as WFH has caused a surge in consumption

The company had previously paid for snacks and lunch each day for employees who worked in the office — perks that were eliminated when Seppala and other staff members were ordered to work from home.

The tech industry, including companies large and small that offer free meals, dry cleaning and other services meant to improve employees’ lives, has faced strong criticism from workers after cutting such perks during the pandemic. Meta, the parent company of Facebook, got pushback from employees last month after the digital giant cut free services such as laundry and dry cleaning and made changes to the timing of its free dinner service.

Seppala said it was already difficult to make ends meet in the high-priced Bay Area. Once he found he had to pay for his daily lunch plus the other office expenses, money began to get tight.

um...welcome to the reality of the average american worker? like how do you not realize how privileged of a complaint this is and how is the LA Times trying to make this an article

“For equipment like laptops, webcams, microphones and a work desk, it is reasonable for an employer to pay for this,” Bloom said. “For more general costs like refurbishing a home office, improved broadband or lunch, that is less common and would depend on a case-by-case basis.”

agree with this completely - WFH stipends got me a really nice desk, monitor, chair and some earpod pros

 

[Voice of Reason]

Corporate shill

 

[Pressure]

It's always funny when smart people try and play stupid.

That said, my engineering group has been getting 1 free lunch per week Uber eats credit. Sushi dates every week

 

[Jcotton1]

Thx for this article. I have a good friend at Apple and other friends around. I need to hear their takes.

 

[Th3G3ntleman]

That lunch shyt is hilarious. No way should the employer be responsible for that. Even the work desk thing is kind of trippin. If you have data caps on your ISP and your WFH requires internet usage than I get that.

 

[dora_da_destroyer]

Corporate shill

you're right, it makes total sense for someone to sue their employer because they have to pay for groceries

 

[Voice of Reason]

you're right, it makes total sense for someone to sue their employer because they have to pay for groceries

This is propaganda to change the public opinion against WFH. You can find all kinds of frivolous lawsuits and attach them to an agenda to create a narrative.

 

[88m3]

I mean maybe small companies are raping their employees out here but idk lmao




I've worked at home for myself for the last decade or so maybe I'm out of touch

 

[Pressure]

This is propaganda to change the public opinion against WFH. You can find all kinds of frivolous lawsuits and attach them to an agenda to create a narrative.

I agree. Making stupid demands will ruin public perception of WFH.

 

[Voice of Reason]

I agree. Making stupid demands will ruin public perception of WFH.

That's the purpose of this article.

 

[Pressure]

I mean maybe small companies are raping their employees out here but idk lmao




I've worked at home for myself for the last decade or so maybe I'm out of touch

Even small companies are providing folks with similar setup to in office.

As someone who works for one of the larger companies, we've been provided with everything from standing desks to choice of monitors Herman Miller chairs etc.

 

[Pressure]

That's the purpose of this article.

It's not up to public perception. Your company is ultimately going to dictate whether you RTO and in what capacity.

And even many of those considerations are based on the bottom line.

 

[dora_da_destroyer]

This is propaganda to change the public opinion against WFH. You can find all kinds of frivolous lawsuits and attach them to an agenda to create a narrative.

this isn't just propaganda tho, it represents the thinking of a very privileged group of workers. i'm in a lot of tech groups and people were legit writing to their employers for daily lunch stipends when everyone got sent home in 2020 because they felt they shouldn't have to feed themselves, people whining about loss of laundry services, massage & campus wellness centers

secondly, it's not solely propaganda when CA has laws that allow for certain expenses to be reimbursed, some of the suits will yield actual compensation or changes...the article represented the realistic and frivolous asks, I don't see how covering the spectrum is a piece against WFH, especially since workers are winning that battle for now, we'll see what happens if this looming recession sees a lot of job shed...

 

[Hood Critic]

I personally don't mind using all my own to WFH. The peace of mind and convenience are worth the price.

 

[Silky Johnson]

this isn't just propaganda tho, it represents the thinking of a very privileged group of workers. i'm in a lot of tech groups and people were legit writing to their employers for daily lunch stipends when everyone got sent home in 2020 because they felt they shouldn't have to feed themselves, people whining about loss of laundry services, massage & campus wellness centers

secondly, it's not solely propaganda when CA has laws that allow for certain expenses to be reimbursed, some of the suits will yield actual compensation or changes...the article represented the realistic and frivolous asks, I don't see how covering the spectrum is a piece against WFH, especially since workers are winning that battle for now, we'll see what happens if this looming recession sees a lot of job shed...

Do you get paid by the word or by the post?

Some corps use free lunches (esp in expensive markets) as a fringe benefit during the recruitment process.

Do you not see the problem with breaching the contract and denying workers that benefit without equal compensation?

Its not workers fault if corps didn't specify that you had to be in office to receive a meal.