4570 replies to this topic

[MR.]

MR  Stop insulting monkeys, 

Understood, I actually feel ashamed of myself.

[AllseeingEye]

I think for many businesses a go/no go back to the office depends primarily on the industry/market niche that the org works within, in addition to the nature of the staff 'day to day' tasks, processes and accountabilities.

 

We have 500++ people all still very happily churning away at home with zero loss in productivity I can assure you since we are held to strict contracted service levels by our government client - we meet or beat 'em every month, like clockwork. Everyone is connected by and makes extensive use of communication and collaboration tools like MS Teams, Cisco Jabber, Slack, Splunk etc with absolutely no complaints.

 

I do know our executive is certainly working on a back to the office plan, and communicates the status thereof very well to staff at regular intervals, however I don't see any great urgency currently given the state of the so-called fourth wave not to mention that the work is most certainly "getting done" and staff for the most part including me are perfectly content to continue work from home as long as is deemed necessary.

 

I think also that individual desires to return or not also depend where you are in your career; in my case I'm 61 and winding down (hopefully!) so I could care less that others might be hobnobbing with senior management in person and thereby potentially 'getting ahead'. I've been at the director-level in two orgs and in senior management off and on over a 25+ year period in a few others. Therefore other staff 'gaining an edge' by being physically at the office is not remotely a concern for me and most others in the same position. IMO the best meetings these days are the one's I don't have to attend, and inevitably in the ones I am present at frequently find me wondering how the fishing is on river X, Y or Z and whether my favorite fishing retailer finally has some of those particular lures in stock that I've been bugging them about for six months.......

 

In terms of my own productivity I actually complete more work more efficiently - we're in a collective environment - mainly because when at the office I take my coffee breaks and typically go outside for a walk. At home, especially when the weather doesn't cooperate, I will more typically shuffle into the kitchen, re-fill my tea, then head straight back to my computer screens and jump back into whatever task I was engaged in before taking that 60 seconds to refill the cup. If I have any complaint about work from home its probably precisely because I don't take those 2x daily walks that I've gained about 15 pounds since the start of covid.

[Victoria Watcher]

B.C. will require employers to provide five days of sick pay for all workers starting in January 2022.

The legislation, announced today, comes after the B.C. Federation of Labour estimated that half of workers in the province don’t have sick benefits from their employers.

[vortoozo]

B.C. will require employers to provide five days of sick pay for all workers starting in January 2022.

The legislation, announced today, comes after the B.C. Federation of Labour estimated that half of workers in the province don’t have sick benefits from their employers.

 

I think the 5 day selection was a good compromise. 

[spanky123]

I think the 5 day selection was a good compromise. 

 

They forced the compromise by making 3, 5 and 7 the choices. Is the BC Government going to reimburse employers for the costs or are they just expected to absorb another 5 days a year of paid benefits?

 

The reality is that many employees will lose with this legislation. Most companies I have worked for (ie good ones) had a very flexible sick day policy. If you were sick stay home and just make sure the work got done. Now that flexible sick time will become 5 days since it is regulated.

Edited by spanky123, 24 November 2021 - 02:12 PM.

[spanky123]

I think for many businesses a go/no go back to the office depends primarily on the industry/market niche that the org works within, in addition to the nature of the staff 'day to day' tasks, processes and accountabilities.

 

We have 500++ people all still very happily churning away at home with zero loss in productivity I can assure you since we are held to strict contracted service levels by our government client - we meet or beat 'em every month, like clockwork. Everyone is connected by and makes extensive use of communication and collaboration tools like MS Teams, Cisco Jabber, Slack, Splunk etc with absolutely no complaints.

 

I do know our executive is certainly working on a back to the office plan, and communicates the status thereof very well to staff at regular intervals, however I don't see any great urgency currently given the state of the so-called fourth wave not to mention that the work is most certainly "getting done" and staff for the most part including me are perfectly content to continue work from home as long as is deemed necessary.

 

I think also that individual desires to return or not also depend where you are in your career; in my case I'm 61 and winding down (hopefully!) so I could care less that others might be hobnobbing with senior management in person and thereby potentially 'getting ahead'. I've been at the director-level in two orgs and in senior management off and on over a 25+ year period in a few others. Therefore other staff 'gaining an edge' by being physically at the office is not remotely a concern for me and most others in the same position. IMO the best meetings these days are the one's I don't have to attend, and inevitably in the ones I am present at frequently find me wondering how the fishing is on river X, Y or Z and whether my favorite fishing retailer finally has some of those particular lures in stock that I've been bugging them about for six months.......

 

In terms of my own productivity I actually complete more work more efficiently - we're in a collective environment - mainly because when at the office I take my coffee breaks and typically go outside for a walk. At home, especially when the weather doesn't cooperate, I will more typically shuffle into the kitchen, re-fill my tea, then head straight back to my computer screens and jump back into whatever task I was engaged in before taking that 60 seconds to refill the cup. If I have any complaint about work from home its probably precisely because I don't take those 2x daily walks that I've gained about 15 pounds since the start of covid.

 

I think it all depends on the level of maturity as well. A client that I work with uses Office 365 and the workplace analytics feature. If we count time on the computer using office and business apps as productivity then it is most definitely down for remote workers at that company!

[vortoozo]

They forced the compromise by making 3, 5 and 7 the choices. Is the BC Government going to reimburse employers for the costs or are they just expected to absorb another 5 days a year of paid benefits?

 

The reality is that many employees will lose with this legislation. Most companies I have worked for (ie good ones) had a very flexible sick day policy. If you were sick stay home and just make sure the work got done. Now that flexible sick time will become 5 days since it is regulated.

 

The choices were 3, 5 or 10.

Why would the government reimburse employers?

I don't think the employers you are referring to are the ones that the legislation is designed for.

A low paid grocery store worker or gas station clerk can't "just make sure the work got done".

[AllseeingEye]

I think it all depends on the level of maturity as well. A client that I work with uses Office 365 and the workplace analytics feature. If we count time on the computer using office and business apps as productivity then it is most definitely down for remote workers at that company!

 

No question; due to our interoperability with and the interconnected nature between our apps and the BCG including access to many ministry applications as well as the government mainframe, security is understandably robust to put it mildly. And naturally there are all manner of network and remote monitoring tools implemented due to the sheer volume of personal information we can see and access. As you would expect security and privacy of PI is Priority 1 and paramount above all else. We can "browse" the world outside but not stray too far from the barn nor for too long, lol

[Matt R.]

Customers will reimburse employers, as usual.

[spanky123]

The choices were 3, 5 or 10.

Why would the government reimburse employers?

I don't think the employers you are referring to are the ones that the legislation is designed for.

A low paid grocery store worker or gas station clerk can't "just make sure the work got done".

 

You know what I meant. Does this apply to part time (ie less than 30 hours per week) workers as well? 

[Victoria Watcher]

I presume companies that previously maybe offered 3 weeks paid vacation will just offer 2 weeks, plus 5 sick days now.  Of course many employers never offered more than the mandated minimum 2 weeks.  

[spanky123]

I presume companies that previously maybe offered 3 weeks paid vacation will just offer 2 weeks, plus 5 sick days now.  Of course many employers never offered more than the mandated minimum 2 weeks.  

 

The part that makes most businesspeople upset is the implication that all employers are bad and thus the Government has to step in to tell them how to run their businesses.

 

Previously the 3 days sick pay due to covid was reimbursable by WCB

[vortoozo]

The part that makes most businesspeople upset is the implication that all employers are bad and thus the Government has to step in to tell them how to run their businesses.

 

Previously the 3 days sick pay due to covid was reimbursable by WCB

 

Government is stepping up because employers have not consistently had a reasonable paid sick leave program.

BC joins 13 states and at least 145 countries that have some form of paid sick leave legislation. It's not exactly groundbreaking.

[Victoria Watcher]

How many of those states and countries already have paid holidays for all staff (4% of wages).

[vortoozo]

How many of those states and countries already have paid holidays for all staff (4% of wages).

 

Most have much more than Canada. Eg 4 weeks as a minimum in Europe. The US is an outlier.

[Victoria Watcher]

So the worlds strongest economy is the once to criticize as an outlier?

[spanky123]

Most have much more than Canada. Eg 4 weeks as a minimum in Europe. The US is an outlier.

 

You have to look at benefits and compensation as a whole. You can't point to one benefit in one market and have that stand on its own.

[spanky123]

So the worlds strongest economy is the once to criticize as an outlier?

 

And half of the world's top talent wants to migrate there!

[spanky123]

Government is stepping up because employers have not consistently had a reasonable paid sick leave program.

 

Exactly my point. The Government is the sole arbitrar of what is reasonable. The reality is that if your job sucks it would take iess than 15 minutes of effort to get another one for 99.9% of workers these days.

 

As an aside, was out with a buddy this evening for dinner and his company has found a solution. All of their new hires have been contractors in other parts of Canada. Fair pay but no benefits. Everyone wins.

Edited by spanky123, 24 November 2021 - 07:45 PM.

[spanky123]

Government is stepping up because employers have not consistently had a reasonable paid sick leave program.

BC joins 13 states and at least 145 countries that have some form of paid sick leave legislation. It's not exactly groundbreaking.

 

According to the CBC, does not apply to part time or gig workers.