ROM HOME, ND CONS
to office work after Covid-19 vaccination as I have already adjusted so well to virtual work. I would not want the risk of Covid-19 reinfections and the accompanying anxiety due to colleagues’ hospitalisations
Goabaone Mpedi – Mining Sector employee
Working hours are now longer; I get work related calls earlier than 8am and late into the night. Colleagues have a habit of calling at odd hours and expect me to assist because they know I have my laptop at home. I have picked that while we work according to normal working times, some people attend to personal business during the day and start work late and when they need something from you, they expect you to also work. Some meetings are scheduled over the lunch hour or beyond end of business yet it never used to happen at the office. I sometimes get work calls on weekends. I think one thing that employers don’t realise is that they are saving costs by having us at home as utilities bills have gone down therefore we shouldn’t be expected to work much longer hours and use electricity they don’t pay for.
There is no balance because work takes a lot of time, I’ve seen myself sitting next to hubby and we’d both be working on our laptops and hardly talking because we are trying to focus. My children have complained about us always working. Unfortunately my employers were already looking at digital transformation to consider working remotely pre-pandemic and now the project is at an advanced stage.
Thato Moahi - Videographer
I’m in a Technical Support Services division, which means my office is always on standby. My office mate was also transferred to a different department so Audio Visual Unit was on standby. I was okay being back at work as the lockdown was too long. Most of my colleagues were working in shifts every other week, so I really enjoyed the peace and quiet in the office; there were fewer phone calls and people coming into my office. As a creative, a distraction can derail me from a brilliant idea in a second, that’s why I work best at night because my focus is usually heightened. So, working from the office with less interruptions means I’m more productive.