more babble on oil drilling~

[Tikker]

I'm irritated that I can't get work from home to fly

with the Voice and Video conferencing we have here, it's ridiculous to not allow it, especially since i just work on a PC all the time anyway

[Tikker]

I just changed my mind

the boss came by with our new secretary just as I hit the submit button

I now want to come to work every day, jeje

[ClakarEQ]

I'm irritated that I can't get work from home to fly

with the Voice and Video conferencing we have here, it's ridiculous to not allow it, especially since i just work on a PC all the time anyway

The question you may have failed to ask is,

What benefit to the company regarding financials does this generate?

And the answer to that is ZERO.

You being more productive at home because you don't waste time commuting or you're "more motivated" etc etc are not measureable in the sense of profit generation and it a lot of ways upper management would call it "vaporware".

Now, if you were to say, for example, I spend 2500.00 a year in gas, or say it is a prediciton in costs of sorts, then you go to your boss and say, look, I'll take a 2500.00 NET pay decrease if you let me telecommute, NOW you have the means to gain traction.

But let me guess, you (nor I) would ever accept a pay cut unless the option was "reduce your pay or be fired" LOL

[Arlos]

Facebook has a program where if you live within a 1 mile radius of the building you work at (normally HQ, but different for people who are stationed at data centers, or field offices), they automatically tack a flat $600/month (pre-tax) onto your paycheck as a rent subsidy. Partially that's because the rent in Palo Alto itself is pricier than other places, but it does also mean that shitloads of people bike or walk to work, people are more productive because they don't have to commute, they're more willing to put in extra hours, etc. For those that don't want to live nearby, Facebook will also cover the cost of monthly bus or train passes instead.

Google pays for a private shuttle system to spots all over the bay area. Shuttles show up at the pick-up spots frequently, and collect packs of employees. Each shuttle bus is a roving wi-fi hotspot as well, so lots of people fire up their laptops and either work, surf the net or whatever while they're getting shuttled to work. Far more convenient than normal public transit, and definitely saves on gas, is good for the environment, etc.

So, you'd be surprised at how forward-thinking some companies are when it comes to this sort of thing. If nothing else, programs like that work as marketing points when they're trying to attract talent.

-Arlos

[Durothil Skyreaver]

I just changed my mind

the boss came by with our new secretary just as I hit the submit button

I now want to come to work every day, jeje

Does this secretary have porno cleavage like the last one?

[Tikker]

well

from the first outfit she came by in, I'm not sure she actually wears clothes

[numatu]

Saw this the other day - I think I agree with his three-tiered approach.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOpcPfAarjY

[Gypsiyee]

Public transportation isn't even feasible for a LOT of parts of the country, neither is riding a bike. I carpool with my dad, and that's the best I can do on the transportation front (using myself as an example, but for many, if not most, people, there aren't a lot of options here, and I think you're kidding yourself to think that everyone has those choices dangling in their faces).

You can choose to live too far from work. I realize that your particular economic situation has placed you living with your father and you can't really tell him where to live. However if you were to move into a new place and still place yourself at a great distance from your place of employment, that is your choice and in the end it sucks for your wallet.

I did not mean to make it sound as though telecommuting was an obvious answer for people right now, but it is a growing trend and will rise in popularity as time goes on.

my economic situation doesn't put me living with my father; his whining at the mention of my leaving and the fact that we never planned on living here long does - there's no sense in being in a lease or a mortgage in an area you don't enjoy living.

that being said, there are very few places to live close to my workplace, and any within bike riding distance are 200k+, which is not in my price range, even when considering the cost of driving. then, of course, there's the issue of even the places close to my work have no bike routes and you have to go on roads with 55mph speed limits - there is no avoiding that. people who work in the city often have a similar dilemma - working downtown, it isn't always feasible to live downtown. taxes are higher, real estate costs are higher, quality of real estate is lower, and the pickins are fewer. people who live in more rural areas like when I was in WI, living close to work just wasn't an option - every office park was off of a highway, and there was seldom housing that was outfitted for anyone making less than 6 digits a year.. it's not always a matter of choice of distance from work. if I could, I would always live close to work because I hate commuting, to be honest. you can't always find a job close to where you live, and you can't always find a place to live close to work.

believe you me, I look forward to the day where telecommuting is the norm rather than the few and far between; I'm not sure why it isn't more common now, to be honest, and unfortunately I don't think it'll ever happen so long as I work for the government due to security, but it sure makes a lot more sense than the regular 9-5 type job for most people.