Ask HN: Is remote work here forever?

Be patient. All will be revealed soon, grasshopper. :)

I don't know, but I sure hope so!

I've worked remote for most of my career, and I've had a few bait-and-switches from companies where they'd promise "100% remote" until we get to the offer stage of the interview, then they'd say "actually we need you to move to $bigTechCity". (I don't want to move to an expensive city. I want to live in the home I'm paying a mortgage on.)

I think there's a chance companies will slowly go back to office as normal instead of WFH. Just a suspicion though.

Off topic: Do you get paid for giving up some of your land/backyard?

Yes but it’s not binary as you or most people think today and it’s not because lack of intelligence or anything like that. it’s just that work has existed in a binary form largely since industrialized work was invented. The best way to think of the answer to your questions is that parts of “work” will become remote. Depending on the work for some it might be overnight. For some it will be over time. For some (people and companies)it will some part of their work (And their dependent supply chains and that too recursively). This is not going to be driven by people’s wants btw the way. Yes some part of it will be but large part of it will be due to efficiencies forced by a capitalist/for profit world we operatin. If you can provide a product or service x% cheaper while maintaining everything else equal you will, and it’s increases your margins(at best) and at worse it keeps you from going extinct as your competitors already do it.

I'm one that believes that there will not be a long term vaccine for Covid-19. We will need to get a shot every so often, at best, similar to the flu shot every year. Given the potential deadliness of the disease working from home will be here until we come up with a cure or a way to control it.

Will WFH be here forever? Probably not but it will be here for most of the working life of most people living today.

I also think that it will evolve into something different than the way it works now. Most people can't work from home and deal with the distractions. Something different will evolve but I don't really know what. Maybe something like WeWork but offices that can be disinfected on a per user basis.

A number of companies have plans to return to the office between now and the beginning of next year. Best to check with your employer before making any lifechanging decisions but my impression is that remote work will simply be more accepted and common in the future, it won't be for everyone and forever.

Things have slowed down enough in my company that we're back in the office. WFH is sub optimal for a lot of people, especially senior programmers who also tend to have several kids, or those who can't afford a house that fits a computer desk.

However, in places like the US, it looks like the pandemic isn't going anywhere soon.

For the most part yes.

Some companies realize remote working is good for their needs while others do not. Also, it obviously depends on whether a company is built looking at remote working as an option early on (Gitlab) or it has to experiment/transition its way there much later.

The pandemic has undoubtedly accelerated the consideration for companies in general, and I believe the number of companies favorable to remote work has risen.

I wouldn't advise against making any big moves yet.

It looks like companies will slowly transition people back into the office, but with more flexible WFH policies.

Doubtful many will move to 100% remote.

Yep. Companies are realizing the amount of money they can save , even the service companies which i thought would be the last one to do so https://www.businesstoday.in/current/corporate/post-coronavi...

I hope so for the planet at least. Millions of people driving to and from work every day in cases where it's not needed is such a waste of resources and time.

As someone who works remote, I bet a lot of companies will see the benefits of it moreso this year then any other, they will also see all of the drawbacks. I think it will become more common in some areas that are fine with drawbacks though (generally companies that pay well anyway).

Gradually, and then all of a sudden

Yes. My uncle recently started working from home and it looks as though it is going to be a long term thing. It a a win win for both the employer and the employee in many cases.