Employees are saving money by using work to cut home costs.
OPINION
Since Covid, we’re all well and truly across what it means to work from home (WFH). But have you ever heard about ‘home from work’ (HFW)?
No I’m not talking about rolling in at the end of the day, getting your pipe and slippers and grabbing the evening broadsheet while you settle in by the wireless.
Rather, the cost of living crisis has led to a new trend … going into work in order to do the things you would normally do at home.
Things like showering, preparing meals and even washing clothes.
The office bathroom has plenty of cost-free water and toilet paper, so why not head in and take care of business there, rather than deal with the never-ending inflation of power, water, cleaning and maintenance costs?
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It’s a problem for businesses, who are dealing with their own soaring costs and tight margins, according to Brett McAllen, CEO of Australian serviced office and shared workspaces brand @WORKSPACES.
Brett McAllen, CEO @WORKSPACES says.
“The cost-of-living crisis has entered the office bathroom, kitchen and stationery cupboard,” Mr McAllen said. “Business owners are telling us they are being hit with increasing costs for electricity, water, internet, cleaning, repairs, maintenance and workplace supplies.
“At the same time, some are noticing staff showering at work more often, washing clothing in end-of-trip facilities, cooking meals that would normally be prepared at home (and) charging multiple devices.”
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Treating the office like your own personal space isn’t a new thing.
I’ll never forget the time I worked in an open plan office and one of the IT guys, who happened to be an amateur bodybuilder, would microwave his plain chicken and brown rice several times a day, the smell of which would dominate the entire workspace.
And of course the sink and dishwasher spent days full of cutlery and crockery that some of the staff were perhaps expecting their parents to come and tidy up for them.
But it’s not fair to your employer to pass the costs of your everyday life onto the business, Mr McAllen said.
“There is nothing unusual about cycling to work, having a shower, heating lunch or charging a phone,” Mr McAllen said. “The issue arises when staff begin using workplace facilities specifically to avoid using water, power, or appliances at home.
Toilet paper isn’t cheap these days, but should you swipe it from work? Picture: Callum Godde
“Some managers are noticing employees taking longer or more frequent showers, washing personal clothing in the shower, bringing in appliances, charging numerous devices and completing extensive meal preparation in office kitchens.”
How could I forget the other example, when I worked delivering pizzas. There was a driver who made mistakes with an order on purpose, knowing full well that a returned pizza could be eaten by the staff.
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“These behaviours might save an employee a few dollars, but they transfer the expense to the employer and can prevent other staff from using shared facilities,” Mr McAllen said.
And then, of course, there’s the other type of HFW … not just acting like you’re at home when you’re at work, but actually taking things … home from work.
Toilet paper, milk, stationery … these are all things that have no doubt been stolen from workplaces regularly over the years, but when times are tough, that problem is surely exacerbated.
“When toilet paper, soap, food, cleaning products or other communal supplies begin disappearing, it places managers in an incredibly awkward position,” Mr McAllen said.
“They do not want to accuse or embarrass employees, but those products are provided for use in the workplace, not to subsidise private households.
This is how work is meant to look. Picture: iStock
“One toilet roll may not seem significant, but repeated across a workplace, the costs accumulate. More importantly, it indicates that people may be under serious financial stress or that boundaries around shared resources have broken down.”