I know this will vary a lot, so hypothetically let’s say you currently WFH/work remotely at least 3 days a week. Your commute to work takes an hour max (door to door) each way. If you were given the choice of a 4 day week working onsite, or a 5 day week WFH (or as many days as you’d like) for the same pay, which would you choose?
I am WFH full time now.
My commute was, at best, 30 minutes each way. Weather or traffic can easily drive up this time. So at least an hour a day. Being in the office 4 days/week = 4+ hours commuting and all the headaches of driving, parking expense, car expenses, etc. I was much less productive in the office so I think it actually hurts my work to be in the office.
I’d prefer to drop the commute and be more productive. My employer will get MORE than 8 hours of work with that arrangement.
Yeah I think it’s very easy to underestimate your commute if you only consider the journey time. Like you said, you also have to consider parking or getting to the bus/train, getting from the car/train/bus station to your actual office, any traffic or delays… and there’s the getting yourself ready time. It’s not uncommon for my partner to roll out of bed at 8.50 to start at 9am!
Front door of your place to desk in the office seems like a good measurement, right?
For a while my parking ramp was 3 blocks from my office. I appreciated the exercise but it took at least 10 minutes. So 30 minute drive plus 10 minute walk.
Significant expenses are also mostly ignored. Buying, powering and maintaining a vehicle is not cheap nor is parking in many places. Work clothes are not free.
I think it would be interesting to do a really detailed analysis of the differences between WFH and in office. There’s probably more we’re not covering.
I work hybrid and had my car totalled by a dear not long before I landed my current role, and my wife’s a stay at home mom. We stopped looking for a car because my wife can either drop me off if she needs the car on one of my in-office days or she can walk with the kids. We save a good chunk of change by sharing one car!
Imagine if a vehicle actually cost the IRS mileage rate. Adds up VERY quickly.
If everything prior to you exiting your front door is identical between WFH and commuting, then yes. But if you spend more time getting ready to go into the office than you do for WFH, then I think you have to count that getting ready time as well.
Definitely. Before going into the office I’d shower, do my hair, put in contacts, put on a little bit of make up and wear clean and ironed work clothes. If I were working at home, having a bath or shower at some point in the day and wearing clean clothes is about it. Even if I decided to do my hair and make up, I’d probably do it in working hours between meetings - the time I would have wasted talking to co workers or staring out the window if I was in the office.