Make no mistake: Flexible working conditions are a perk of a job, to be certain. But they should never be mistaken for a privilege. Flexible work is a part of the overall effective compensation, the whole package; changing it or removing it without communication, coordination, and cooperation is the same as reducing compensation without renegotiation.
Employers, of course, get this wrong all the time, their authoritarian mindset leading them to think that it's their prerogative to make whatever changes they wish to "their" company. Yet, they'll blame anything but themselves when their decisions lead to their company going under.
It's all in the name of "efficiency," ignoring the fact that managers are often the least effective members of their teams when it comes to their own performance metrics. But making changes and saying they're doing something feels good to them, even if it flies in the face of logic and empirical evidence.
Sure, some people aren't effective when they're working from home, but if someone doesn't want to work, forcing them to sit in an office isn't going to change that. Instead, you are making things worse for and crushing the motivation of those who are always trying their hardest. By removing their flexible working conditions, you're gaining nothing but losing the support of those who are doing all the work anyway.
Managers will never see this—if they even cared. They're just looking to propel their career and springboard into the next job. The burnout and turnover will occur long after they've left and after they've completed a victory lap of their "accomplishments," which effectively amount to gutting what was once a good job for their now-disillusioned subordinates.
The image is representative only and does not depict the actual subjects of the story.
Stay up to date by following us on Facebook!
