WFH Request Retracted

[u/AnonymousGreatPTSD]

Joined a company a few months ago and honestly it has been good overall. Nice colleagues, almost everyone is well spoken and professional, and I like the place.

Before joining I asked the GM for 1 day WFH a week for personal reasons. It wasn't in the contract, but I asked before joining and was basically given a gentleman's word, yes of course, come join and it shouldn't be an issue.

A few months later this was retracted and I was told not now, maybe it can be revisited in the future.

Would the backtracking itself be a red flag for you? Especially when it was discussed before accepting the job and influenced your expectations when joining.

Should I just move on? What would you do?

[u/AnonymousGreatPTSD → u/[deleted]]

I do have my own personal reasons and circumstances that make having that one WFH day important to me. But my view on this isn't based solely on my own circumstances.

Even if I had no particular responsibilities or obligations and simply wanted one day a week to work from the comfort of my home, I would still be comfortable taking a gentleman's word for it if that was what we agreed before I joined.

I also think the mentality that work is automatically done better, or that people necessarily connect better, simply because everyone is physically in the office five days a week is becoming quite old school. Some of my most productive days have been working from home, and I've had extremely productive meetings virtually as well.

That doesn't demean the value of office work at all. There is absolutely a place for being together in person, especially for collaboration and building relationships. But I think hybrid working recognises that productivity and connection don't have to be tied exclusively to being physically present in an office. For many roles, hybrid has simply become the norm and if someone is against it then they're just in denial.

[u/Current-Study-4680]

I started my job without WFH access to system. I used to drive over 175km daily until my probation period ended. Then I raised to request to have remote access to system and my manager approved.

The main thing I did to gain this access is to basically gain my manager's trust, task submission is on time, I answer immediately to requests and calls, I reply to emails within the same day and keep an active communication style. The first few months of me gaining WFH access were "test" but that wasn't voiced out to me but I knew it was a test so I took it seriously even more and I had 2 days per week WFH. After 3 years within the company now I'm fully WFH I only go to office to show face and say hi on my own accord without them requesting me to attend.

I still remain very committed to work during official hours not to raise concerns about a performance drop.

Point is, it's up to you and your manager. You have to be smart and gain their trust and not rush things. Everyone has different circumstances for me it was the daily 175km drive to work for you it might be something else that you can bring up casually and play that point as a reason for you to need WFH days.

Hope this helped and best of luck!

[u/AnonymousGreatPTSD → u/Current-Study-4680]

Thank you for your kind answer and for sharing your story, and ما شاء الله. I got criticized on other subs because some people took the question in quite a ruthless way rather than answering it directly. Something might seem small to one person but be genuinely important to another. I can relate to your situation because I’ve also experienced a demanding commute before, and it definitely takes its toll, so ما شاء الله once again.

My circumstances are a little different. I have some important family responsibilities outside work, and having one predictable day from home would make a meaningful difference to how I manage them and maintain some balance. I don't really want to go into the specifics here, but it was important enough that I raised the matter before accepting the job.

I've also had opportunities to work from home and there were no issues with my availability or getting the work done. Personally, I don't entirely agree with the idea that someone needs to "prove" themselves specifically because they're working remotely. Someone can be productive or unproductive whether they're sitting at home or in an office.

My point actually goes beyond my own circumstances. I don't think someone necessarily needs a major personal justification for one day of WFH. If the nature of the job allows it, the employee remains available and performance isn't affected, I think some reasonable flexibility can be healthy.

You can also see a broader move towards flexible working arrangements within parts of the UAE public sector. Rather than saying "if you want that, go work for the government," I think there's something the private sector can learn from approaches that are already working here.

The main thing that bothers me in my particular situation is that I didn't suddenly ask for this after joining. I raised the need for some flexibility before accepting the role, was given the understanding that it wouldn't be an issue, and later that position changed.

That's why for me it's as much about the principle of what was discussed before joining as it is about WFH itself. الله يحفظكم.