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It's desired now for valid reasons. No commute. Comfort. Being able to stay home to watch your kids while you work. Being able to live wherever you want and travel the world, etc.
But I have a feeling that in 20 years from now same people who think remote work is a progressive idea now will mark that as the point of the country's decline.
First, is the social isolation. The ability to work at home alone and not meet face to face with coworkers or clients doesn't seem like a big deal. And you could also argue that people can always just go out to social events after they work? But long-term what would happen if millions of Americans take the path of least resistance and just become sedentary, reclusive, overweight and depressed?
Second, is outsourcing. If you can get the same job in Kansas as you can get in NYC, but have way more disposible income, great? But what happens when companies just hire people from other countries and pay them $12 hour to work remotely instead of paying $25-40 an hour for an American to work remotely.
Hate to break it to you but there are people who have been remote employees for over 20 years. Social isolation? Most people have friends outside of work so their social lives are fine.
Outsourcing. We've been through this over and over since the 90's. In most cases, it does not work and the work comes back to the US. Outsourcing can happen with or without remote work. Why do you think you'll have more disposable income in Kansas? Often times the salary goes along with the location so if you are living outside of NYC then you won't receive an NYC salary.
Been living the remote work lifestyle for over 16 years now. Not a problem. Our friends are our friends and have nothing to do with our jobs.
This kind of reminds me of social media. Where people were initially excited at the technology, but then 10 years later, started to see the negatives.
The same people who think remote-work is super progressive will eventually HATE it when it even worsens income inequality.
Nope. Been doing this for over 16 years and it has allowed us to live in different areas of the country. We have been able to live where we want to live. Currently, we live in an area we used to vacation in. We basically get to live on vacation year round. Relocate to work in an office? Nope. Not happening in my lifetime.
Remote work is great for the country. Think of the conservation, the gasoline not burned, the hydrocarbons not spewed into the air, the life-altering accidents not happening on the commute. The security of the system from decentralization, and the ability to maintain productivity in bad weather.
Outsourcing? You mean offshoring. Many obstacles to that, aside from laws, such as language, culture, time zone, and plus the ability to occasionally meet once a week or month. As for the cost difference, if a company could overcome those obstacles and profit from offshoring, do you really think working in an office is going to avoid that? Why would a company pay a US worker $40/hr to sit in a seat in the office rather than $12/hr in another country? Much offshoring has been through contract companies who just have those foreign workers in an office in another country.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lair8
This kind of reminds me of social media. Where people were initially excited at the technology, but then 10 years later, started to see the negatives. The same people who think remote-work is super progressive will eventually HATE it when it even worsens income inequality.
I don't think most people have come to hate social media. Being able to see the negatives doesn't mean you don't favor something overall.
The workplace provides a critical need for socialization!
Collectively big business, like pharma etc, select management with poor people skills.
Isolating workers diminishes their ability to personally interact with other humans, read faces, tone of voice posture. A whole generation of people who live in basements will be created with all the problems associated with people living in basements.
Many people prefer to go to a workplace, others not, both, for many different reasons.
Remote workers are always on call, especially when meeting with Euro countries, India or Russia are called, or databases need to be finalized.
Some remote workers will take advantage, others will be more productive. A lack of management skills by mid management and higher level staff will be a disaster. A new set of management skills will be required and hiring is always about, 'I like you because you are like me'. And I don;t mean skin color.
Privacy and bias complaints are likely when some managers suspect a person of slacking as they check to see if they are present and not out shopping. Time to complete the work 8 hr day vs on call 23/7 can keep an HR dept hopping. Can't emphasize enough the need to RECOGNIZE a new set of management skills and hiring someone who posses them. That is the current problem with the traditional workplace.
Large companies and businesses have tolerated inefficiency and poor management and the success or failure of remote work will suffer even more until the level of tolerance is learned and becomes SOP... again in the new world, inefficiency will reign and be tolerated. Success will be defined as always, to make some high level leader look good for a bonus, at the sacrifice of company efficiency and profit and customer satisfaction and consumer cost. Same, same but different.
A generalization of remote work hurting the entire country is an invalid question as each business is unique and many jobs require a physical presence.
Laughing as new technology was introduced to eliminate work and instead, the work load increased. No one ever measures the cost saving of new technology because it rarely saves work, as unbelievable as that sounds. Sure there are exceptions.
Everything has it's pros and cons; it's up to us how we take it. Working from home has its own disadvantages and benefits, now it's up to us how we manage things, how is our mental level and what we need to get the maximum output.
Second, is outsourcing. If you can get the same job in Kansas as you can get in NYC, but have way more disposible income, great? But what happens when companies just hire people from other countries and pay them $12 hour to work remotely instead of paying $25-40 an hour for an American to work remotely.
Not every company is racing to go offshore, and some can't. We've actually tried to send work offshore due to a recent massive expansion and inability to hire experts in our field, but we just can't due to various laws and client requirements. We also do lots of field work, and while flying from Kansas is just as easy as traveling from New York, quick field visits just don't work with passports and border crossings.
And you're looking only at the downside, which only affects people in large cities (so move?). Remote work is a massive boost to rural and poorer areas, whether that's a poor country or poor state in the USA.
I'm originally from a rural state in the USA. There was virtually no internet (low-signal cellular, or high-latency satellite) where my parents live. But now, thanks to expansions started during COVID, my rural parents have 1Gbps fiber internet service. I'm suddenly able to visit more often and stay longer. In the near future I'm going to build an office (upscale shed) behind their house for even longer stays.
Eventually, when my kids graduate, I'll sell my house and move back permanently. Then this middle-of-nowhere rural county in a rural state will have at least one citizen earning and paying local taxes on a senior-level engineering salary.
In 20 years from now, at least 30-60% of current work will be automated and taken over by AI. Whether it's on premise or remote it won't matter. Walk around in retail and we already see self check out and kiosks for information. Majority of decision making jobs will also be taken over by AI. Don't think getting a manager job will be safe. It is the least productive and easiest to outsource with Ai.
Jobs that will be safe will be construction, engineering, labor intensive jobs, and creative content creators.
The government is not going to willingly destroy its own job market. It’s like the super market, we have self checkout lines yet people still use the human ones. We have automatic car washes but people still want theirs hand detailed. We have streaming service but people still go to the movies. We have massage chairs but people still want to see a real massage therapist. We have robo investing but people still use financial advisors.
The notion that AI/robots/machines are going to hurt or destroy the job market is overblown.
What we know now is that middle level management is going to be threatened by WFH. If your job is/was to sit in meetings all day it's painfully obvious it can be done without them.
The government is not going to willingly destroy its own job market. It’s like the super market, we have self checkout lines yet people still use the human ones. We have automatic car washes but people still want theirs hand detailed. We have streaming service but people still go to the movies. We have massage chairs but people still want to see a real massage therapist. We have robo investing but people still use financial advisors.
The notion that AI/robots/machines are going to hurt or destroy the job market is overblown.
Good points. I used to go to a massage therapist back in COLO SPGS not so much for the great massage she gave (magic hands, I used to tell her she was good at "wringing my neck") but because she was one of the smartest women I ever met and for 90 minutes we had the best conversations about almost anything.
MKTwet wrote: "Jobs that will be safe will be construction, engineering, labor intensive jobs, and creative content creators."
yes, and to that list I add virtually all medical and dental care, they can't outsource medical care, though a few people go outside the USA for elective surgeries. Add to that all the service work, like lawn care, house painting, auto repair, car washes/detailing, haircuts, nail care, restaurants, etc. They may have self-checkout at the grocery but someone still has to stock the shelves, cut and package meats/cheeses, mop the floors, and collect the shopping carts.
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