ABC Radio Melbourne Change My Mind Working From Home

By Sue Ellson

WORKING FROM HOME // Today I was part of the audience at the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) Southbank Studio for Rafael Epstein’s ‘Change My Mind – Working From Home’ program.

We heard from Victorian Treasurer Jaclyn Symes, Scott Veenker, CEO of the Committee for Melbourne, Professor Leah Ruppanner, Founding Director of the Future of Work Lab at the University of Melbourne and Tamsin Lawrence, Associate Director of Australian Business Lawyers & Advisors (ABLA).

There were also guests on the program representing small business, recruitment services, the value of in-person mentoring and a business owner who operates almost entirely on a ‘remote’ basis and one of their employees.

There were many interesting perspectives discussed and you can listen to these in full at https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/melbourne-mornings/change-my-mind-working-from-home/106386112

I was particularly impressed with Leah Ruppanner’s comments as ‘work-from-home’ is really only the tip of the iceberg in relation to how much is changing in the world of work for people who can work from home and for those who cannot work from home.

What I would like to add is:

➡️ yes, some people are working from home and more people (both employees and employers) have been educated to explore this option – but ultimately, unless there is ‘law’ or ‘regulation,’ there will be a cohort of people who miss out on this option if legislation is not created

➡️ legislation usually comes ‘after’ change to make sure that opportunities are equally shared in a democratic society

➡️ there is plenty of evidence to suggest that ‘flexibility’ is a requirement of the current workforce and I see this as particularly important for two working parent families who need to juggle life and full time employment as well as people with health, disability or cultural issues affecting their ability to work on site

➡️ job seekers still need to improve their job search skills and aim to work ‘close-to-home’ as this is also another way to improve a person’s overall work/life balance and has the added advantage of helping them be more connected to their local community

➡️ we also need to discuss the entrepreneurs who work from home and how they can have their health and wellbeing adequately supported

➡️ whilst there has been an expectation in the past that commuting time comes from the time and funds of an employee, I predict that employers may need to understand that if they can only source an employee who has to travel for more than one hour each way, they may need to provide an extra travel allowance (another reason to encourage working close to home)

➡️ governments need to ensure that affordable accommodation is available to all workers in a local community so that people who must attend in person are not shackled to a lengthy commute

➡️ I think it was mentioned that only 36% of the workforce has the ability to be able to work from home and a four day work week needs to be considered.