# Poll: Are you working from home due to Coronavirus? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Quarantine Zone\ **Tags:** covid-quarantine\ **Created:** [March 16, 2020, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563 "2020-03-16T05:30:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/1 "2020-03-16T05:30:39Z")
My company has told its workers to stay home over the next week or so. How about you? ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/2 "2020-03-16T05:37:30Z")
I’m unemployed now due to layoffs. My previous VP went out of his way to squash working from home except in the case of dire emergency. Part of it was ego, like Trump undoing things just because Obama did them. Part of it was because he just liked driving his expensive car and getting away from his wife and bullshit about fantasy football. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/3 "2020-03-16T06:00:17Z")
I could go to work, but my interaction with students would be online anyway since the university is closed. I’m doing telehealth with clients; I’m the boss of my practice and I assert that my practice is not at the office right now. ---
**Author:** ![eschrodinger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschrodinger/32/122_2.png) [@eschrodinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschrodinger)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/4 "2020-03-16T06:16:16Z")
We have a telework policy that lets people work from home 1 day per week. So, almost everyone is set up to do it. So far, only people in the more vulnerable groups – over 60 or with other health issues – have been told they can ask for temporary work from home full time status. It doesn’t make much sense that they are not temporarily waiving the 1 day per week limit. My kids are on 2 week spring break, which was expected for us, but their camps were canceled. So, either me or my partner have to be home for any day we can’t get a nanny. If I’m doing childcare, I can’t work from home anyway, so for some days I’ll be taking leave – but for childcare reasons, not to avoid the office for social distancing reasons. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/5 "2020-03-16T06:16:51Z")
I’m a freelance translator, so I work from home anyway. Of course, now that the global economy has ground to a halt, “work” is mostly a theoretical concept. ---
**Author:** ![chizzuk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@chizzuk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chizzuk)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 8:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/6 "2020-03-16T08:26:27Z")
I work for a school district that is closed for the next 2 weeks. Teaching staff, which includes me, are on “emergency leave” (paid) and are not working at all. Admin staff are being told to work from home to the greatest extent possible. I don’t know what will be should this closure extend beyond two weeks. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 8:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/7 "2020-03-16T08:36:17Z")
You left out a big category. I have a job that can not be done from home. ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 8:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/8 "2020-03-16T08:54:06Z")
I’ve worked from home for the last 11 years, but I daresay that my work is going to be cut back enormously as the economic effects of covid 19 become apparent. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 8:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/9 "2020-03-16T08:59:39Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > You left out a big category. I have a job that can not be done from home. That’s me too. I’m the floater at a preschool. Basically the back-up teacher for anyone who can’t show up. I might be the teacher, or I might be the classroom aide. We are closed until the end of Passover (it’s a Jewish preschool). How and whether people will be compensated is still in the works. We have plenty of savings, but I’m sure the younger people where I work are scrambling. My son is also home from school. He’s 13, and while I think he’s capable of managing by himself all day long for several weeks if that were the only possibility, I’m glad it isn’t working out that way. DH must go in for a portion of work, but will be working at home as much as he can, and work is encouraging it. He works with a vulnerable population (people on chemo), so he has to wear a facemask, and wash hands like he has OCD. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 10:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/10 "2020-03-16T10:24:38Z")
I can’t work from home. I teach at a bilingual school (kindergarten through high school) and they already closed the elementary though high school once. Kindergarten was still being held, so us teachers had a lighter load, but we still had to go in or take vacation. Teaching online is problematic for elementary school, impossible for kindergarten and probably not likely for junior high here, so I don’t know what the school would do if the government orders everything to be shut. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/11 "2020-03-16T10:49:37Z")
We’ve been told to work from home, so that’s what we’re doing. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/12 "2020-03-16T11:23:53Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > You left out a big category. I have a job that can not be done from home. Same here. ---
**Author:** ![OldOlds](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a3d4f5/32.png) [@OldOlds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldOlds)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/13 "2020-03-16T11:39:38Z")
I normally work from home anyway. I normally travel 50-66% of the time and I’m really busy on the road. When I’m home I am a lot less busy. So now, with travel squashed, it’s really strange. Because I feel like I should be busier than I am, but I’m not. I don’t like it. My wife’s company has mandated that everyone who can work from home shall. So after a full week without a minute alone, I’m starting to go a little nuts. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/14 "2020-03-16T11:40:17Z")
The university is open but the students are all having their classes online at home, so the staff is here but nobody else is. School president wanted the library to stay open so I have to be here. Could end up with mandatory telework at some point, but there’s not really much I can do from home; normally there’s not that much reason for me to actually be in the office, but at the moment we can’t access our collection from a remote computer so there’s nothing I could do at home right now anyways. There’s not a ton I can do from the office either right now, but they want us here, so I’m here, just running out the clock. ---
**Author:** ![Tatterdemalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/43a26b/32.png) [@Tatterdemalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tatterdemalion)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/15 "2020-03-16T12:55:28Z")
On Friday, I took my laptop home and started working from home. It was optional at my company, but encouraged. Over the weekend, it went from optional to required, so I’m glad I took my stuff home. ---
**Author:** ![zimaane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a3d4f5/32.png) [@zimaane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zimaane)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/16 "2020-03-16T12:59:01Z")
Federal employees are now (starting 3/16) encouraged to work remotely to the extent possible. For me that is 100%, so that is what i am doing. I’d prefer to go to the office, but we all have to make sacrifices. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/17 "2020-03-16T13:04:00Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > You left out a big category. I have a job that can not be done from home. You mean the bad guys won’t come to Chez Loach and ask to be arrested? Don’t they understand that this is a crisis and we all have to change our routines?!? ---
**Author:** ![Oredigger77](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oredigger77/32/3181_2.png) [@Oredigger77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oredigger77)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/18 "2020-03-16T13:04:56Z")
I have an office near my house but I travel enough that I don’t go in unless I have to so I kind of work from home all of the time. Now that schools are close I’m “working” from home since ai don’t expect to be overly productive with a 4 year old and a 1 year old I’ve got to take care of. I’m not sure what we’ll do if they carry out the rumors and shut school down for 8 weeks. My wife works for an engineering firm, started a week ago, they don’t believe in working from home so everyone is required to go in. If you or a family member get COVID-19 you are required to take FMLA, which we’re not eligible for and so far their corporate policy is if you work for home only billable work counts and the rest needs to be PTO neither of which my wife has and 100% billable is crazy anyhow. So we’re expecting her to be back job hunting this week. ---
**Author:** ![Crotalus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crotalus/32/41_2.png) [@Crotalus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crotalus)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/19 "2020-03-16T13:14:42Z")
I normally work at home three days per week and go to the office two days per week. I was told on Friday to stay at home until further notice. ---
**Author:** ![stretch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a6a055/32.png) [@stretch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stretch)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563/20 "2020-03-16T13:32:14Z")
The agency has limited our location to two people per program in office each day to deal with walk ins and phone calls. I’m slated to work in office Mondays and the rest of my week working at home. The agency busted ass to get us more VPN slots so more of us can work from home. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-are-you-working-from-home-due-to-coronavirus/849563.md?page=2)