The article discusses the challenges that employees at Meta (formerly Facebook) are facing as they return to the office after a period of remote work during the pandemic. The company has implemented a new policy requiring employees to be in the office at least three days a week and tracks attendance daily. Failure to comply can result in termination. However, many employees are struggling with a lack of space and privacy, as well as difficulties in finding conference rooms for team meetings.
The lack of conference rooms has been an ongoing issue at Meta, even before the pandemic. With the increase in employees, it has become even more challenging to secure a conference room, making it difficult for teams to meet effectively. In some cases, employees have resorted to sitting on the floor during meetings due to a lack of chairs and table space. Meta acknowledges the problem and states that they are working on creating more collaborative spaces and workstations.
Another challenge faced by employees is the implementation of hot desks, which are unassigned desks that need to be booked in advance. Some employees who were previously working from home have lost their assigned desks and are now finding it difficult to secure a desk when they come into the office. Meta claims that any issues with hot desking can be resolved by properly booking desks through their online reservation system. Despite these challenges, employees are not resigning, as they are trying to do what they can to maintain their employment status. Performance reviews have been tough, and there are concerns about the upcoming round of reviews.
Additionally, Meta allows employees who have worked at the company for 18 months or more to apply to become permanent remote workers. However, the approval process for remote work applications seems to be slow, with hundreds of employees waiting to hear back. These applications will not be reviewed until the end of October. Until then, all employees with assigned offices are required to appear in the office three days a week, regardless of their team distribution. Some employees are questioning the purpose of coming into the office when they can simply participate in Zoom meetings from home.
Overall, the return to the office for Meta employees has been met with challenges such as a lack of space, difficulties in finding conference rooms, and issues with hot desking. However, employees are still trying to adapt and maintain their jobs, despite frustrations with the current situation.
