Why do conservatives dislike remote working?

Flexible working has helped women progress in the workplace. Since 2019, the share of women working fulltime in the insurance and finance sectors in the UK rose from 75% to 83%. The rate for mothers in finance rose more than ten percentage points. Overall the share of mothers in work reached a record 79% in 2023.

Now bosses want their staff back in the office, with half of companies requiring their staff to attend at least four days a week. Many women have chosen not to. The employment rate for women with dependent children has fallen from its peak, while that for men has remained steady. By the end of 2023, the difficulty of balancing work and childcare had pushed an estimated 250,000 women out of the workforce, with a worrying spike among the 35-44 year age group in many critical sectors.

Is this why conservatives are really pushing for a return to the office?

Source: The Economist, 13 March 2025.

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justanothername · 51-55, M

Why do conservatives dislike remote working?
Why?
Because they can’t visually monitor your work productivity output. They don’t trust what you tell them so it makes them paranoid.

ninalanyon · 61-69, T

@justanothername Why should they need to trust what you tell them? Surely they give you work to do and you get it done, what more is required?

justanothername · 51-55, M

@ninalanyon Trust and conservatism do not belong in the same sentence.

ninalanyon · 61-69, T

@justanothername My point is that I do not need to trust the worker. I only have to be able to tell whether they completed an assignment or not and whether it was done by the due date. If they do that then why should I care if the do another job or even subcontract the whole job to someone else?