Asking to work from home...

missnacholover

Has anyone done this?

When I first got pregnant, my boss said they could make accommodations so I could WFH towards the end.  I'm 34 weeks, scheduled to deliver "during week 37" so I have 2-3 weeks of work left after this one. 

I am so uncomfortable (aren't we all!) and I really want to ask if I can start WFH, at least part of the time.  I think if I could sleep in a bit and be able to sit with my feet up, it would really help with my comfort level and swelling.  Is it too soon? Is there anything specific I should say?  I have an OB appt next tuesday so I was going to talk to her about it and see if she could maybe write a note supporting this idea.

Thoughts?

ETA: as of right now there is no medical reason why I would need to WFH, I just want to for my own comfort level, which I think is part of the reason why I'm a little apprehensive to ask.

Celticlass6

I'd definitely talk to your boss about the possibility! It was mentioned before, and I think 2 to 3 weeks isnt unreasonable. If I had this as an option I would take it. I'd probably ask sooner rather than later in case they need to make any special arrangements for you.

absolutelymaybe

I think the medical reason is it would help with your comfort level (better productivity) and swelling.

Since your boss already brought it up, I would feel pretty confident letting them know the time has come to take them up on the offer. Even if would only be part time.

Two to three weeks really isn't a great length of time when you really think about it.

mb314

I think this is really a workplace-specific question.  Some workplaces are more open to working from home than others (and some jobs are easier to do remotely).  Since you've already spoken to someone about it, I would bring it up with your supervisors.  I would emphasize that the commute and confinements of your desk (like not being able to work on the couch, with your feet up) are becoming more difficult and you'd like to work remotely for the remainder of your pregnancy. 

Dumbgurl04

I would love it if my work would let me work from home.  But since my work has Unions someone somewhere would complain.  I for one just want to work from home because the girl feeling in for me is pretty overwhelmed with everything cause I guess she didn't realize I did so much. 

But totally agree with the being uncomfortable at work.  I can barely work for an hour without having to get up and walk around.  We do have a lobby that has some really good chairs and a place to prop my feet up and I have very much thought about taking my laptop and just working there.  But there is of course this lady (me and my friends call her the Devil in Denim because she wears these really bad patterned denim outfits all the time and she is sooooo rude) she would pretty much flip out on me.

missnacholover

Thanks everyone.  I may discuss with her this afternoon!

Autumnsnow

If they said that they would accommodate you I would def take them up on their offer.  Becuase of my commute alone my OB wanted me out at 34 weeks ( i figured it would be 36)  I thought that was a little crazy so I talked to my supervisors.  They were willing for me to work at home for the first two weeks but I offered to work at one of our stores in an office there for the two weeks cuz it's 10 mins from the house.

So I reallly don't think going out and working from home 2-3 weeks prior is bad at all.. You should def do it.

I worked from the office twice last week due to doc appts and cutting my commute to those 10-15mins made such a big diff..got to sleep a little later and it was less stressful.  I'm counting down the days here.  Friday is my last day in the city...2 weeks in the other office and the FMLA leave.

jac409

I'm not working this time around, but I started working from home for the last month with my first. I had no real medical reason either, but my boss was very understanding. I had a pretty long commute, which she got because she lived right down the road from me. Everyone was also worried about me going into labor at the office, so they were willing to work with me. I started out working from home maybe two days a week, or going in half days sometimes. As I got closer to my due date, I was home more than at the office. I think this is very workplace specific though, so you just need to talk to your boss and see what you can work out.

freetobekristin

missnacholover said:

Has anyone done this?

When I first got pregnant, my boss said they could make accommodations so I could WFH towards the end.  I'm 34 weeks, scheduled to deliver "during week 37" so I have 2-3 weeks of work left after this one. 

If you only have 2-3 weeks left, the end is here.    Just my suggestion, I would ask to talk to your boss today or tomorrow to give them time to prepare and ask for it to be effective on Monday (if that works for you & them). 

ejpetey

I'd try to frame it on why it will be better for THEM to have you WFH too - more productive if you're more comfortable, saving commute time, etc.  Good luck!

missnacholover

Thanks for the encouragement, everyone!  I'm going to go home tonight and see what software and licenses my laptop has to see if this is even something that may be do-able.  If it is w/out being too much of a pain in the ass, I'm going to talk to my boss tomorrow.

missnacholover

NinerGirl52 said:

A couple thoughts on this, as I do work from home. Do your homework first. Find out from your HR dept. what kind of WFH policy you have (if you have one). Like a pp suggested, take your laptop home and ensure you can get into your companies network, etc. Let your boss know what he/she can expect from you while you're working from home (be specific, hours you'll be available, daily project/work status updates, etc.) Not everyone is great at working from home and you want to show him/her what your productivity plan will be. I would try not to require anything from your company, and let them know you'll use your own phone line, etc. if needed. 

Also I think 2-3 weeks is fine. Definitely engage in the conversation now. 

Thanks for the tips!  It's kind of a weird situation as I'm a contractor, but we generally follow the rules of who we contract with rather than my company.  They (holders of the contract) are fine with me WFH and even mentioned it.  I'm going to see what's what on my laptop tonight.  I appreciate the insight from an HR person!

missnacholover

NinerGirl52 said:

missnacholover said:

NinerGirl52 said:

A couple thoughts on this, as I do work from home. Do your homework first. Find out from your HR dept. what kind of WFH policy you have (if you have one). Like a pp suggested, take your laptop home and ensure you can get into your companies network, etc. Let your boss know what he/she can expect from you while you're working from home (be specific, hours you'll be available, daily project/work status updates, etc.) Not everyone is great at working from home and you want to show him/her what your productivity plan will be. I would try not to require anything from your company, and let them know you'll use your own phone line, etc. if needed. 

Also I think 2-3 weeks is fine. Definitely engage in the conversation now. 

Thanks for the tips!  It's kind of a weird situation as I'm a contractor, but we generally follow the rules of who we contract with rather than my company.  They (holders of the contract) are fine with me WFH and even mentioned it.  I'm going to see what's what on my laptop tonight.  I appreciate the insight from an HR person!

Happy to help. I don't actually work in HR, but have had employees in the past work from home and these were the steps required before I/HR let anyone work from home.

Sorry, read too fast!  But thanks again! 

LadyBird9

Thanks for posting this, I have been wanting to talk to my boss about working from home for the next few weeks and wasn't quite sure how to go about it.  

lizzielu82

Would your OB help back you up?

This came up for me yesterday, and my OB said they would support what I needed to feel the best towards the end of my pregnancy. 

I think that would help a lot in your conversation if you could tie-in that kind of support from your OB. 

Good luck!

Becwalker27

I've been working from home about 2 days a week since I found out I was pregnant. But a large portion of my job is writing, so it was already fairly normal for me to work from home regularly. Plus according to my boss "the baby is now my core business"... Hmmm... Anyway!

I just always make sure people know when I'll be out, what I'll be working on and how to contact me.

missnacholover

@lizzielu82 - I have an appointment on Tuesday so I'm going to ask. 

I just had a very brief convo with my boss (Interrupted by the phone!) and told her I was "hitting the wall" and if it was OK may need to start working from home some.  She seemed receptive and said she was impressed that I have made it this far.  Then the freaking phone rang.

KMW08

Good luck! I'm glad you brought it up to her, hoping it's a smooth convo when you get to finish it (and that it works out)!

missnacholover

Thanks!  I have an appointment with IT tomorrow to get all the software loaded on my laptop.  Assuming that goes smoothly, I'm going to chat with my boss again on Monday and work out a schedule.    I'll still have to come in to the office for meetings and to use the large format printer and stuff, but I think having the flexibility of being able to WFH for a day or leave early if I need to will be great for me physcially and emotionally.

missnacholover

Just talked to my "big boss" and he's 100% OK with it.  Have a meeting set up for monday, hope to start WFH on Weds.  Even though I have an on-site meeting on Thursday that I'll have to attend but that's OK.

milanese0521

I'm 34 weeks and just talked with my boss about WFH friday and mondays and he said no problem. The 'meat' of my week is T-Th so I need to be in the office those days but missing a 2 hours commute 2 days a week will be a god send!