Organisation
Working from home and in the office
The advice to work at home where possible was withdrawn on 26 June. What does this mean for working at a university location? Having to work from home has taught us that, although much can be done online, we would also like to return to the office.
The strength of Leiden University is the close academic community of researchers, lecturers, other staff members and students. That community feeling is very important to us and it flourishes when we see each other on campus. However, working from home does have its advantages.
We expect that after the summer holidays many members of staff will want to continue working from home for some of the time and to come into work for the rest. What shape this combination of working from home and at the university will take for you depends on your own work and situation and that of your team. It requires custom solutions. It is therefore important to discuss with your manager and team or department what your needs and interests are and which agreements need to be made. Together you will discover what does (and doesn’t) work.
Flexible work will be a transformation and a learning experience for the whole university. It will cause a shift in the way that we plan, manage and think about work. The starting point will be that working from home is neither a right nor a duty and that you will work from the Netherlands, even if you are working from home, unless you have explicitly agreed otherwise with your manager and HR. This is because working from abroad has consequences for your social security and your tax situation.
What will continue to apply for the present?
- The campus protocol will apply to our locations.
- We must practise 1.5m distancing. This places restrictions on the use of our spaces. There is limited capacity per office and meeting room. Stickers indicate the maximum number of workspaces.
- If you wish to come to the office, discuss this with your manager beforehand.
- At some locations, it is compulsory to book a place.
Workstation facilities
At the start of the pandemic, many staff members took office chairs, monitors and suchlike home with them so that they could continue their work there. Now we are gradually moving in the opposite direction, we are taking stock of what is needed to provide the optimal facilities and services at the university locations.
It is also important that staff who spend some of their time working at home have good facilities and amenities, in accordance with the health and safety guidelines. University-wide frameworks and policies have been drawn up for this purpose, but custom solutions are needed here too. The faculties have space to make their own interpretation of this in line with the policy on providing facilities for working at home.
What next?
The faculties are busy discussing and preparing for a partial return to the university after the summer. The interpretation of this will differ per faculty, to ensure that the requirements for good collaboration are met. Whatever happens, we expect the coming year to be a year of transition, in which we will learn and experience together how we can give shape to the new situation with a combination of working at home and at the university.
More information
If you have any questions about working in the office or at home or any ideas on how this can be successfully implemented in your team, please discuss them with your manager. A report from SoFoKles will follow soon that includes practical tips. We will add this to this announcement once it is available.