“Five days out of five is more tenable!”, Both physically, with “pain that comes from everywhere” for lack of exercise, and psychologically, reports AFP Claude (first name changed), employee at EDF in the Lyon region. "I feel like I'm on the verge of depression when I've never been like this. I'm at home, I start crying in front of my computer," says the 51-year-old woman.
Since the end of October, the corporate health protocol has imposed teleworking as a rule, specifying that it must be "increased to 100% for employees who can perform all of their tasks remotely".
As of Thursday, this protocol will be adapted to allow employees who feel the need to return to the site, with the agreement of their employer, one day per week, the Minister of Labor Elisabeth Borne seeing "a public health issue. ", while many suffer from isolation.
This is the case of Claude who affirms that she "cannot continue to live like that", having "no more life". "We are currently taking the image of a prisoner: we have the right to leave, but we live the same life as the prisoner all alone in his room," she said, pleading that we "let the choice "to those who want to return to the office.
If teleworking, which many have discovered with the Covid, has made followers, 100% is much less successful: according to an Ifop survey published in early December and focusing on employees in Paris and its inner city, they are only 8% wanting to work exclusively remotely.
"I step on myself"
"I do not like working at home", confirms to AFP Romain Berger, 28, employee of a Parisian communication group who was able to return to the site a bit like Claude between the two confinements. “At home I rest and we work in the office,” “I don't like to mix the two too much,” he says.
For this employee who would like to come back more than one day a week, this feeling is "reinforced" by the fact that he lives in a small space of 15 m2: "I walk over a little", he says.
"At home we only have problems, we don't have the good sides of the job, the sides where we laugh, we talk about everything and nothing," reports James for his part. "Suddenly, in the evening, it rises, it rises, it rises (...), there is no decompression valve", adds this forty-something active in watchmaking.
Sophie (first name changed), in a design office in the Lyon region, also highlights the lack of social interactions. "We always have to gain from talking with our colleagues", notes the 33-year-old young woman, for whom there was "more lightness in working together", in taking breaks together. She intends to "jump at the opportunity" of a relaxation because "we get lost a little" in this way of working.
In training in marketing-communication in an insurance company in Île-de-France, Alexandre, 25, remotely since November, is also "eager" to return to the site. "I saw that I was slowing down in understanding and training, it annoys me a little," said the young man, while being aware that teleworking is "bad for good" in the face of the epidemic.
After the first expected easing, Ms. Borne had reported "a second milestone on January 20", consisting in leaving the hand to the social partners, who have just concluded a national agreement, "to define in the social dialogue a minimum number of working days". But the minister suggested Monday evening to the social partners that this deadline would be postponed, because of the health situation.
A toll-free number (0800.13.00.00) was also launched in mid-November to support employees who are struggling with the situation.