5 ms·

It seems like every year there’s a new study showing how cubicle farms are bad for productivity and health. Everyone hates them. Same thing for long commutes,

It seems like every year there’s a new study showing how cubicle farms are bad for productivity and health. Everyone hates them. Same thing for long commutes, they’re terrible. But still companies keep building new cubicle farms in downtown cores. Maybe office workers are just done with this stupid shit.

umanwizard 5y ago
I would love to be in a cubicle farm rather than the school-cafeteria-inspired open office dystopia.
- mywittyname 5y ago
  Cubes done right are fine. I had "office cubes" with 6ft tall walls and ~40sq ft of space, and they were awesome. Plenty of space to stretch out, room for a bookshelf and a chair for visitors, a computer desk and a writing desk. Noise could be a little much, but people were generally polite and quiet. My next job was literally a desk in the middle of the floor. All the prime employees had desks that went along the edge of the wall, forming a horseshoe and, when they ran out of room, they started putting desks in the center. So i was basically working on a stage in front of 40 people. It was awful, but I never slacked off! (well, i went for walks a lot)
- acomjean 5y ago
  I miss office cubes. Last 2 jobs where in an open office. Also while I haven't disliked my bosses, the last 3 I've been seated less than 15 feet from them. Covid work from home was a pretty nice break, and we're going hybrid from now on.
ahoy 5y ago
I like working in an office, I just don't like that it takes me 40 minutes to get there. In a better world I could live _in_ that downtown core, a short walk or bike ride away from work.
MattGaiser 5y ago
I hated the cubicle until I worked in an open office. I would be quite happy with a cubicle now.
praxulus 5y ago
Downtown cores have the highest population density, and thus the lowest average commute for a typical set of workers distributed around a metro area.
- asciimov 5y ago
  The largest groups that live in my metros downtown core are, swaths of poor people who's crime ridden neighborhoods have yet to gentrify, the insanely wealthy who gentrified the best of the dilapidated old homes, and young hipsters who live in condos. For the most part (in my area), the only reason companies have moved downtown is because the city has given them sweetheart deals to be there. Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of workers commute into the downtown area, because it's not a desirable place to live.
  - azemetre 5y ago
    I think this is vastly dependent on the state and the "downtown." Where I live, Boston, it's mostly the upper classes that live in and around the city. All the poor people have been nearly priced out to the suburbs or even other states (New Hampshire or Rhode Island). Of course there are wealthy cities and suburbs, but if you want a walkable commute within reason, <15 minutes, you pay a premium.
- fridif 5y ago
  Now imagine if your downtown core was "anywhere with an internet connection"[1], and your commute time was "sub 500ms". [1] including Africa, the open ocean, space, Papua New Guinea, a jail cell....

umanwizard 5y ago

I would love to be in a cubicle farm rather than the school-cafeteria-inspired open office dystopia.

mywittyname 5y ago
Cubes done right are fine. I had "office cubes" with 6ft tall walls and ~40sq ft of space, and they were awesome. Plenty of space to stretch out, room for a bookshelf and a chair for visitors, a computer desk and a writing desk. Noise could be a little much, but people were generally polite and quiet. My next job was literally a desk in the middle of the floor. All the prime employees had desks that went along the edge of the wall, forming a horseshoe and, when they ran out of room, they started putting desks in the center. So i was basically working on a stage in front of 40 people. It was awful, but I never slacked off! (well, i went for walks a lot)
acomjean 5y ago
I miss office cubes. Last 2 jobs where in an open office. Also while I haven't disliked my bosses, the last 3 I've been seated less than 15 feet from them. Covid work from home was a pretty nice break, and we're going hybrid from now on.

ahoy 5y ago

I like working in an office, I just don't like that it takes me 40 minutes to get there. In a better world I could live _in_ that downtown core, a short walk or bike ride away from work.

MattGaiser 5y ago

I hated the cubicle until I worked in an open office. I would be quite happy with a cubicle now.

praxulus 5y ago

Downtown cores have the highest population density, and thus the lowest average commute for a typical set of workers distributed around a metro area.

asciimov 5y ago
The largest groups that live in my metros downtown core are, swaths of poor people who's crime ridden neighborhoods have yet to gentrify, the insanely wealthy who gentrified the best of the dilapidated old homes, and young hipsters who live in condos. For the most part (in my area), the only reason companies have moved downtown is because the city has given them sweetheart deals to be there. Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of workers commute into the downtown area, because it's not a desirable place to live.
- azemetre 5y ago
  I think this is vastly dependent on the state and the "downtown." Where I live, Boston, it's mostly the upper classes that live in and around the city. All the poor people have been nearly priced out to the suburbs or even other states (New Hampshire or Rhode Island). Of course there are wealthy cities and suburbs, but if you want a walkable commute within reason, <15 minutes, you pay a premium.
fridif 5y ago
Now imagine if your downtown core was "anywhere with an internet connection"[1], and your commute time was "sub 500ms". [1] including Africa, the open ocean, space, Papua New Guinea, a jail cell....