In a word, working at the office while most other people stay home is surreal. After someone at my company had coronavirus-like symptoms, our office decided to have everyone work from home except for “essential employees”. An email was sent out naming five people who would be keeping the office running while everyone else was away; I was one of them.
Since I’m still in college, my job is nothing glamorous. I have two coworkers who have the same position as me. We keep the kitchens stocked; we scan, copy, and print for others; we sit at the front desk and answer calls. I honestly really enjoy it. We mostly interact with the assistants who are friendly and nice and often worry that the work they give us is too much, even though it never is. I am extremely lucky to have a job like this in college. I am even more lucky to have a job when many others that I know are out of work for the time being.
Now that our office has tried to have everyone work from home, I scan and email mail. I keep the kitchen stocked (even though there is no one to use it). I print and fill envelopes. Overall, having to communicate mainly through email and calls has helped me realize what tasks are actually urgent. Most of the things I do are great, but not truly necessary. This makes me feel both liberated and useless.
Our office has installed hand sanitizers. There are signs telling us to wash our hands. On the positive side, we get to wear jeans every day when our real dress code is business casual. This should mean that the office is a more relaxed environment, like a Friday, but everyone seems tense and uneasy. Maybe I’m projecting and I’m the only one who is feeling stressed. I wipe things down with a Clorox wipe constantly. It feels like the office will never be as clean as it should be.
We still get lots of deliveries; however, now packages get set down on the counter rather than grabbing them from the delivery person. Since restaurants do not allow sit down meals, no one goes out for lunch anymore. Most of the calls we get are from coworkers who need to speak with the IT guy who also still has to come into work.
Coronavirus meant that I had to move back to my parents’ home which should have tripled my commute to work during rush hour. However, since most of the state now works from home, my commute is only slightly longer than it originally was. When I lived at home, I used to take the train like the environmentally friendly person I am, but now I wouldn’t dare. On my drive home last week, I only saw a total of 26 people when usually the streets and train stations are bustling. That’s fewer people than there are minutes in my commute. I’m ready for everyone to come back to regular life.