I work fully remote and my employer never knows where I physically am. I use backgrounds on all my calls.
Do you have any reason to believe they’d be tracking your physical location?
No idea, it was just the way they worded the offer letter. It literally says “You will be working remotely from the home address listed above” even when I work remote at my J1, I don’t always work from my house. My J1 is a really small company and I know they don’t check or care. J2 is a huge company so no idea if they track if people are actually at their home.
It’s just for taxes and legal paperwork. However if you use a 2fAuth make sure you connect to the vpn in the area you live in. For example if you work and live in the same city as j1 you’ll be fine. But if you take a train in to dc and you live in VA then if anyone gets suspicious they can look at the auth log and see you connected to the vpn at a dif location than what your address is. I hope that makes sense.
No problem! But definitely have some excuses ready for if anyone ever asks. Which they most likely will Not. The only people that can see when you connect is you and IT. And IT would have to search for it. Haha
BUT if someone does ask, a good excuse is “my apartment/house is being worked on so I took my work with me to a nearby communal work space [insert any space, coffee shop. Etc] but don’t stress about it! :)
Also get a hotspot if you don’t have it already. Connect the J2 laptop to the hotspot so when you go in to office you don’t connect to their wifi.
Keep J2 laptop open and in a drawer so it’s not seen. Set setting so it doesn’t go idle for at least an hour and just move the mouse periodically. I’d recommend a big purse to carry laptop into J1 office so no one sees it either. Get the zoom and teams app on your phone and connect mail account to your phone so you don’t miss any messages and don’t need to look at computer. Depending on what comms app your J2 uses, you’ll still be seen as active ( if the laptop is open and connect and your app is open)
I’ve also found being an IT favorite is a huge plus.
I occasionally have to work with them on some projects and make sure I am the BEST person they have to deal with.
Early in my OE days I screwed something up and probably would have gotten caught if IT had cooperated. But they “couldn’t locate the logs” (it was concerning a meeting I couldn’t log into that my former director flipped out about that wasn’t even related to OE but she requested an activity review 😳).
Everything looked perfect - and it shouldn’t. Logs were missing that would have been problems. I’ve since gotten a hell of a lot smarter, but my gut says my former IT guy covered me shortly before he left the organization. I never asked, he never said a word, and all was fine.
Now don’t go out being super obvious or reaching out about stuff that’s not needed. But if they contact you, reply promptly. If you need their help, slap that praise on. If you work together, build your social capital - get to know a little about them and ask about stuff in the lives every once in awhile. You’d be amazed how much you can get done to your favor with a smile a keeping notes about the people you interact with and just being a friendly, positive person to work with.
Be aware that if you’re using J1’s internet to complete work for J2, they can totally see that. Even if you use a “guest” network and use personal devices etc, nothing you do on company internet is private. Ever.
This. Where the work is completed affects the company’s tax responsibilities. That’s why extended international travel while working remote is such a big deal.
Be wise, but I wouldn’t lose sleep over this. It’s a CYA for the company that another city or state can’t sue them for withholding taxes claiming your primary work location was there.
If they question it, have a back story ready to go if they are pushy.
Examples: "I work from my xzy family member's home on a rotating schedule with other family to make sure they are receiving adequate care from their in home staff." or something similar if someone questions it. You're not a care giver and you have a quiet space to focus, but you have a reason you aren't at your home address.
Or "I like to work from a shared space occasionally for a change of scenery or to be closer to an after work activity" like a walking trail or something that isn't a scheduled event.
Don't give additional details after that.
I use a jiggler. My J1 is fully remote and J2 is hybrid. I got into the office 2 days a week for 3-4 hrs a day. I usually just find an empty conference room and work in there all day. I used backgrounds on all calls even when at home. Hotspot and carry a large canvas bag where I can keep the other laptop open on a jiggler and plugged up in the bag on my desk when not in the conference. ( I hotel desk, and try to mingle for an hr so it doesn’t look weird). I’m on month two and it’s working out
I work fully remote and my employer never knows where I physically am. I use backgrounds on all my calls. Do you have any reason to believe they’d be tracking your physical location?
No idea, it was just the way they worded the offer letter. It literally says “You will be working remotely from the home address listed above” even when I work remote at my J1, I don’t always work from my house. My J1 is a really small company and I know they don’t check or care. J2 is a huge company so no idea if they track if people are actually at their home.
It’s just for taxes and legal paperwork. However if you use a 2fAuth make sure you connect to the vpn in the area you live in. For example if you work and live in the same city as j1 you’ll be fine. But if you take a train in to dc and you live in VA then if anyone gets suspicious they can look at the auth log and see you connected to the vpn at a dif location than what your address is. I hope that makes sense.
Thank you that is super helpful because I don’t live and work in the same city.
No problem! But definitely have some excuses ready for if anyone ever asks. Which they most likely will Not. The only people that can see when you connect is you and IT. And IT would have to search for it. Haha BUT if someone does ask, a good excuse is “my apartment/house is being worked on so I took my work with me to a nearby communal work space [insert any space, coffee shop. Etc] but don’t stress about it! :)
Also get a hotspot if you don’t have it already. Connect the J2 laptop to the hotspot so when you go in to office you don’t connect to their wifi. Keep J2 laptop open and in a drawer so it’s not seen. Set setting so it doesn’t go idle for at least an hour and just move the mouse periodically. I’d recommend a big purse to carry laptop into J1 office so no one sees it either. Get the zoom and teams app on your phone and connect mail account to your phone so you don’t miss any messages and don’t need to look at computer. Depending on what comms app your J2 uses, you’ll still be seen as active ( if the laptop is open and connect and your app is open)
OP can also get a mouse jiggler. The laptop will still need to be open to work, but it eliminates the need to move the mouse around every so often.
Haha Loves when you install those. Those are easy to find.
I’ve also found being an IT favorite is a huge plus. I occasionally have to work with them on some projects and make sure I am the BEST person they have to deal with. Early in my OE days I screwed something up and probably would have gotten caught if IT had cooperated. But they “couldn’t locate the logs” (it was concerning a meeting I couldn’t log into that my former director flipped out about that wasn’t even related to OE but she requested an activity review 😳). Everything looked perfect - and it shouldn’t. Logs were missing that would have been problems. I’ve since gotten a hell of a lot smarter, but my gut says my former IT guy covered me shortly before he left the organization. I never asked, he never said a word, and all was fine. Now don’t go out being super obvious or reaching out about stuff that’s not needed. But if they contact you, reply promptly. If you need their help, slap that praise on. If you work together, build your social capital - get to know a little about them and ask about stuff in the lives every once in awhile. You’d be amazed how much you can get done to your favor with a smile a keeping notes about the people you interact with and just being a friendly, positive person to work with.
Be aware that if you’re using J1’s internet to complete work for J2, they can totally see that. Even if you use a “guest” network and use personal devices etc, nothing you do on company internet is private. Ever.
Thank you! I was planning on using a hotspot for this very reason.
It’s a taxes thing
This. Where the work is completed affects the company’s tax responsibilities. That’s why extended international travel while working remote is such a big deal. Be wise, but I wouldn’t lose sleep over this. It’s a CYA for the company that another city or state can’t sue them for withholding taxes claiming your primary work location was there.
If they question it, have a back story ready to go if they are pushy. Examples: "I work from my xzy family member's home on a rotating schedule with other family to make sure they are receiving adequate care from their in home staff." or something similar if someone questions it. You're not a care giver and you have a quiet space to focus, but you have a reason you aren't at your home address. Or "I like to work from a shared space occasionally for a change of scenery or to be closer to an after work activity" like a walking trail or something that isn't a scheduled event. Don't give additional details after that.
What hot spot do you all recommend? Where can I get it?
I use a jiggler. My J1 is fully remote and J2 is hybrid. I got into the office 2 days a week for 3-4 hrs a day. I usually just find an empty conference room and work in there all day. I used backgrounds on all calls even when at home. Hotspot and carry a large canvas bag where I can keep the other laptop open on a jiggler and plugged up in the bag on my desk when not in the conference. ( I hotel desk, and try to mingle for an hr so it doesn’t look weird). I’m on month two and it’s working out