1. Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer reportedly sent an email to remote staff members telling them to start working from the office – or quit. The email came via Yahoo human resources boss Jackie Reses and it read: “Being a Yahoo isn’t just about your day-to-day job, it is about the interactions and experiences that are only possible in our offices.” According to reports, employees who are unhappy about the new rule will be encouraged to leave.
2. Prime Minister Julia Gillard has lost ground against Opposition Leader Tony Abbott in Australia’s leading opinion poll Newspoll. Labor now trails the Coalition 55-45 on a two party prefered basis and Julia GIllard is no longer the preferred Prime Minister.
3. At the Academy Awards yesterday, the Ben Affleck directed movie Argo won best picture. Lincoln’s Daniel Day Lewis won best actor and Jennifer Lawrence won best actress for her role in Silver Linings Playbook. Christoph Waltz picked up best supporting actor for Django Unchained and Anne Hathaway won best supporting actress for her role in Les Miserables.
4. A woman in NSW has given birth to a baby boy in the midst of the floods that are ravaging parts of the state. Flood waters were blocking access to the Rachael Smith‘s property and she gave birth – with the help of her husband and two neighbours – before rescue crews could reach her. They were eventually rescued by helicopter and according to the paramedic on board, both mum and baby are doing well.
5. In an interview with The Australian Women’s Weekly, Ellen DeGeneres said she plans to meet with The Australian Prime Minister next month to talk about gay marriage. The AWW Editor Helen McCabe said: “Ellen is asked by (reporter) Caroline Overington if she had a question for the PM and replies; ‘I would just tell her that I married the absolute love of my life. And I wish that everyone could have the same opportunity’.”
Top Comments
Really wanted Jackie Weaver to get the gong. She is an amazing actress.
Yes. She was up for the "Actress in a Supporting Role" Award. Apparently there is no such thing as "Best" anymore. Best implies that you were better than someone else and we can't have that, can we ? It's like being given an award for participating and finishing in 49th place.
I also wish that the presenters were allowed to give the award to the "winner" rather than just indicating that the award goes to (insert name here). But the word winner indicates that someone is the loser and we can't have anyone going away feeling as if they have lost. Always reminds me of that quote from Billy McMahon. "We didn't lose the election. We just didn't win enough seats to take government".
I'm shocked at how old fashioned Marissa sounds when she addresses her employees, especially as the CEO of such a modern company. If an employee is reaching targets and producing results, why does it matter where they are sitting. Employees can communicate and work online from anywhere in the world, they can be productive without sitting in a cubicle.
In another memo to employees she said, "please don't stop working, you are doing important work, please don't stop". Bizarre.
Old fashioned or not, the boss of the company sets the rules not the employee.
The employee is being given the opportunity to comply or depart for greener pastures. Personally, I don't see the order to work from the office as extreme. Actually I don't believe that any discrimination tribunal would see it as extreme either.
Given the way she dropped her own baby like a hot potato to race back to work in record time, I wouldnt expect her to be accommodating of her staff and their personal needs.
In my industry a lot of people work from home, and it's really hurt creativity. Often the best ideas would come up when a group went to lunch or stayed late and bounced stuff off of each other for hours. Email isn't the same.
It's also hurt staff retention. When people have friends at work, like the environment, get comfortable with the routine and so on they're more loyal. When they're just at home, often only communicated via email with a handful of people, they may as well be working for a competitor, and that's what an awful lot end up doing (that or going freelance). The company I'm working for has actually looked at the stats, and the numbers of stay at home staff who move on every year is more than 7 times that of those who work in the office. Not good.
That's interesting. I have also read today that a lot of the 'work from home' Yahoo employees are slackers and because Marissa had to make cut backs she saw it as a way of dismissing them. A strong decision but unfair to the loyal productive employees.