Working from home

As you probably know, Israel hasn’t yet succeeded in containing the COVID-19 virus, and we are in a 3rd lockdown. Until the point that most of the Israeli public will get the vaccination, it’s advised to avoid any meetings that aren’t totally essential. At the same time, the Ministry of Interior and the Courts, deal only with urgent matters and therefore most appointments and court hearings have been postponed.  

My wife Sarah is a social worker and is considered an “essential worker” in our economy. Thus, as she must often be out during lockdown, we ‘choreograph’ who takes care of the kids who are now at home, learning in virtual classes online. Thankfully, most of the time I am able to work from home, which in any case is not new for me: ever since moving to Har Amasah in 2012, I regularly work 2-3 days a week from home.   

When I began this regimen, it was a quite a challenge to find the self-discipline, but after developing a proper daily routine, my work is as efficient as I like. In addition, I’m fortunate to have a small office that is separate from our home, and which provides a quiet place to work.  

Working from home has its pros and cons. On the one hand it saves the time and stress of driving to the office and it allows greater personal flexibility. For example, I can bike or take a short hike around our village before I start the work day; and pick up the youngest from kindergarten in the late afternoon. 

On the other hand, and as I’ve said, it’s a challenge not having the total separation between being at “home” and being at “work”. 

When we look at the job market in Israel, working from home is increasingly popular, perhaps even becoming normative. It will surely continue in that direction. For example, I have neighbors in Har Amasa who work for big tech companies, and have been working at home since Covid-19 hit in March 2020. Many have been told that this arrangement will continue through 2021, with no change in sight.

While Lawyers will always need to meet clients face-to-face, and accompany them to court hearings or to discussions, even in the legal work world, there will be increased work from home offices in the future, thus creating a new hybrid work model.