Special Treatment....Shall I grab it or not?

For those who have read my previous articles, I do mentioned there that we're mandated to Return to Office or what we also call as RTO starting this week. We are required to spend 1 day per week in the office. And hence, we are asked to select what day do we prefer to report and I selected Tuesday. The main reason why I choose this day is because my kids don't have school since their online schooling schedule is MWF only (Monday, Wednesday, and Friday). I can still assist them on their online school specially my daughter who is currently in Grade 2.

Last Tuesday, December 7th is my first day of RTO. I've actually shared my experience in here entitled Return to Office during pandemic : First Day. My shift starts at 6:00 AM and hence I have to leave the house by 4:00AM. My husband decided to drive me to the office for me to avoid the hustle of commute and to minimize my possible exposure to the virus. And since we do not have stay-in helper, we have decided to bring the kids along with us.

My Boss Gave Me an Option

Night of the same day (Tuesday), my Boss sent me a direct message asking how's my journey to office. He knows my proximity from the office and he also knows that I commute going to and from the office.

Here is bits of our conversation, a bit blurred though so let me type in the transcript after the image.

My Boss: Hey Khing!!! How was the journey in to the office?

Me: Hi Boss, My husband drive me to the office earlier.... with the kids ..So it's like a family field trip I would say..likewise after shift....

My Boss: Ahhhhhh that's lovely!!

Me: It's fun, however kind of costly...😁..Gas, tollgate, and the kids' foodies!..I have adjusted my shift as well (from 23:00 to 22:00 UK time) to avoid the traffic rush hour..so the travel time just took less than 2 hours (one way)...

My Boss: Damn!!! 2 hours!!!

Me: That means, my kids spent a total of 8 hrs in the road ...hahaha..

As you may notice, I thought it was just a simple, like sharing of travel experience or so and hence I am trying to sound optimistic as I can :)...

But then I am a bit surprised with his next question (again, the image is a bit blurred to let me create a transcript of it after the image.

My Boss: Will you continue to do that going forward?

Me: If I have a choice Boss, of course I won't..but as I told with Paul earlier, it will be unfair to my colleague if I will request a special arrangement or so...

My Boss: It's got nothing to do with being unfair to your colleagues, Khing. You need to do what is right for you and your family

And then he also asked my how's my commute prior to covid. Below is my reponse:

Commute Boss (average travel time is 2.5 hrs to 3 hrs)..worst experience so far is 5 hrs (one way)..

pre covid, provincial buses are allowed to route or travel along EDSA...

But now, I believe they are only allowed till PASAY ave. From there I have to take another BUS to ayala avenue then ride a BGC bus afterwards.. it's like additional waiting hours for me..

So he advised me to raise an exception for the RTO (Return to Office) and that he would back me up on this one but I needed to initiate an email detailing my journey to office and the possible risk not only to my health but also risk of arriving late if something goes wrong along the way.

I am really touched by the gesture of my Boss. That's a proof that he is really concerned about our welfare.

Still undecided!

Post our conversation last Tuesday, I am yet to send an email request because until now, I am still thinking of whether I will grab that opportunity of extending my RTO or not because to be honest, I wanted to be fair with my team mates. However, our major difference is that, they don't commute and their proximity from the office is not that far as mine.

So, what do you think guys? If you are my colleague, what will you think if you will learn that our Boss do not require me to report to the office (yet)? Will you think that I am being selfish or so? Or will you think that I am seeking for special treatment from our Boss?

I am still undecided as of this writing...huhuhu...