Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

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stocknoob4111
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Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by stocknoob4111 »

Since everyone is working remote these days, say you moved for a week from City A to City B, not a permanent change but just for a week, working remotely using the same setup you use from home (i.e. not working out of a Starbucks for instance)... would you notify your employer? Would you expect to first seek permission from them? What exactly is the protocol since all this is totally new.

My take on it is that no, unless one changes location permanently OR unless there is a material chance in the ability to perform the work one isn't obligated to tell an employer about their remote work location. A "remote" arrangement is precisely that - Remote. However, an alternate take on it is that the remote arrangement is construed to mean Remote from your home, not Remote from anywhere.

What is your opinion on it?
squirm
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by squirm »

No, what would be the point.
Marseille07
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by Marseille07 »

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Last edited by Marseille07 on Sat Apr 17, 2021 6:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Tamarind
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by Tamarind »

Remote is remote from any place with adequate access to work tools, especially for such a short time period. I would not hesitate to mention it if it came up, nor would I ask permission.
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rob
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by rob »

Technically - There are complex and state specific rules on this that can easily kick in for as little as a week.
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DoubleComma
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by DoubleComma »

I move between locations frequently and never say anything.
7eight9
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by 7eight9 »

Out-of-State Remote Work Creates Tax Headaches for Employers
https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/ ... aches.aspx
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Trader Joe
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by Trader Joe »

stocknoob4111 wrote: Sat Apr 17, 2021 2:35 pm Since everyone is working remote these days, say you moved for a week from City A to City B, not a permanent change but just for a week, working remotely using the same setup you use from home (i.e. not working out of a Starbucks for instance)... would you notify your employer? Would you expect to first seek permission from them? What exactly is the protocol since all this is totally new.

My take on it is that no, unless one changes location permanently OR unless there is a material chance in the ability to perform the work one isn't obligated to tell an employer about their remote work location. A "remote" arrangement is precisely that - Remote. However, an alternate take on it is that the remote arrangement is construed to mean Remote from your home, not Remote from anywhere.

What is your opinion on it?
No.
shunkman
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by shunkman »

What is the company policy? I would abide by whatever that is. We were required to be at our homes which also had to meet certain requirements.
fortunefavored
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by fortunefavored »

If you do work in a state, that state wants a cut (California and New York are particularly persnickety about it.) One of my previous employers would track this automatically when you booked business travel.

1 week likely isn't a problem, but here's another article that discusses it: https://www.freep.com/story/money/perso ... 244398001/

This is a case where tax laws are behind reality.
Sprucebark
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by Sprucebark »

Do you remain in the same state or are you crossing state lines?
Afty
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by Afty »

At the mega corp where I worked there was a policy on how long you could do this before it became a (tax) problem. It was longer than a week IIRC.

Practically I would tell my boss but not make a big deal about it. “Hey boss, FYI, I’ll be traveling and working from X the week of blah to blah.”
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8foot7
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by 8foot7 »

To me this is one of those forgiveness rather than permission things if it’s not any longer than a couple of weeks.
I have a team of four, three of whom are entirely remote, and I would not expect to be otified nor require them to notify me as long as their availability and service level remained on par.
The other team member is remote now for Covid but was otherwise in the office for three days a week so different rules apply to her. In practice as I am also fully remote and not in the office I have told all of them I don’t really care where they are as long as they’re online during work hours.
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Watty
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by Watty »

stocknoob4111 wrote: Sat Apr 17, 2021 2:35 pm What is your opinion on it?
If you have to ask us, then it is likely a good idea to mention it informally with your manager.

One thing I would be concerned about is that you could get to where you are going only to find out that the internet connection or cell phone reception is not adequate and that working remotely there will be more of a problem than you expect.

If your manager had no idea that you were going to be in a different location that might not go over well.
mr_brightside
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by mr_brightside »

i would likely inform my manager

i could possibly see insurance issues if you became seriously disabled / injured in a 'work' location unknown to your employer

(not an expert in this area)

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stocknoob4111
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by stocknoob4111 »

I'm asking this for feedback on what is the norm in other companies.. a coworker of mine went to Europe to see his relatives and stated he would work from there, they had to debate if they were going to allow it or not, the finally did but my manager said she made an exception because he was a good worker. So I'm guessing employers generally scoff at the idea unless the job was remote to begin with...
Big Dog
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by Big Dog »

If City B is on Maui, you'd have a lot of 'essplainin to do. :mrgreen:
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kelway
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by kelway »

stocknoob4111 wrote: Sat Apr 17, 2021 8:48 pm I'm asking this for feedback on what is the norm in other companies.. a coworker of mine went to Europe to see his relatives and stated he would work from there, they had to debate if they were going to allow it or not, the finally did but my manager said she made an exception because he was a good worker. So I'm guessing employers generally scoff at the idea unless the job was remote to begin with...
I think it comes down to requiring more trust of the employee... I had a remote consultant working for me who just told me he was going to be working remotely while his family was at Disney World. Yeah, I'm fairly sure we didn't get all we paid for.
Marseille07
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by Marseille07 »

kelway wrote: Sat Apr 17, 2021 8:58 pm
stocknoob4111 wrote: Sat Apr 17, 2021 8:48 pm I'm asking this for feedback on what is the norm in other companies.. a coworker of mine went to Europe to see his relatives and stated he would work from there, they had to debate if they were going to allow it or not, the finally did but my manager said she made an exception because he was a good worker. So I'm guessing employers generally scoff at the idea unless the job was remote to begin with...
I think it comes down to requiring more trust of the employee... I had a remote consultant working for me who just told me he was going to be working remotely while his family was at Disney World. Yeah, I'm fairly sure we didn't get all we paid for.
What did you end up doing to the consultant, if anything at all? Also, what would you have done if they didn't tell you upfront and you discovered they're at Disney World working remotely?
tim1999
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by tim1999 »

My employer only cares where your permanent residence is, for salaried workers. Anyone who was shifted to mandatory remote work when the pandemic hit is required to keep their permanent residence in-state for the time being unless they get approval due to very unusual circumstances.

Otherwise, I know of plenty of co-workers who have worked remotely from vacation homes, mountain cabins, Las Vegas casino hotels, their cousin Lou's house, etc. and our company has no policy regarding that. No notification or permission needed. "Remote" here means "remote", not "you must stay confined to your permanent residence Monday through Friday."

We are salaried workers on my team so we are evaluated on results and not butts-in-seats time. Either you are getting your work done or you aren't. I could understand hourly workers being scrutinized differently.

If you aren't accessible for an entire day because you were on a plane to Hawaii to work remotely there, my boss' take would probably be that you should have used PTO for that day you weren't accessible or doing anything productive.
Last edited by tim1999 on Sat Apr 17, 2021 9:28 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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kelway
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by kelway »

Marseille07 wrote: Sat Apr 17, 2021 9:02 pm
kelway wrote: Sat Apr 17, 2021 8:58 pm
stocknoob4111 wrote: Sat Apr 17, 2021 8:48 pm I'm asking this for feedback on what is the norm in other companies.. a coworker of mine went to Europe to see his relatives and stated he would work from there, they had to debate if they were going to allow it or not, the finally did but my manager said she made an exception because he was a good worker. So I'm guessing employers generally scoff at the idea unless the job was remote to begin with...
I think it comes down to requiring more trust of the employee... I had a remote consultant working for me who just told me he was going to be working remotely while his family was at Disney World. Yeah, I'm fairly sure we didn't get all we paid for.
What did you end up doing to the consultant, if anything at all? Also, what would you have done if they didn't tell you upfront and you discovered they're at Disney World working remotely?
I didn't say anything at all... maybe I should have, but I felt it would cause more harm than good and show a lack of trust. I am glad he told me because indeed if I found out he had been there, I probably would have raised the issue with his company. I think there's a bit of line between just working at another location (eg. if you have a second home) and working while taking a family trip or something... where it's clear you won't be giving the same as if you were at your normal home office. I've also thought about this topic and think it would be a bad idea to just leave. What if by chance they needed you to show up on site? (it was always a concern I had even if unlikely).
DSInvestor
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by DSInvestor »

Every company has different policies. Even within the same company, there may be different policies for different jobs. For example, a regional manager who is expected to travel for much of the job may have carte blanche to work from almost anywhere but a call center representative who has to take orders and credit cards may be subject to more restrictions.

I would check with the company.
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Marseille07
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by Marseille07 »

kelway wrote: Sat Apr 17, 2021 9:13 pm I didn't say anything at all... maybe I should have, but I felt it would cause more harm than good and show a lack of trust. I am glad he told me because indeed if I found out he had been there, I probably would have raised the issue with his company. I think there's a bit of line between just working at another location (eg. if you have a second home) and working while taking a family trip or something... where it's clear you won't be giving the same as if you were at your normal home office. I've also thought about this topic and think it would be a bad idea to just leave. What if by chance they needed you to show up on site? (it was always a concern I had even if unlikely).
Indeed, it *is* a bad idea to just leave, especially for only a week. Not much upside (can't sightsee much anyway since you're "working" 9-5), but huge downside (potentially lose a job if caught).

I don't know the intent of the OP, but I'd rather just ask for paid time off than trying to pull something like this.
tim1999
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by tim1999 »

DSInvestor wrote: Sat Apr 17, 2021 9:22 pm Every company has different policies. Even within the same company, there may be different policies for different jobs. For example, a regional manager who is expected to travel for much of the job may have carte blanche to work from almost anywhere but a call center representative who has to take orders and credit cards may be subject to more restrictions.

I would check with the company.
Agreed. About the only remote workers in my company where their remote location is dictated by the company is our call center representatives. They are required to conduct all of their work from the workstation that the company paid to have set up in their homes and had evaluated for quietness, internet speed, etc. to maintain service quality. They are one of the few groups of remote workers we have who are hourly and not salary.
poker27
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by poker27 »

During Covid, I often have employees that tell me they are working from a new location. As long as they have a ‘real’ workspace, I could care less where they work from. In fact, during this time, I encourage them to work from new places if it fits their life. I do like to know where they will be, just to feel connected.
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beyou
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by beyou »

There is the letter of the law (and HR policies) and then there is the practical implementation of them.

When I worked at the office, and took a business trip or worked part of my vacation, no I did not notify legally that I worked for a week in another state and I am NOT going to be taxed by some state where I stayed in a hotel or visited a relative. It is not practical to do tax returns for so many states and so little potential income, not for you and not for the state govt.

As to your boss, do you ask permission to use the restroom (Amazon worker maybe) ? If so maybe you feel the need to report this too, but I do not ask my boss about lunch breaks nor other mundane issues. He should only care if the work is completed, not from where or sometimes not even when completed.

From a legal/tax standpoint, unless you change your official legal residence, forget it. As to your boss, this is a personal issue you need to use your own judgment as to how much your boss wants to micromanage you and how much you are willing to be micromanaged.
MathWizard
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by MathWizard »

For a week, if you would have the same availability, I see no need.

Salespeople work in other states on presentations .

I've spoke at conferences even in other countries.

I've attended weeklong conferences in other states/countries.

I've taken a laptop along on vacations and debugged problems from many timezones away .

How is this any different?

By the way, now that I am the boss, I tell people to leave work behind when they take vacation.
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by mrspock »

rob wrote: Sat Apr 17, 2021 2:52 pm Technically - There are complex and state specific rules on this that can easily kick in for as little as a week.
Which is why you VPN and ignore them. They were never written for this “nomad” pandemic situation, their intent was to catch folks who are working in a high tax state and then claiming to live in a low tax jurisdiction.

I pay my HCOL state taxes, if another state wants to fight for the money... let them. It will leave one pocket and go into the other.
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by SR7 »

mr_brightside wrote: Sat Apr 17, 2021 8:12 pm i would likely inform my manager

i could possibly see insurance issues if you became seriously disabled / injured in a 'work' location unknown to your employer

(not an expert in this area)

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Another country here I know, but for my university employer it’s clearly work from Home, not from anywhere not on campus. Obviously when you would be otherwise be at your office if not for COVID. Field trips etc are completely different.

You are still in their employ, and they have certain legal obligations for your safety at work. So they first ask you to go through a workspace safety check list, that you fill in and send to them, where you clearly describe your work space. Nobody cares too much, but a desk and a chair is expected, not a beanbag by the pool.
I studied Physics not Finance, so best to ignore anything I say about money.
UpperNwGuy
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by UpperNwGuy »

If you worked for me, and you didn't tell me, there would be adverse consequences.
123
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by 123 »

You should likely at least mention it (perhaps in passing) to your manager.

Depending on the employer they may have mechanisms that monitor and detect your ip address. A different ip address could raise an issue or a security exception, depending on the employer. If you always access your employer through your own VPN subscription then your relocation might not be detectable. If you use an employer-provided VPN, or no VPN, then they can potentially identify your locations.
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Cheez-It Guy
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by Cheez-It Guy »

I would not, and I don't.
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by THY4373 »

This is going to depend on your employer and what the standard practice is there. I have telework employees all over the place and I appreciate it when they tell me they are going to be working a few weeks wherever. I always approve it but it is nice to have the heads up. The one caveat I'd throw out there is that international telework might get noticed more. At my org we monitor for international connections to our VPN and make sure the employee has filed a travel request (these are only required for international travel for security reasons) and if they haven't it gets escalated to their management. Several employees have lost their jobs over this mostly because they lied about where they were going.
seawolf21
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by seawolf21 »

mrspock wrote: Sat Apr 17, 2021 9:55 pm
rob wrote: Sat Apr 17, 2021 2:52 pm Technically - There are complex and state specific rules on this that can easily kick in for as little as a week.
Which is why you VPN and ignore them. They were never written for this “nomad” pandemic situation, their intent was to catch folks who are working in a high tax state and then claiming to live in a low tax jurisdiction.

I pay my HCOL state taxes, if another state wants to fight for the money... let them. It will leave one pocket and go into the other.
Exactly. I don’t see this being an issue or even a grey area at all. If employer is letting you work remote, doesn’t matter if you are in same state, different state, different country, on the ISS as long as you are available at the hours they expect you to be available.

If one is that concern, use VPN.
invest4
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Re: Temp change in remote location - tell employer?

Post by invest4 »

Ar the very least, I would consider it a simple courtesy to let your manager know if you are changing work locations for the week.

Very likely no big deal. If for some reason it is a thing, I would rather be transparent and know upfront versus not.
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