Sydney CEO Nicole Duncan slams workers for ‘selfish’ for common work habit

The boss of a commercial real estate company has criticized “selfish” employees for choosing to work from home, claiming that previous generations commuted two to three hours a day to the office and did not complain.

CR Commercial Property Group CEO and CEO Nicole Duncan said 2GB’s Ben Fordham was “passionate” about people returning to their city center offices.

“This generation is so selfish.

“In our younger years, we took trains, buses, and ferries to get to work,” she said. “Yes, it took two or three hours, but you have to be in the office,” she said.

“You don’t know what you don’t know, and until CEOs make a decision and get brutal about it, it’s not going to change because the unemployment rate is still too low.”

Ms Duncan said that with people working from home, businesses were suffering and city centers had become ‘sluggish and cluttered’.

“Hotels are suffering… there are fewer business trips, they’re all doing it in (Microsoft) Teams… cleaners, people who make you coffee, lunches, all that sort of thing.

“We want a vibrant city that visitors come to, and it has to look busy, it has to look lively, it doesn’t have to look so slow and disjointed.”

Fordham said people can’t be blamed for choosing to work from home if it was an option for them, but warned more companies wouldn’t allow it.

“Well, that’s the problem,” the chief executive replied.

“The first thing people ask is what your flexible work policy is. And what is the salary I have?

Ms Duncan said it was a ‘very big frustration’ that employees had not returned to the office full time and claimed that people were more distracted at home.

“Well, you get distractions at work, you have them at home, you have them everywhere,” Fordham replied.

“But we need that foot traffic, Nicole, and I agree with you on that.

“I was standing in a restaurant in the CBD with the restaurant owner looking out the window and I said to him – ‘boy it looks quiet today’ – and he said, mate, it’s like that almost every day.

Internet users shared their views on the CEO’s view of “selfish” office workers.

“Oh yeah, I would have to commute 3 hours a day just to keep afloat businesses that I didn’t spend money on before and still won’t,” said one man.

“Give people more money to come back to the office, and they will. Saving money on transportation is valuable these days,” said a second.

Ms Duncan said it was a ‘very big frustration’ that employees had not returned to the office full time and claimed that employees were more distracted at home (pictured shows a woman working from home during the 2021 Covid lockdown)

The CEO said Sydney’s CBD should look vibrant and busy (pictured February 2023)

A third shared, “I get so much more work done at home and my team is spread across 3 states. working in the office is more of a hindrance.’

“So I have to drive an hour to take my laptop to another desk?” a fourth noted.

It’s been almost three years since the start of the pandemic that revolutionized remote work.

The March Transport Opinion Survey, conducted by the University of Sydney’s Institute of Transport and Logistics Studies, found that Australian workers spend 27 percent or more of their working time at home.

The numbers are higher in capital cities than regional areas, with workers in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane spending 31, 35 and 33 percent of their working week at home respectively.

Paul Nicolaou, executive director of Business Sydney, told Daily Mail Australia that in order for Sydney to become Australia’s number one city, employees who are able must work locally.

Sydney is Australia’s only truly cosmopolitan city. It looks and feels like a metropolis on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, but it must be a vibrant city seven days a week, 24 hours a day,” said Nicolaou.

A Sydney CEO has complained that the city center (pictured) is looking ‘sluggish and cluttered’ after Covid saw the vast majority of people working from home rather than the office

He explained that the CBD needs businesses including cleaners, news agencies, cafes and restaurants working full time to become the number one city.

He said young workers could benefit from working in an office.

“There are benefits to people being able to showcase their abilities and successes in the spotlight of a workplace,” said Mr Nicolaou.

“We think there are a lot of younger employees who want to see big things achieved in real time.”

The executive director said working in the office also allows people to maintain human contact, with Thursday becoming the “new Friday” as employees gather after work.

“Working from home by definition means a degree of isolation that cannot be fully replaced by Zoom and team conference calls,” said Nicolaou.

“It must certainly be beneficial for mental health to have social contact typical of team life in the workplace.

“The workplace is all about building teams and it would be difficult to build cohesive teams when there is a geographic and communication divide.”

Business Sydney has consistently called on city employees to return to their offices at least three to four days a week after the pandemic (stock image)

Business Sydney has consistently urged city employees to return to their offices at least three to four days a week.

Mr Nicolaou said working from home also has the potential to create an imbalance among frontline workers.

“There is an imbalance when some employees work from home and others in the office,” said Nicolaou.

‘Some employees have never had the opportunity to work from home. Our essential workers have always been expected to show up during the pandemic and beyond.”

Sean Cummins, founder of independent agency Cummins&Partners, said working from home has become a one-sided conversation and industry leaders are refraining from expressing support for workers returning to the office.

Interest in both fully remote and hybrid work arrangements has remained strong and has become the new normal in the post-pandemic work environment (pictured, Sydney CBD)

Cummins explained that he was “tired” of people proclaiming that working from home is a better alternative to being in the office and said Australians should separate work from home for their mental, physical and emotional health.

“I’m tired of the dogma. I’m tired of people saying working from home is better and pretending it’s undeniably true. It’s not. My whole point is separate work from home. It’s a wonderful way to do it,” Mr. Cummins told Mumbrella.

“What I care about is my people, their health, their mental health and their ability to separate work from home and work from life.

“It just has to be a balanced discussion, and I’m working most of the time. I’m for flexibility, but I’m not for the whole feeling that this is indeed a good thing. It’s not good if you can’t separate work from home.’

Mr. Cummins added that employers, leaders and managers play a vital role in making office work interesting.

He said office culture should be a clash of meaningful connections, guidance, conversations, learning, training and instruction.