I do not want to attend meetings during leave

Moses Ssesanga

Dear Moses,
Covid-19 introduced us to working from home. I have noticed that my boss has made it a habit of asking for reports or making us attend Zoom meetings when we are on leave. I wouldn’t want this to go on but it seems hard to say no to something that seems urgent and of course, I wouldn’t know how to handle a fallout in case I have refused to take on an assignment. Joel.

Dear  Joel,
Working remotely can seem like a dream come true for many employees sick of daily commuting in this concrete jungle we call our city with traffic jams to endure every morning and evening. However, remote working can also present its own set of challenges. Currently you are faced with line management problems and digital miscommunication, but there can also be loneliness which could result into mental-breakdowns for some people as they work from home. 

However in your case, you have to come to terms that your boss may be acting weird due to the fact that he is struggling with managing remote teams effectively.  He may have suddenly found himself faced with a management issue that requires the skill sets he/she hasn’t been equipped with. You hence, may have to diplomatically reach out to your boss and help him learn to maintain frequent, transparent, and consistent communication with you and his team.  

People appreciate leaders who explain their decisions and clarify the rationale behind those decisions. This is especially true with remote teams.  Secondly, your boss may be faced with challenge of tracking your productivity and quality of work. With a quick glance at your desk, he used to see what your progress was on a task and ask whether you’re running into any problems. Managing remotely without this direct contact and feedback may seem that he is not really managing much at all. 

Depending on how you approach your boss,  you can advise him to schedule regular one-on-ones with you and your other colleagues. Most important, make sure that you follow the rules you agree with your boss. This will make your communication with your boss less chaotic and more conducive to producing great remote work.

Finally, find a way to manage your work-life balance correctly. While remote work is a great way of achieving a great work-life balance, sometimes the boundaries can get blurred between when you should be working and when you should be relaxing. 


Moses Ssesanga,
Head of Human Resource, 
NMG Uganda
[email protected]