Practice Task 26 · Parts 1–4

From: Yusuf Abiodun, Senior Analyst

To: Marlena Otieno, Director of Operations, Kestrel Financial Group

Subject: Questions about the new three-day office requirement

Hi Marlena,

I read the memo announcing that, starting next quarter, all staff must be in the office at least three days a week, on a schedule set by each team lead. I understand the reasoning about collaboration, but I wanted to raise a few concerns before the policy takes effect.

My team lead has proposed Monday, Wednesday, and Friday as our fixed in-office days. Unfortunately, I have a recurring medical appointment every other Friday that I have managed for the past year by working from home that day and making up the hours in the evening. Under the new policy, is there room for individual exceptions, or is the three-day requirement fixed at the team level with no flexibility for personal circumstances?

I also noticed the memo says the policy applies to "all staff," but a colleague on the client services team mentioned her team was told they are exempt because they already work from client sites most days. Could you clarify whether client-facing roles are handled differently, and if so, what the actual criteria are?

Finally, will there be any support for the additional commuting costs, given that many of us adjusted our transit passes and, in some cases, moved further from downtown during the period when remote work was standard?

Thanks for looking into this,

Yusuf

— REPLY —

From: Marlena Otieno

To: Yusuf Abiodun

Subject: RE: Questions about the new three-day office requirement

Hi Yusuf,

Thanks for raising these points directly rather than waiting until the policy takes effect. On your medical appointment: individual exceptions are absolutely possible, but they need to be arranged directly with your team lead and documented with HR, rather than assumed under a blanket rule. Recurring medical needs like yours are exactly the kind of situation the exception process was designed for, so I would encourage you to raise it with your lead this week.

On client services: they are not technically exempt from the policy itself; rather, their client-site work already counts toward the three-day requirement, since the policy measures time working alongside colleagues or clients in person, not specifically time in our own building. If your role ever involved regular client-site visits, the same counting would apply to you.

On commuting costs: there is no blanket subsidy planned at this time, largely because the financial impact varies too widely across staff to address with a single flat payment. That said, we are expanding the pre-tax transit benefit program starting next month, which should offset some of the increase for anyone using public transit.

Let me know if the exception process with your team lead does not resolve the Friday issue, and I will step in.

Marlena