I scroll down to refresh my emails. There is still no news from work. I get annoyed at the lack of communication. They said they will be in touch every week and then nothing. It is Friday past lunch time. In a couple of hours, all employees still working will turn their computer off.

 

I don’t actually expect any real news. Nothing much has changed since last week but still. I could be called back to work and I would only know at the last minute.

 

I refresh my emails again. There it is. A bold line at the top of the page. I open it and read through the quick PDF letter. Some people are returning to work next week. Not me though. I feel lighter.

 

‘They could have emailed earlier,’ I moan to my partner. ‘And why is the general manager of my department never e-mailing to provide clarity or just to check in on us.’

 

I suspect my growing disconnect with work is due to this last fact. I have barely spoken to anyone from work since lockdown began, the WhatsApp group that was set up for us mostly quiet. The people I normally share the majority of my week with are becoming strangers.

 

I check WhatsApp. No, still no message from work to let us know who might be returning to the office, who might be next, what the strategy us. I don’t need all the details but a road map would be nice.

 

Just as I’m about to turn my phone off, a message appears in WhatsApp. It’s my line manager checking in. I laugh at the timing of her message. Had she heard me moan?

 

There are no news in her words, none that I already know. I tell her about my anxiety, about the lack of clear communication from work, and ask how she is doing. We chat for a bit, our words never breaking our manager/employee relationship. It is good to hear she is thinking of our mental health during this gradual return to work, that they are planning to take things slow, and that she is okay.

 

I switch the phone off, less angry at work for their usual fail at communication. This was all I needed.