Spatially - set up a fixed place of work

• Install the "Home Office" at a fixed location in your home.

• Mark this place clearly as "Office" - for yourself and the other people in your household.

• Agree on clear rules as to who needs which place to work or learn and when.

• The office should have a table, a good chair, good light, a cup or glass: now it's time to drink regularly.

• The "office" is your workplace for the coming weeks. Make a clear distinction between private and professional life: e.g. use your PC/laptop only for private purposes after work and during breaks - private correspondence from the sofa, professional matters at the table.

Time - structure your day

• Define your own working hours, coordinate with your colleagues* in your team and your family and make a timetable: Keep to your block times.

• When structuring your working hours, make sure that you deliberately take breaks between blocks:

  • Several short breaks (1-2 minutes): Get up, take a few steps to the window/balcony, stretch, take deep breaths, recharge your batteries, refill your drink.

  • Tea/coffee break: 15 minutes each in the morning and afternoon. If necessary, make an appointment by telephone with your colleagues* to visit "z'Nüni" & "z'Vieri".

  • A longer (at least 30 minutes) lunch break

• If you need to leave the house for a doctor's appointment or urgent business during your block time, you should contact your supervisor/team.
   
• Start punctually: Open VPN, register for work - say "Good morning" to your team colleagues virtually - get started (with the same work routine that you have established at your university workplace.
   
• If necessary, set a timer until the next short break (e.g. 28 minutes), stick to your block times if possible and get used to the rhythm of your home office block times - and the virtual colleagues and other people in the household.
   
• Go home - if possible at the scheduled time. The temptation to get stuck at the PC is very strong in the home office. Log off the VPN, close the laptop. If you are not at your desk in your study: pack the "office" in your home office at the end of the day.
   

Routines - set fixed points in your daily work

• Arrange the time around the "office" in the same way as the normal office routine: - Get up in the morning, air, move around, shower, have breakfast and get dressed for work.

• Go consciously - and punctually - to the "Office".

• Maintain social contacts with colleagues virtually - make appointments for telephone or Facetime/Skype coffee breaks - make sure you use private channels, relieve the university's IT infrastructure.

• Make appointments with neighbours for a break "over the alley", over the garden fence - from balcony to balcony, in the garden or out of the window.

The current situation is a great challenge for working parents as well as for employees who provide care for relatives or risk groups. The University of Basel is aware that a home office combined with childcare, homeschooling or care work does not provide ideal working conditions and in many cases these cannot be created at present. This exceptional situation requires the highest degree of flexibility from superiors and employees. If you have any questions, please contact the Family Service.

• Each case must be assessed individually and constructive solutions must be sought together in the spirit of "best efforts".
   
• During the time in the home office, the focus should be on the tasks to be performed and not on the time employees have to sit undisturbed in front of the computer.
   
• In addition to your support tasks, organise yourself in such a way that you make use of the time and space that is available to you.
   
• The rule is that the number of hours is accepted according to the level of employment, even if you do not fully achieve this in the current situation. This means that the hours not worked are not deducted from the flexitime or holiday balance.

The situation for students can be very stressful at the moment, especially if there are supervision obligations in addition to their studies. Here too, flexibility is required on the part of both students and lecturers. Seek the conversation and find an individual solution. In general, the university management gives the highest priority to the student's ability to study. It should ensure that planned exams can be taken and that the studies can be completed or continued in the next semester. If you have any questions, please contact your Dean of Studies.