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Antiwork

Is it unreasonable for turning on my webcam being a line I draw in the sand, when I was hired without anyone seeing my face?

What it says on the tin. I've been working remotely since before it was cool, been working with this company for 6 years. I was interviewed on the phone, never saw any of my coworkers' faces for several years, never even met them in person until a business trip. In the past few years, there has been more push for cameras in zoom meetings. Thing is, I absolutely do not want to put my face on camera. I do not like my appearance and have been harassed about it in the past. Since I work from home I often don't even put effort into my appearance. The idea of turning my camera on and seeing how I look at the moment – and letting my entire team know what I look like – genuinely terrifies and upsets me. I've been lectured before about, not their words but the implication was,…


What it says on the tin. I've been working remotely since before it was cool, been working with this company for 6 years. I was interviewed on the phone, never saw any of my coworkers' faces for several years, never even met them in person until a business trip. In the past few years, there has been more push for cameras in zoom meetings.

Thing is, I absolutely do not want to put my face on camera. I do not like my appearance and have been harassed about it in the past. Since I work from home I often don't even put effort into my appearance. The idea of turning my camera on and seeing how I look at the moment – and letting my entire team know what I look like – genuinely terrifies and upsets me.

I've been lectured before about, not their words but the implication was, not being a team player, so this pressure is something that gets me on edge. I'm in a long meeting right now where we were told that we should turn our cameras on to be respectful, and so far nobody's challenged me when I said my camera doesn't work – which is the truth, last time I tried to use it it wouldn't connect to zoom. If I was pressured to fix it I've genuinely considered putting a mask on for the camera out of malicious compliance.

Is it really so unreasonable to maintain this boundary? I know it wouldn't be an option if I worked in a physical office, but since I was given the job remotely without ever being seen, it almost feels like a betrayal to be told it's disrespectful to not turn on my camera. I hate the idea that I'd have to keep an eye on the schedule to know if I have to make myself presentable for displaying my face on the internet as part of my job.

Mostly I just wanted to vent, and I know this is kind of a biased place lol. I guess I'm mostly wondering if this is as bullshit as it feels or if it's one of those 'it sucks but it needs to be done' kind of deals.

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