As to the overall question:
I am not auditing full time anymore, but I have done audits on two chemical plants plus a warehouse for ISO 9001 and Responsible Care. I expect the same compensation as before, and can say that although my legs were not as tired at the end of the day I found remote auditing to be as least as challenging and tiring as being there in person. There is always the nervous feeling that I may be missing something, because while in person my head swivels like an Owl's as I observe all manner of quality, environmental, safety and security details.
Added time for using technology to review that which I would ordinarily just observe is to be expected, in fact audits were made longer. One client was better prepared than the other; more efficient handoffs with Teams meetings as well as plans to use personnel's phone cameras to observe the spaces. I needed to ask "Let's approach that waste can. Can we look inside it?" and "Can I see that fire extinguisher's tag? No, the other one over there to the right, in the corner" and so on. People's phone batteries were drained in very short periods of time while we did this. And yes, there is always the chance that something is being hidden from me.
Overall though, I was grateful that the option existed and I could still do the work. The clients were grateful too. Actually my Responsible Care client was quite pleased at the thoroughness the team managed to maintain.
Experienced most of the same (except for last week.......I wanted to ##$2!1(*&.
The remote audit rules and guidance being applied by AB's (such as ANAB) towards CB's and then from the ISO "groups" like the one Sidney gave us a heads-up on are becoming a hodge-podge of "Who hit John?, Where's Waldo? and Who's on 1st" and one of the few thinks I haven't seen prescribed is swinging a dead cat over your head, in a cemetery, during the dark of the moon, on a Friday the 13th.
As for physically demanding....By the end of an audit day I'm finding myself trashed in mind and body. Your brain is fried trying to put everything in place, trying to make sure you're covering everything, and trying to keep up, let alone with staying ahead of the curve. Physical exhaustion is almost the norm, you've spent 8-10 hours sitting, looking into a screen bent over, and as tense as if you were doing isometric exercises the entire time. The lack of real personal contact is horrendous to work with, and everything, everything is channelized like you are entering a dark tunnel while only using a straw for a visual aid to navigate with. I did 5 remote days last week, and I've got 4.5 remote days next week, followed by another 2 days remote, and then a 5 day onsite.
Back to Michelle.............Odds are it's not your NB/CB behind everything, they have to follow rules as well for every aspect of issuing and managing your certificate, and right now it's less than easy for the entire industry.
