Are you a salaried employee?

[Eeyore'sthebest]

I work 50 hour weeks at a minimum. I work from 7am - 5pm. I try to leave around 5. Sometimes its 5:30 or 6:00. I stay if I'm needed but I try to get everything done in 10 hours.

Plus I have a 2 hour commute in each direction so leaving at 5 p.m. gets me home at 7!! Sometimes I'm convinced I spend more time chatting with the train conductors than my DH.

 

[meandmytwogirls]

I've been salaried my entire career and used to adhere to the face time concept that I'm salaried and should work over. I've found out that it will get you no where, because these days if you salary fits the dollar amount that needs to be cut your gone no matter how many hours you've worked. I've been watching it happen to the most dedicated employees at my company for the last two year.

I now come in around 7:45 and leave around 5:15 unless an emergency happens. I work hard when I'm here and get my duties finished and if that isn't good enough give me the boot.

 

[IDoDis]

Even though teachers here are on a contract of 6.5 hours per day, I work about 9 hours a day. If I were to show up right when my students did and leave right afterward, I would not have time to prep, make copies, write lesson plans, and fill out the gobs of paperwork that shows up in my mailbox each day. There are times when I have to leave right after the students do, but I also take home a tote bag full of work. Many teachers also show up a week earlier than the contract start date at the end of the summer break in order to get their classrooms ready and get the first week of lesson plans going.

 

[Tumblwd501]

IMHO, I think it just depends on the company you work for. I've worked at companies in the past where we were expected to work more than 40 hours a week, and it was basically for appearances. The company I'm at now, just cares if you meet your deadlines. If you can get it all done in 40 hours, then great. If you need to stay a little extra here and there to get things done, that's what we do. Of course, that was something I specifically looked for when I started with my current company. It's a smaller company, where the principals' philosophies include a "work to live" mantra, not "live to work."

 

[hopemax]

DH is salaried, and tries to stick to a 40 hour week. He had worked more in other jobs, and learned the hard way that it didn't really matter when it came to job cuts. It wasn't the "hard workers" that stayed. It wasn't the competent workers who stayed. It was the friends of the person making the decision who stayed. Or "he has kids and you don't," or pure seniority.

In his current job, the CEO noticed that the tech team was the last to arrive and the first to leave, and it bothered him. He talked to the tech team manager who did her best to explain that the tech team works when there is work. For a long time, they were able to accomplish everything that was expected of them in an 8 hour day, so that was what they worked. Now they are working on a very important project that will take the company to the next level. So for the last 2 months they've been working late hours, coming in on weekends, coming in at 5AM, etc. And now the CEO understands. When it is necessary, they will be there, working their butts off. If it's working long just for the sake of working, they don't do it. They aren't married to the job, they aren't parents to the job.

 

[Mr. Pig]

I am salaried also normally working 7:30-4:30 days. Being in IT that can mean early morning calls, late night problems or weekend issues. There are also many projects that mean odd hours. If I do a late night I may come in later the next day. This usually happens in streaks. There is nothing in my contract that says I have to work more than eight hour days but there is an understanding that this is part of the job.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

First, the important thing is not whether you are salaried but whether you are exempt from the Fair Labor Standards Act. A salaried employee that is non-exempt must still be paid time and half for overtime. Who is exempt vs non-exempt is confusing as heck to me. My basic guideline for office jobs is that you are non-exempt (and entitled to OT) if someone tells you what to do and how to do it. If you make it up as you go along, you're probably exempt.

As a manager, I often look askance at clock punchers (people that always clock out at the exact same time). Sometimes there is a good reason (someone with childcare responsibilities) but other times it is a sign of someone that isn't really interested in their job. Employees that are excited about their jobs often stay at least a little late because they are in the middle of something and don't want to put it down.

Another bad sign is when an employee is totally non-responsive during non-work hours. In my line of work, employees that like their jobs are often on their computers at home sending and responding to e-mails as interesting ideas hit them. I love it when someone sends me an idea on Sunday evening because it usually means they're excited about something and can't wait for the "work week" to get moving on it.

On the flip side, I hate clock watching managers. They're the guys that walk the floor a little after 6:00 PM to see who is still there putting in the hours. I've yet to see one that shows up at 6:30 AM to see who is getting a jump on the day. Most places I've worked at have flexible hours and the people that show up early each day get shafted by the clock watchers. Fortunately, most of the managers I've worked for reward people based on what they do and not how many hours they take to do it.

So for me, it's not the hours, it's the enthusiasm and the results. You can see enthusiasm in many ways, with long hours or working from home being two signs. On the other hand, I've worked with a stay-at-home mom that couldn't afford to give the company any more than her straight 40 but man was she good during those hours.

 

[snarlingcoyote]

I'm in a highly specialized field. In my metro area of about a half million, there are probably maybe. . .I dunno. . .200? 100? 50? people who could do my job. In addition, I can do other professional jobs.

I am judged on what I produce, that is, if I do my job well or not. I endeavor to do my job to the very best of my ability and do my job v. well for my company. EOS. That's my job. That's what I do.

That's what matters.

 

[englishteacha]

I'm a teacher on salary. During the school year I put in between 36 and 60 hours a week depending on what is going on. My summers aren't truly "off" as I take classes and must spend time setting up my classroom for the fall. (They keep moving my room so every year I have to pack up and unpack everything. It's very tedious and takes hours) We "must" stay till 2:45 (we start at 7:30), but most of us are there till 3:30, 4, or 5 depending on what we have going on. Even then, we take home work to grade and to plan.

One thing that concerns me about salary in the business sector is that the company can "expect" you to work late every day, and to be available on a moment's notice. My sister got burned out working at a job where they kept her but cut all her help. Next thing you know, she was doing the work of 4 people for the same pay as one, and was working 70-80 hours. She was told that if she didn't like the situation, she could quit, and the "boss" commented that she wasn't getting everything done that he expected her to. Hello? One person cannot do the work of 4 in the same time that 4 people did it.

 

[Katy Belle]

DH is a salaried employee. When he went to work for this company, 21 years ago, they told him that 10% extra time was expected. So that would be an extra 48 minutes a day. I've talked to other employees and they were not told that I don't think it is a 'rule' but just sort of an expectation.

DH works 10-11 hours at work each day. He usually works for at least an hour or more, on his lap-top at home. He rarely goes into the office on weekends, but does work from home on the lap-top, phone, etc. I would say with the time at home he usually works 60+ hours a week. I'm not sure he has EVER worked a 40 hour week, in the 21 years. And yes, he works even when he's on vacation. Sometimes a lot and sometimes very little.

Katy

 

[MariDisney]

I am self-employed, but my DH is salaried. His typical workday is usually 6-4:30/5:00 or 1:00-10:00/10:30. During the busy season he works at least 6 days a week, and sometimes 7. During those weeks he will usually work 4:30am-5:00/5:30 pm or some similar schedule. It stinks that there's no additional salary for what is sometimes 75 or more hours a week, but it is what it is.

 

[jlima]

At my last salaried job, I would work until I was finished with a project. Sometimes it was 10 minutes over; sometimes it was 30 minutes over. If we had special events, there were some days I'd stay up to 2 hours over. But when my department laid of six people in one day, I was laid off along with the clock-watchers. It didn't matter how much I worked or how many vacation days I didn't take, I was still laid off. I just started a new job; and I will work over when I need to . . . but it's not going to be every day.

9 years ago I had a job with a boss and a co-worker who were workaholics. My hours were supposed to be 8:30 - 5:30; and I would regularly leave at 5:45 - 6 pm, or whenever I was finished with what I was working on. These two women would not leave the office until 9:30 or 10 pm at night. No way was I going to emulate my boss. My family came first and they weren't paying me enough to stay until 10 pm.

 

[kellydizfan]

I am salaried. we are not allowed to work over-time - more than the 40 hours unless it is approved and it is only 1 Saturday a month. We found out if we work more than 40 hours being salaried, they have to pay us over-time and they do not want to do that. I work 8-5 with an hour for lunch. we have to leave at 5 p.m. not later. we can not even work during our lunch hour, it is mandated that we take the hour lunch and must leave our desks unless it is approved beforehand to work lunch to take hour at the end for say a dr. appt., etc. no eating at our desk, etc. They have become very stricked with their requirements lately and it is putting a lot of stress on the employees. Some of their requirements are just silly. I work in Insurance but work for a bank.

 

[DisneyKing82]

The amount of hours one has to work depends entirely on the industry, and more importantly the firm.

Goldman Sachs Investment Bankers are salaried and work 100 hours a week. I worked as an investment banker at a smaller firm and worked 50 hours a week.

I worked a very loose and casual trading firm, was salaried, and worked 38 hrs a week. Some worked even less than that.

It just totally depends on the place.. you can get a feel for what type of hours you will have to put in when you interview and can decide if its best for you at that point.

 

[jax677]

My husband is salaried, works from home exclusively and works all day, takes off for dinner and time to exercise and then works till midnight most days. He even works some weekends. I think its part of his line of work, he is a computer software engineer. It seems that if you want to get far in his company, this is the life. When the girls were little and he worked outside the home, it was hard, but as they got older I got used to it. We love his company and are pleased with his salary and benefits.

 

[ICF]

I guess I am the exception. I am salaried and have been for 10 years or so. I work 40 hours'ish' most of the time. Occassionally it might be 42-44 hours, but generally my day is 8 - 4:30 with a 30 min lunch.

A funny story of when I first got made salaried. My boss, who is no longer with the company, called me into her office to tell me the corporation was making my position a salaried one across the operation vs hourly. Due to that, I was getting a pay raise of 10% or so. She then went on to say that since I was salaried I would probably be working 45+ hours a week. To this I asked..."Oh, am I getting extra duties then"? She replied, "no, your job isn't changing right now". So, I then replied..."Then what am I supposed to be doing for the extra 5+ hours?" She looked at me like a deer in the headlights and couldn't give me an answer....so even though nothing changed, she somehow thought that since I was salaried it said I should be there more then a "normal" employee.

One last thing...I am confused though on people who say they are salaried and yet talk of OT. It was my understanding that salaried people don't get OT, that what hourly people make and was the whole point of being salaried??

 

[Uuaww]

I am in the Federal Government and am salaried but receive OT. If I don't "call off" I will work about 50 hours a week with 10 of OT. But since I hit the wall July 4th week (65 hours...) I have not worked more than 2-3 hours of OT a week.

 

[ICF]

Goldman Sachs Investment Bankers are salaried and work 100 hours a week..

How is that even possible....assuming you worked a 5 day week that is 20 hours a day.

If you worked EVERY day of the week, and I wouldnt that most Investment Bankers would need to do that....that would be 14 1/2 hour days and would not even include any time for lunch or commute times to work?

I'll buy 50-60 hour weeks, but don't see how a person could work a 100 hour week....at least not on a regular basis.

 

[powellrj]

How is that even possible....assuming you worked a 5 day week that is 20 hours a day.

If you worked EVERY day of the week, and I wouldnt that most Investment Bankers would need to do that....that would be 14 1/2 hour days and would not even include any time for lunch or commute times to work?

I'll buy 50-60 hour weeks, but don't see how a person could work a 100 hour week....at least not on a regular basis.

My Dh had worked those kind of hours at different times over the years. Right now he is working them again and its killing him. He leaves about 4am and gets home around 8pm everynight including sunday. Saturday he just crashes.

 

[MarkBarbieri]

How is that even possible....assuming you worked a 5 day week that is 20 hours a day.

If you worked EVERY day of the week, and I wouldnt that most Investment Bankers would need to do that....that would be 14 1/2 hour days and would not even include any time for lunch or commute times to work?

I'll buy 50-60 hour weeks, but don't see how a person could work a 100 hour week....at least not on a regular basis.

I've known several people that worked 100 hour weeks for long stretches - a new attorney, an oil field operator, and even Disney employees. When the Tower of Terror project was behind schedule, they shipped several software developers to Florida for the final 3 months of the project and had them working 17 hour days 7 days a week until the project was finished. That's 119 hours/week. They didn't even given them a break when the earthquake hit in LA and damaged some of their homes. They provided meals for them, did laundry for them; whatever it took so that they could work during every waking hour.

The worst stint I did was a project that required us to work 14 hour days seven days a week for about a month. I remember taking off an hour and half to meet my wife and kids at a movie and the kids being crushed that I couldn't stay for lunch afterwords. It wasn't fun, but we had a deadline to meet.

I had another job where I worked 12 hour days 6 days a week for about a year. I was getting paid time and a half for overtime. My commute was just a couple of minutes. My wife was in school and busy most of the time. I'd leave home just before 6:00 AM and get home around 6:30 PM. We had evenings and Sundays together and we were saving a lot of money.

Sometimes deadlines drive things. Other times it is people's ambitions. If you love your job and don't have a wife and kids to worry about, it is amazing how much work you can get done. It's not for everyone, but some people are happy that way.