Inspired by Zurealsoon: phone calls at work

[hiwaygal]

DH and I talk at least twice a day...just regular chit-chat stuff for a few minutes. I don't think I could get through the day if I didn't hear from him at least once!!!

 

[Chattyaholic]

How much time do you actually get to spend with your DH?

We see each other quite a bit as he is a self-employed farmer/crop insurance adjuster and I work part time (about 25 hours one week, 35 the next) as a waitress. But then there are times, during spring planting/fall harvest that we don't see much of each other as he is working such long hours but I still wouldn't call him "just to chat" - he's WORKING.

When he goes out of town for a few days for work he calls me ONCE when he gets there so I know he arrived safely but then we don't talk to each other again until he gets home because, once again - he's WORKING. They put in long hours during the day and into the evening so I wouldn't bother him "just to chat." We both know if there is an emergency, or a serious question we need to ask or whatever, that we can call each other but "just to chat" we really don't see the need for it.

DH's brother-in-law calls his wife several times a day and I just don't get it. They see each other in the morning and every evening. I don't see why her boss puts up with all the personal calls. No need for it.

And we have a woman at work who gets tons of personal calls. It's nothing for her to receive 6-8 calls every evening. Her kids will call for stupid reasons like "I can't find the potato chips", or "the VCR isn't working", etc.
I am usually the one answering the phone and I absolutely hate it. She gets angry at them for calling, and raises her voice so of course customers hear it too, but she won't MAKE them stop calling and the boss doesn't make HER make them stop either. It's so annoying!!!

 

[Chattyaholic]

I personally don't see anything wrong with it. If it makes the couple happy, they're not breaking company rules and they're being couteous to those around them, then who cares?

Because when you're at work you're being paid to do just that - WORK.
You're not being paid to chit-chat on the phone several times a day.
An emergency is one thing, talking on the phone just to talk is another.

 

[bicker]

Different folks are paid for different work. Many people are paid by the hour, so it is reasonable to expect that every minute of every hour they're supposed to be working that they would indeed be working.

Many other people are paid on salary. They're expected to get 40 hours worth of work done each week (for instance), and are evaluated based on that. If they have to spend 50 hours to do it, or as is more often the case, have to spend 60 hours to accomplish 50 hours of work (because there aren't enough people employed to ensure everyone's work-load is commensurate with 40 hours of work each week), then that's what they do, and without additional compensation.

In that scenario, what a person is doing in any random minute during the day has no impact on the expectation with regard to how much work they're supposed to be doing, and so the relationship between the fact that they're at work and whether they're working or not is less relevant.

Some employers actually capitalize on this. My wife works for a company that used to feed its employees dinner if they decide to work late, and still have many such amenities intended to foster a homey environment at work (including a big-screen HDTV and Tivo in the lounge!) They do this because the more those employees feel at home at work, the more high-quality work they get out of these folks. They don't begrudge their employees anything that makes them feel more comfortable working the long-and-hard hours they work. Those companies realize they get a very high return-on-investment from every minute of unwind-time their employees take.

Even my own employer shows some signs of this. I am often forbidden from working, even while on company time. I didn't sleep one night last week, and so I sent a note into the team that I'd be working at home (because I was a little concerned about driving to work). My boss replied, in no uncertain terms, that my job that day was to try to sleep, and that he'd call me if there was something they seriously needed.

So, in the end, I think the answer to this issue is that, "It depends." For many people, their time is what their employer is buying from them, and surely just as you have the right to expect to get 12 eggs when you buy a dozen, the employer has the right to expect to to get 60 minutes when they buy an hour from an employee. For many other people, their industry is what the employer is buying from them, and the actual minutes and hours are secondary considerations to the work they actually accomplish.

 

[Nancy]

Because when you're at work you're being paid to do just that - WORK.
You're not being paid to chit-chat on the phone several times a day.
An emergency is one thing, talking on the phone just to talk is another.

Exactly. That's what lunch and breaks are for if you can't get through 8 or so hours without talking to your spouse.

 

[phorsenuf]

DH and I talk at least twice a day...just regular chit-chat stuff for a few minutes. I don't think I could get through the day if I didn't hear from him at least once!!!

Same here! We probably talk at least once a day. I love hearing from him. Call me sappy, I don't care, that's how it is.
We've been married for over 22 years now so I don't think its a "newlywed" thing! LOL

Although lately if I want to talk with him I just walk upstairs to his office. We work for the same company but he's usually out in the field.

 

[Marseeya]

Different folks are paid for different work. Many people are paid by the hour, so it is reasonable to expect that every minute of every hour they're supposed to be working that they would indeed be working.

Many other people are paid on salary. They're expected to get 40 hours worth of work done each week (for instance), and are evaluated based on that. If they have to spend 50 hours to do it, or as is more often the case, have to spend 60 hours to accomplish 50 hours of work (because there aren't enough people employed to ensure everyone's work-load is commensurate with 40 hours of work each week), then that's what they do, and without additional compensation.

In that scenario, what a person is doing in any random minute during the day has no impact on the expectation with regard to how much work they're supposed to be doing, and so the relationship between the fact that they're at work and whether they're working or not is less relevant.

Some employers actually capitalize on this. My wife works for a company that used to feed its employees dinner if they decide to work late, and still have many such amenities intended to foster a homey environment at work (including a big-screen HDTV and Tivo in the lounge!) They do this because the more those employees feel at home at work, the more high-quality work they get out of these folks. They don't begrudge their employees anything that makes them feel more comfortable working the long-and-hard hours they work. Those companies realize they get a very high return-on-investment from every minute of unwind-time their employees take.

Even my own employer shows some signs of this. I am often forbidden from working, even while on company time. I didn't sleep one night last week, and so I sent a note into the team that I'd be working at home (because I was a little concerned about driving to work). My boss replied, in no uncertain terms, that my job that day was to try to sleep, and that he'd call me if there was something they seriously needed.

So, in the end, I think the answer to this issue is that, "It depends." For many people, their time is what their employer is buying from them, and surely just as you have the right to expect to get 12 eggs when you buy a dozen, the employer has the right to expect to to get 60 minutes when they buy an hour from an employee. For many other people, their industry is what the employer is buying from them, and the actual minutes and hours are secondary considerations to the work they actually accomplish.

Very well said! I think it's important to remember that we're not all mindless automatons just grinding away each day. Your wife's company sounds like a real gem to work for.

My DH works on salary as well. The more he moves up the company ladder, the more responsibility he has and the more he has to be flexible with his time. He spends a lot less time doing actual physical work (programming) and a lot more time delegating and attending meetings, which leaves brief down times throughout the long day. He also has to do quite a bit of work from home -- mostly through e-mails, but occasional phone calls as well. When we went to WDW last June, we took a two week vacation and he had to be available then -- had a blackberry with him at all times. Fortunately they only ever asked him for anything a couple of times and only because they had to.

I feel absolutely no guilt at calling him at work whenever I want and I do believe he earns it. On the other hand, I don't complain when his cell phone rings while we're watching TV! It's just the nature of his business.

Oh, he works for a gas company (utility). I don't understand what he does, but it'll never be a 9-5 job and he and his coworkers are on call 24/7. I know I'm going off on a tangent here, but my dad worked for the same gas company as a laborer when I was growing up and his hours were a steady 7-4 and I only ever remember him working overtime once or twice. He and his coworkers had such a disdain for management and the office guys, and I realize now that he never knew how lucky he had it. They had regular breaks throughout the day (where you'd often see them in local donut shops ) and never had to make decisions that could cost the company millions and thus their jobs -- for that matter, I don't believe they had to make any decisions at all. My dad still looks down on my DH's job and just has no clue.

 

[tiggger1]

My husband works as a system admin for a financial company. His job is all computers. He has a bunch of tasks. he needs to do during the week. He has to do tickets ( fixing the business side of the companies, computers and software problems. He needs to fix the computers that are used to run the financial stuff. He goes to meeting and he has his own projects that he needs to do. Some weeks, he is slammed and I only get to talk to him 1 or 2 times a day by phone or his companies IM. other weeks he gets all his weekly stuff done on Mon and has the rest of the week to chill. those days, I talk to my husand, many times a day. Sometimes for important stuff, sometimes to chit chat, sometime when im bored. His company doesnt care because the stuff is done and more important I dont care. They call him all hours of the night even when he isnt on call for stupid stuff, waking my entire family up when the phone rings a 3 am. He isnt getting paid for that, so it doenst bother me or him. 99.9% of the time he gets he's stuff done or stays lates and finishes it. Or he does it from home. Its not a big deal. He has his own office. it isnt a big deal, as long as the work is done.

 

[Crankyshank]

It depends on the day. Sometimes I talk to him several times a day (on cell phones not work phones), sometimes we email, and sometimes I don't talk to him at all.
Usually DH calls me because he's on the road heading to a certain area and wants to know if I need anything while he's in the area.

 

[phisigprincess]

We email each other back and forth. Occasionally we'll meet up for lunch or he'll pop in for a surprise visit because we work about 15 minutes apart. It's pretty nice.

 

[bicker]

Very well said! I think it's important to remember that we're not all mindless automatons just grinding away each day.

To be fair, I wouldn't equate "hourly workers" with "mindless automatons." My point was that some people are paid for their time, and so in those cases, time actually matters most.

Your wife's company sounds like a real gem to work for.

They have a stated objective of being the best company to work for in the world.

 

[Marseeya]

To be fair, I wouldn't equate "hourly workers" with "mindless automatons." My point was that some people are paid for their time, and so in those cases, time actually matters most.

My statement wasn't to compare the two, but to reiterate that companies need to realize that their workers are human and not machines -- hourly OR salary.

 

[bicker]

I can surely agree with that.

 

[skiwee1]

We talk a few times a day. It is usually about nothing! We just like to keep in touch. Sometimes I call to see when he is coming home. Sometimes he calls because he has thought of something he wants to tell me. We do see each other for a few minutes before he goes to work and then for a few hours after work. We still like to just talk to say hi.

 

[ducklite]

DH and I use instant messaging throughout the workday to communicate. It's generally not just idle chatter, but things like "Did you make that bank deposit?"

It is non-intrusive to coworkers, and takes seconds of our workday.

I seldom make personal telephone calls at work, only essentials such as booking a doctors appointment or something along those lines.

Anne