On call
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11 members have voted
February 19th, 2011 at 6:00:19 AM
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Regarding your job, how long are you on call? That is, for how long after regular business hours can you expect a call from the office, the boss, a co-worker, a client, etc?
Me, I'm supposed to be on call 24/7. In practice I am.
In the beginning it wasn't so bad, but then I was given a company cellphone. I'm not supposed t turn it off, and in fact I don't except when I fly. When I go on vacation I leave it at the office. I absolutely can't stand it ringing after I'm allegedly done for the day. One time I got a call just as I got home to head back to the office. More often I get calls asking for the entrance alarm shut-off code (which they'd all should know by now).
Me, I'm supposed to be on call 24/7. In practice I am.
In the beginning it wasn't so bad, but then I was given a company cellphone. I'm not supposed t turn it off, and in fact I don't except when I fly. When I go on vacation I leave it at the office. I absolutely can't stand it ringing after I'm allegedly done for the day. One time I got a call just as I got home to head back to the office. More often I get calls asking for the entrance alarm shut-off code (which they'd all should know by now).
Donald Trump is a fucking criminal
February 19th, 2011 at 6:53:24 AM
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I'm on call during business hours. I work Saturdays, I'm off Thursdays. I usually get called once or twice on Thursdays, but it's only to find out what to do next or where something is. I never get called in.
A falling knife has no handle.
February 19th, 2011 at 7:01:30 AM
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Do you also work Sundays?
I'm used to having two consecutive days off. For a while I worked half a day on Saturdays, and I could hardly stand it.
I don't get called in too often, but when it happens it always seems to be at the worst possible moment. Of course, it may be that just being called in is the worst possible thing, so...
There's another thing. I'm pretty good at finding information online. That has gotten me some "special assignments" from my boss and some of the owners from time to time. I always tell them I'll find the info if it's there. Sometimes it simply isn't. And it's a lot more work when I can't find it, because I have to exhaust all possibilities before I can say it's not there.
I'm used to having two consecutive days off. For a while I worked half a day on Saturdays, and I could hardly stand it.
I don't get called in too often, but when it happens it always seems to be at the worst possible moment. Of course, it may be that just being called in is the worst possible thing, so...
There's another thing. I'm pretty good at finding information online. That has gotten me some "special assignments" from my boss and some of the owners from time to time. I always tell them I'll find the info if it's there. Sometimes it simply isn't. And it's a lot more work when I can't find it, because I have to exhaust all possibilities before I can say it's not there.
Donald Trump is a fucking criminal
February 19th, 2011 at 7:13:08 AM
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Those of us old enough will remember truly getting days off. The only people on call were Doctors and such, and even they could get days off. The days off in yesteryear I remember fondly, it was possible to spend a day outside and find you forgot all about your cares. Nobody expected to be able to reach you! Then that began to change, first with beepers.
Today it is pretty much expected that you will be able to be reached at most times, day off or not. Currently, I am getting away with turning off the phone at times and just checking it for messages later.
Today it is pretty much expected that you will be able to be reached at most times, day off or not. Currently, I am getting away with turning off the phone at times and just checking it for messages later.
the next time Dame Fortune toys with your heart, your soul and your wallet, raise your glass and praise her thus: “Thanks for nothing, you cold-hearted, evil, damnable, nefarious, low-life, malicious monster from Hell!” She is, after all, stone deaf. ... Arnold Snyder
February 19th, 2011 at 7:24:30 AM
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Quote: odiousgambitThose of us old enough will remember truly getting days off.
Mostly I do get days off. But there's the nagging, stubborn feeling that the cell may go off at any time on a weekend. This is especially bothersome when I go to a movie and have to hope I won't be interrupted, or worse yet have to leave the theater.
Quote:The only people on call were Doctors and such, and even they could get days off.
Ah! I vividly recall voice beepers going off in movie theaters and during services at the synagogue :)
Hard to believe a recently as the 90s cellphones were seen as status symbols rather than a ball and chain.
Donald Trump is a fucking criminal
February 19th, 2011 at 7:30:47 AM
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I'm off on Sundays, Nareed. Two days off in a row... wow. I wouldn't know what to do!
I could have a true day off, but it would cost me money, so I don't mind the couple minutes of phone calls. I get paid on the business that gets transacted when I'm not there, so optimizing it is to my advantage. It's the best of both worlds. Or a profitable compromise, whatever.
I could have a true day off, but it would cost me money, so I don't mind the couple minutes of phone calls. I get paid on the business that gets transacted when I'm not there, so optimizing it is to my advantage. It's the best of both worlds. Or a profitable compromise, whatever.
A falling knife has no handle.
February 19th, 2011 at 7:45:31 AM
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Quote: NareedMostly I do get days off. But there's the nagging, stubborn feeling that the cell may go off at any time on a weekend.
If your days off require you to have the cell phone on, it is not a "true" day off IMO. Do you bet to take vacations without being on call?
the next time Dame Fortune toys with your heart, your soul and your wallet, raise your glass and praise her thus: “Thanks for nothing, you cold-hearted, evil, damnable, nefarious, low-life, malicious monster from Hell!” She is, after all, stone deaf. ... Arnold Snyder
February 19th, 2011 at 7:56:16 AM
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I'm never on call and am not expected to answer my cell phone outside of working hours. That said, because I work directly with customers in my business, when I am working on a project, I will frequently answer email and cell phone calls outside of working hours to increase their level of satisfaction.
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You want the truth! You can't handle the truth!
February 19th, 2011 at 7:57:43 AM
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Quote: odiousgambitIf your days off require you to have the cell phone on, it is not a "true" day off IMO. Do you bet to take vacations without being on call?
I'd like to say yes. I leave the office-issued cellphone at the office. There's a network so that calls between networked phones are "free." But I take my personal cell along. Once I got a call, but it turned out they punched the wrong speed dial button (I still paid $5 for taking it).
Good news is I canceled my personal phone, so that's out <yay!> If they want me, they'll have to leave a message at the hotel :)
Donald Trump is a fucking criminal
February 19th, 2011 at 9:01:03 AM
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Quote: boymimboI...I work directly with customers in my business, when I am working on a project, I will frequently answer email and cell phone calls outside of working hours to increase their level of satisfaction.
I don't know your age, but I can tell with the younger people coming up, this is the way they feel, and all the time too, not just when working on a project. The future for them includes having their whereabouts known to their employer via GPS too. IMO opinion it will develop that not only will people get used to this, but they will feel a sense of unease if for some reason they would for a while not be thus connected and tracked.
the next time Dame Fortune toys with your heart, your soul and your wallet, raise your glass and praise her thus: “Thanks for nothing, you cold-hearted, evil, damnable, nefarious, low-life, malicious monster from Hell!” She is, after all, stone deaf. ... Arnold Snyder
February 19th, 2011 at 9:12:22 AM
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I'm not on-call exactly, but I am required to work (paid) overtime at certain times of the year, namely right now during tax season. If you think a company mobile phone is a bad leash try being issued a company laptop... Of course there are perks as well, such as being able to work at home twice a week instead of driving in to the office but I miss the good old days of being able to leave work at work.
Solo venimos, solo nos vamos. Y aqui nos juntamos, juntos que estamos.
February 19th, 2011 at 9:37:12 AM
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I have been in the security business for over 30 years. Up until a few years ago I also had my own 24/7 monitoring station. So I have been on call 24/7 for all this time. Even without the monitoring contracted out now I still need to be on call for my clients. Pre-cell phone days it meant the staff tracking me down via land lines. Even on holidays in Vegas I kept in touch with the office and they would have the hotel phone number. Once the cell coverage was there then it was actually easier, since I knew the staff could actually reach me in a real emergency. I also did (tongue in cheek) define an emergency for them, if the place burned down that wasn't an emegency since we had insurance.
Be careful when you follow the masses, the M is sometimes silent.
February 19th, 2011 at 11:10:47 AM
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Doctor here. I have well defined nights and weekends I am on call, and the others I am completely off. My partners and I may discuss certain aspects of our business on 'off' days, but I don't really count that as work.
February 19th, 2011 at 11:45:40 AM
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Quote: progrockerIf you think a company mobile phone is a bad leash try being issued a company laptop...
Oh, I know exactly how bad it is. I've managed to turn down a laptop twice and a Blackberry once. Calls and short text messages are bad enough. I don't want to add email and long Word and Excel files.
Donald Trump is a fucking criminal
February 19th, 2011 at 2:43:41 PM
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Quote: NareedRegarding your job, how long are you on call? ...
Not at all. One of the fringe benefits of permanent unemployment. ;-)
February 19th, 2011 at 2:47:52 PM
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Entrepreneurship doesn't respect the 5-day work week. I was just having a discussion this morning (Saturday) about how to be less focused on my business ... after a 90-minute phone call with a client.
"In my own case, when it seemed to me after a long illness that death was close at hand, I found no little solace in playing constantly at dice."
-- Girolamo Cardano, 1563
February 19th, 2011 at 2:57:12 PM
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Quote: MathExtremistafter a 90-minute phone call with a client.
I've clients that dense and unreasonable, too :P
Donald Trump is a fucking criminal
February 19th, 2011 at 4:31:41 PM
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Quote: NareedI've clients that dense and unreasonable, too :P
Oh, she's neither -- and it was all billable. Courts might not be in session over the weekend, but filing deadlines wait for nobody. Weekend calls are par for the course when you accept rush jobs. (If I wasn't clear before, the discussion about how to focus less on the business was *not* part of the client call. :)
"In my own case, when it seemed to me after a long illness that death was close at hand, I found no little solace in playing constantly at dice."
-- Girolamo Cardano, 1563
February 19th, 2011 at 4:39:31 PM
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Quote: MathExtremistOh, she's neither -- and it was all billable.
Lucky you. We bill customers by the kilo, or unit, and they feel entitled to 25 hours of attention per workday. Luckily I don't deal with them too often. Can you believe I once spent 30 minutes on the phone convincing a dietitian not to send back 15 kilos of string beans? You want to know why she didn't want them? Because they were not all the same length!
Quote:Courts might not be in session over the weekend, but filing deadlines wait for nobody.
That I know about. My job can best be described as a series of deadlines.
Donald Trump is a fucking criminal
