I agree that sometimes that can represent ruthless uncaring boss-men-types.
But, there are some businesses for which a five-minute late start or less can be significant, call centers being an obvious one. For better or for worse, if someone calls at 7AM, opening time, and there’s no one at the phone, you may get either an angry customer or a non-customer. So, if I’m running a call center, I really can’t afford to be loosey-goosey about time. Not that I’m going to lose a lot of business in the first 120 seconds of work time (probably), but the negative PR for any missed calls could be pretty significant.
Also, I worked at a school last year, and let me say, being five minutes late for my first class was a <i>big deal</i>. It happened a few times, and I didn’t get reprimanded, but I very easily could have, and rightfully so.
So, yeah, sometimes it’s a boss being a jerk, but there are legitimate business and/or legal reasons for being demanding about punctuality.
Currently I work in a situation like yours and others’; I can pretty much set my own hours (within reason), take time when I need it, and as long as I’m getting all of my work done (or at least ‘an appropriate amount’, because I <i>always</i> have work to do) it’s not a problem.
Oh, I absolutely agree. I’m not suggesting that the ‘getting ready’ should be on the employee’s time. Absolutely they should be paid for any and all time at work. But, if my employer says, “we need you to be up and running at 7AM. Get here in time to be online at that time,” then I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the employer being upset if that doesn’t happen (again, assuming that they’re not asking you to come in on your own time to do that).
But then getting there at 6:45 to turn things on and sit and wait for the computer to boot up and to log in and deal with the network delay is the employee’s own time.
It’s not the employer’s time unless they’re paying for it.
I guess I work in a call center (wonder how it came to this?). We’re available for calls from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm. If your shift is on either end, you need to be able to take the call at 7:00:01 or 6:59:59 (these suck!).
We get paid hourly (I have no idea what I make per hour) based on a 40 hour work week. We are expected to be at the desk 38:45 hrs per week. This is as nice as it sounds.
We are expected to be available for calls “about 5.5 hours” each day. We’re allowed to get off the phone if we need to catch up with documenting files, potty breaks, make another pot of coffee because the last peron to get some emptied the pot and didn’t set another one going, and then you have to watch the pot brew so you can get yours nice & fresh…I’ll be right back.
For the last 2.5 years I’ve consistently done the highest volume of work in the office, with very good accuracy, no customer complaints and succesful audits. I now set up & execute training for my unit. My average available phone time has been around 3 hours per day. The bosses leave me alone about it because of the other factors required by the job (like accuracy, customer satisfaction, profitability, etc). I’m getting bored with this job, but now I’m afraid to move lest I get a clock-watching supervisor who puts quality behind punctuality.
Whore yourself to another employer, Kat. One that looks at your quality. I’ll throw you a bone if you want. Dopers should not be tied to clocks needlessly.
After reading the OP I almost feel a bit bad for being 30 minutes late for work today.
Some times I’m an hour late and a coworker of mine have managed to sleep untill 2pm (we’re officially showing up for work at 9am).
We usually just bring sodas to the other people in the department (3 others) when we arrive later than 9:45 and then stay a bit longer some other time.
Right. I guess I’m not being clear. My point is definitely that the employee should be paid for that time. If not, then the company is being asshole-ish. If I’m getting in at 6:45 then I should start getting paid at that point. If it takes more time than that to get going, then I should get paid for however long it takes. But, if my boss gives me the flexibility to come in at whatever time I need to in order to be online at 7 (being paid for whatever that time is), and I’m not ready at 7, then he or she is within his or her right to be pissed.
Heh. You don’t know the half of it. My shift starts at 7:30. I am expected to be ready to take calls at 7:30. It takes about 5-6 minutes to get the computer booted up and the programs loaded…and we’re not allowed to clock in more than 3 minutes before start time. It, of course, takes several minutes to shut everything down at shift end…and we are not allowed to clock out late…and we are not allowed to sign off the phone early to shut down. Essentially, we’re not allowed ANY lapsed time between clocking in and signing on the phone, or signing off the phone and clocking out. So all logging in and out of computer programs needs to be done off the clock, or else we need to keep the first call of the day sitting on the line for 5 minutes while we log on. If there’s any time difference between paid time and phone time, it counts against you. This is not paranoia…this is the official policy.
Plus, there’s the fact that we were LIED TO apparently, when we were told we could shave time from a later break to compensate for coming back late on an earlier one.
Jesus God, what a draconian policy. One of the rules I have always had for “clock-punching” jobs - that is, jobs that are not necessarily a career, but which are getting me by for the time being: I do not, for any reason, work for free. Not one minute, not five minutes of “boot time.” Nothing.
Obviously, this wouldn’t apply to you if you consider this job a career.
Now, I have had “career jobs” like my current one where I’ll put in 65 hours a week occasionally, and not think twice about it. I care about what I’m doing, and I honestly think what I’m doing is valuable and will make the world a better place.
But for other jobs, they pay me for every second I’m working, or I walk. Simple. I can always find a table-waiting or bartending job that will make me more money than most time-clock jobs anyway.
Same thing here. My work hours are , technically, between 8:00 AM and 4:30 PM, with one hour lunch, and two 15 minute breaks. I have a long commute, and there is at least one day a week where I’m 10 or 15 minutes late. Thing is, though, it’s a creative job (urban planning) without many phone calls, I often work late, and I’m giving my employer a higher quality of product than my predecessor. Thus, no problem.
Mine looks at both. When both are stellar I get paid more. I like being a standout performer. This sort of system is definately geared toward a certain type of person, I guess I’m it. Tough part is being able to keep up with it 365/52/5/8.
I’m clocked and I love that. We can walk in as early as 7:30 am and leave as late as 7:30 pm (Well…actually, we can stay later, but then we aren’t paid). We must work on average 8:15 h minus 45 minutes for lunch (not clocked). So, we can walk in late one day, or leave early, and compensate later. We’re allowed up to 5 hours of “debit” and 25 hours of “credit”. We can use the credit to get days or half-days off.
Of course, a lot of people can fully benefit from this system, either due to their job, which can require them to be present at precise hours, or due to others obligations (like pick up kids at school). Not being in this situation, I can wake up late when I feel like it, come early when I feel like it (the latter rarely happens, to say the truth), and accumulate overtime to take days off.
To top it off, I get a lump payment for overtime, whether or not I actually do overtime. And it’s quite difficult to actually do overtime when you can accumulate up to 25 hours and get them back with shorter work days latter or with days off. It essentially only happens when staying after 7:30 pm since the clocks are then off. And now, even that is quite limited since they now close the offices, for security reasons, at 8:30 pm, except in exceptionnal circumstances.
Jeez. You know, sitting through 4 years of college and getting that stupid sheepskin got me a “professional” level Government job- and sometimes, when I read things like this, I go kiss that damn sheepskin! Yeah, the pay is for shit, but the benefits are good, and no one times me in or out. Sure- coming in a half hour late every day would get you talked to- and if you’re in the middle of something you can’t just say “oops, break/lunch time! Bye!”- but nobody gives a rats ass about 5 minutes, let alone a matter of seconds.
I have no idea of what I make per hour either. I know my yearly salary (well… it’s 60something), and my take home (doodly-squat ), but “$/hr” is mostly meaningless.
Kat- find a new job. Then, get a cassette tape and record “Take this job and shove it” on it and hand one to your boss on your way out.
Yeah, the pay is for shit, but the benefits are good, and no one times me in or out. Sure- coming in a half hour late every day would get you talked to- and if you’re in the middle of something you can’t just say “oops, break/lunch time! Bye!”- but nobody gives a rats ass about 5 minutes, let alone a matter of seconds.