Does anyone else feel like their job owns them?

[BrettMRC]

Maybe I'm just having one of those days?

I do long hours, I have to have my laptop and compa ny mobile with me 24x7...even when I'm on holiday.

Is this the excepted norm? Am I just being a whining git?

Thoughts?

[Pothole]

Perhaps if you learn the difference between accept and except you can get a better job and be happier. Mind you, I am currently unemployed so YMMV!

[BliarOut]

If you're on holiday leave the tech at home.

[chunkymonkey71]

I felt like I couldn't live without my job until I thought long and hard about it and applied for severance.

Despite still being there until July, I can now see that there's a whole world of opportunity out there and I haven't felt so positive in years!

[ewenm]

Do you get 24x7 on-call payments if you have to have your laptop and phone with you 24x7? Your job only owns you if you let it own you.

[944fan]

I know where you are coming from as I have been in the same place. As others have said it happens when you let it happen.

The last time I had some leave a made a point of telling everyone that my BlackBerry was staying on my desk and I would be incommunicado. Should have seen the look of incredulity on my bosses face.

I regularly turn my phone off at the weekend. Our Chairman has a habit of chucking electronic grenades on a Saturday morning and I used to get drawn into them. Now I don't get them till Monday!

[RacingBlue]

^ This.

Turn everything off, deal with it on Monday.

[tankplanker]

Depends on how much you are paid and how senior you are to a degree. If I was a code monkey or worked in support I wouldn't be happy doing that without being paid for it somewhere a long the line. IT Director would be a different story.

[L1OFF]

I find it very difficult to switch off from my job. Its not unusual for me to wake in the middle of the night thinking about work issues \ problems etc. I also log on to the company intranet when at home over the weekends just to check if works are progressing to plan. Sad I know.

Alan

[Bohally]

Ever since I got my emails on my phone...to an extent.

I'm only contracted for two days a week, yet spend the other 5 days of the week replying to emails..

[Mr Roper]

Our factory operates 24/7 so popping back in the evenings and weekends were part of the norm. It did get a little tedious, especially when you've got your feet up watching the telly knowing that before you can go to bed you need to drive to work and check machines.
Our machines were at one point connected to the phone lines so I used to get automated calls at all hours of the night when things went wrong....that bit of technology was quickly binned though.

But as the factory grew and additional manned shifts it's so much easier to switch off.


Bliss.

[vixen1700]

Nope, I leave at 5.30 or 5.00 on a Friday and that's it.

But I'm probably far less important and probably get paid less, so it's swings and roundabouts.

[Countdown]

BrettMRC said:

Maybe I'm just having one of those days?

I do long hours, I have to have my laptop and compa ny mobile with me 24x7...even when I'm on holiday.

Is this the excepted norm? Am I just being a whining git?

Thoughts?

Me too. Although I do have some days when I feel a bit down the work is, in the main, quite stimulating.

Only thing missing is the option to use cattle prods on certain members of staff

[Cotty]

vixen1700 said:

Nope, I leave at 5.30 or 5.00 on a Friday and that's it.

Yep and I don't have a work mobile.

[Pothole]

Bohally said:

Ever since I got my emails on my phone...to an extent.

I'm only contracted for two days a week, yet spend the other 5 days of the week replying to emails..

more fool you

[RVVUNM]

Work to live here, and that will never change.

[captainzep]

Mine varies, there are peaks and troughs.

I finished a report at 2am two nights ago and was at my desk five hours later because there was important stuff to get on with.

But most other times I'm strictly 9-5 and although I'm aware that emails are being pinged around at night and weekends I don't get involved until I'm at my desk. Boss is relaxed, flexible and I can work from home as long as stuff gets done.

Generally I'm of the opinion that much (not all) of this practice is down to a combination bad/pushy senior management and a lack of confidence to push back at it. It's a bit different if the hours you put in directly affect income or well-being of others of course.

[ShortShift811]

My job varies from being generally busy to ridiculously frantic at certain times of year. From June - September it's normal for me to work 11 hour days, six days a week so yes, then I feel like it owns me. But I'm reasonably well rewarded and came into the job knowing that would happen, so can't really complain.

As for being available 24/7, I'll check my Blackberry outside of office hours, but only deal with / reply to something if it's for a client. Internal correspondence gets my attention when I'm back in the office. Holidays are exactly that; I'm usually abroad for at least a week of R&R and the phone and laptop get left at home.

[GT03ROB]

BrettMRC said:

Maybe I'm just having one of those days?

I do long hours, I have to have my laptop and compa ny mobile with me 24x7...even when I'm on holiday.

Is this the excepted norm? Am I just being a whining git?

Thoughts?

You are being a whining git.

Seriously learn to sift the critical from the normal. I am expected to do the same as you. I was away skiing last week. I checked emails few times a day. 99% could wait & did. Maybe 1 a day needed a quick respone.

[JREwing]

It varies. Usually things aren't too bad. At weekends I tend to let emails pile up - I'm just not in the mood.
But next week is going to be horrendous looking at the appointments I have. I'll be stressed at the end.