People who are always late for work - Page 8

Moonchilde · ‎05-23-2010

@hckynut wrote:
@CrazyDaisy wrote:
Wondering how others feel about it. There is a lady where I work who is late for work everyday, not just a few minutes, half and hour now. No excuses, just because she keeps getting away with it. She keeps coming in later and later. Everyone one else in the office is here on time. I have heard all the arguments that as long as they get their work done, etc. Her work is not that good and her attitude even worse. It has been brought up terminating her in the past however it is a small office and with our busy time coming up the owners feel she is better than nothing (unfortunatily I have to agree).

I just find it to be so disrecptful to co-workers to always be late not to mention stealing from the company expecting to be paid for time you are not there. What do you think.

@CrazyDaisy

Started working after my paper route at age 8, as a car hop, at age 12, at a drive-in restaurant. That job and every job I worked after that, until I retired, had 1 thing in common. At every single one of them I HAD to punch a time clock "in" and also "out".

Late? First you DO NOT get paid for the time missed. Come in late over a set number? First you are given a written warning. If you continue to be late, even 1 minute, of your scheduled starting time? It' BYE, BYE job.

Why salaried jobs do not use the same method escapes me. Are salaried workers "better than" those of us that punch a clock? More honest and reliable? In a higher "social status" working for the same company as us hourly workers? Are they maybe non-unionized?

I mention the above paragraph because I have seen what the OP is stating with my own eyes for decades. I have also heard this from unheard of numbers of friends and associates. "So and so is always late". I see a simple solution, come in late, dock pay. Come in late too often? Nobody is irreplaceable, I don't care what the title of their job. Fire them, PERIOD!

If companies choose to trust employees that are not trust worthy? They not only alienate workers who are on time, some of which have to do the "come lately's" work. Makes not 1 iota of sense to me.

hckynut(john)

Whether it makes sense or not is immaterial. It occurs, all the time, everywhere, in all types of jobs. And it will continue to occur.

It is entirely the fault and decision of management, period. They are the ones condoning and enabling, for their own reasons. It seems logical to think that anyone is replaceable for any position, but it's simply not true. Most of the time, a chronically late or absent employee is kept on because there is no replacement and they are badly needed.

Many jobs require specific job skills that not only don't grow on trees, but are scarcer than hen's teeth, and management knows that if they fire a person there will be no replacement and it will have a severe negative impact on the business. Management would rather have the person half the time and late than to have no one.

In addition, more and more companies are choosing to hire per diem, non-benefited employees as a good third of their workforce. Usually, they call in sick when they like, show up when they like, and they *tell* management WHEN they are taking time off, they don't need to ask for it.

Of course, this makes for resentment between co-workers and between employees and management. Management, however, never, ever cares. It's life today in the working world. Doesn't matter if it's right or makes sense, it just IS.

Life without Mexican food is no life at all

mstyrion 1 · ‎09-18-2014

@hckynut wrote:
@mstyrion 1 wrote:
hckynut,

By your own admission you never worked an exempt job, so it's understandable why you don't understand how they work.

If you are salaried you are expected to get the job done no matter how many hours it takes. You are expected to travel, often on your own time. You don't necessarily get to go home at 5:00. You might have to work weekends or while at home. You might be on call 24 hours per day. You might have to work while on vacation or on a paid holiday.

You don't get overtime.

The upside is you get some flexibility with your work schedule.

@mstyrion 1

The salaried people of which I spoke are those that work specific hours, Monday through Friday. They work only at their desk, most in their own cubicle, they are not in sales and/or promotion type of jobs that require traveling.

In, I guess, your world, I haven't a clue what "an exempt job" even means. I know people that work with a specialized and specific "signed contract", and I also know many that are partners in business and/or own their own small businesses. Never heard any of them use the term " exempt job"?

I also know many that work in businesses where "They DO" travel, some even government jobs, 1 Hockey player for the IRS. Almost all of them traveled on specific days when doing their types of business.

My perception of the OP's intent by starting this thread was she was/is speaking of "stay put" desk/cubicle type jobs, not jobs that required traveling around the country or around the world.

Maybe I was wrong in that perception and if so, this may narrow down the specific types of jobs of which I speak. Those are the types of "salaried jobs"(not professions) that my wife spent her life working, and with way too many co-workers like those mentioned by the OP. Hey! Now I know a new word " exempt", well not the definition of that word, but what you say is conferred in some types of employments.

hckynut(john)

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Exempt means salaried. Non time card. Paid for 40 hours per week but not limited to working 40 hours per week.

Many salaried employees work at a desk or cubicle. They also travel and are expected to work outside of an 8 hour workday when the need arises.

They may travel during the work day but sometimes that means taking a 7am flight and arriving back home at 10 pm. There is no extra compensation for that.

An owner of a smal business is completely on their own. This conversation doesn't even apply. Just because they didn't use the word exempt in your presence doesn't mean a darn thing.

~Enough is enough~

MaggieMack · ‎10-01-2014

@hckynut, when the word "exempt" is used in a job classification, it means that the position is exempt from FLSA regulations that apply to hourly workers. Many supervisory and management jobs are classified this way. It means, if you are exempt, you are exempt from the rules that apply to hourly workers. It can mean long hours and weekends and being on-call, but it also allows for a Thursday afternoon off to golf.

No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted. - Aesop

willdob3 · ‎11-01-2010

It is hard not to notice when co-workers are late a lot. But it is not any of my business so I don't say or do anything. If the supervisor has a problem with it he/she will do something. I am really just concerned about doing my own job to the best of my abilities.

SydneyH · ‎03-10-2010

@Lipstickdiva wrote:

Am I reading this correctly? As long as you are no more than 6 minutes late, you are considered on time?

I don't consider that to be on time. If someone is supposed to be at work at 8:00 and they get there at 8:05, IMO they are late. My husband has always had to clock in where he works and they have zero leeway. If you are 1 minute late, you are considered late.

You have up to 20 people appearing for a shift, therefore the 1 minute thing is not viable. You can punch either 7 minutes prior, or 7 minutes after your scheduled time.

chickenbutt · ‎03-09-2010

I've read all the interesting POVs on this.

Mine is that if I'm paid to work from 9am to 6pm, I'm expected to be at my desk, or whatever the entity, AT or by 9am.

The last time I had to punch a clock was decades ago. But the same notion of being on time always applied, no matter the job or career. I was always a part of a team. Everybody depends on everybody else doing their part. A portion of their part is to be to their shift on time, working. It just makes good sense.

Sure, there are a ton of different scenarios. But I would imagine that the vast majority of scenarios are dependent on everybody doing their part. If it's ok for one person to be late all the time, what if everybody was late all the time? What if nobody cared anymore because one person gets away with not being there when everybody else has to be?

Like others have already expressed here, it DOES matter and it does affect the perception of everybody else when one or two, or whatever, people get away with stuff that they shouldn't.

Granted, I was always HUGE on being on time (whether it's a job, appointment, or any other commitment), so I guess I just always placed importance on it. I don't expect any more of others than I would expect of myself. Part of it is manners and part of it is being a viable part of a team.

Moonchilde · ‎05-23-2010

@chickenbutt, I not only had to deal with a chronically late person every day, which meant a lot more stress for me, but different employees were held to different standards overall. My supervisor was very bad about this. Those who were late or called in, whatever, no problem, no matter how chronic it was, because I was one of two, in a six-person office, who showed up and did the work...and half of everyone else's.

Because I was the first one there and got the office off to a good running start, alone, I invariably caught major unprofessional attitude from my supervisor if I called in sick. Literally, every other employee, because they were not the first one in, no problem. But *I* was bashed and battered for calling my supervisor at home (which I HAD to do) at 6 am to tell her. And then I was *forced* to call the next-in person, tell them I wasn't coming in, and ask if they would come in early. This lasted until the person told me (but of course would never tell the supv) that she wasn't going to answer her phone and would never come in early, so stop bothering her. I them told my supv, and that I was NOT going to call any more, period. She had no issue, apparently, with my co-worker's attitude :-(

Life without Mexican food is no life at all

chickenbutt · ‎03-09-2010

Hi Moonchilde! Yeah, there's always somebody who seems to thrive on making things more difficult for others.

Fortunately, back in my days of working, seldom was there somebody who was chronically late, and/or a frequent causation of problems for everybody else. But I'll tell you one thing - when there was somebody like that - they didn't last.

You just can't have most of the people doing what's expected of them and one or two who think that the rules don't appy to them.

Then, to have a weak manager on top of things - oh geez! That one needs to go, too.

Moonchilde · ‎05-23-2010

@chickenbutt wrote:
Hi Moonchilde! Yeah, there's always somebody who seems to thrive on making things more difficult for others.

Fortunately, back in my days of working, seldom was there somebody who was chronically late, and/or a frequent causation of problems for everybody else. But I'll tell you one thing - when there was somebody like that - they didn't last.

You just can't have most of the people doing what's expected of them and one or two who think that the rules don't appy to them.

Then, to have a weak manager on top of things - oh geez! That one needs to go, too.

@chickenbutt, That One is now the Head of the entire major section, reporting only to organization administration. She was excellent at "work" but had zero people-managing skills. And people-managing skills were never important in whole large areas or the organization.

Buuuuttt I'm retired now 😍😎

Life without Mexican food is no life at all

chickenbutt · ‎03-09-2010

Yay for being retired, Moonchilde!

I have seen scenarios where some of the worst were promoted way beyond where they should have been. It's beyond frustrating to see people get ahead in that manner.

I was always a 'do the job and excel, and you should be rewarded with upward mobility'. I wish life were that simple.

I don't work anymore either. I don't think I would fit in with today's work force. I have always done what was expected of me and more, and never expected somebody else to be doing my work while I skrewed around or didn't bother to be there when I was expected.

As a career person, I did well. But the last company (a large national company) was a horror show of awfulness and just shy of 10 years in I could not take it anymore and I quit shortly before I turned 50. I may have gone back into a career but shortly after that my health began to fail.

Now days I think things are pretty different. I'm happier being home most of the time. In my little kingdom things are calm. Well, except for the cleaning lady who has that attitude about 'being on time doesn't matter'. UGH!! That's a whole Jerry Springer Show in itself.