Expected to work during time off...

Anonymous

October 11,2023 at 5:00PM UTC

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Expected to work during time off...

While it's never been explicitly said, there seems to be an expectation at my workplace that people need to still be working on weekends and during vacations/taking personal time. Most of my co-workers (including my boss and managers) will continue to work on vacations. In the 5 years I've been there, I've been roped into this practice as well (for the record, I hold a lower position than my co-workers who do this and make significantly less money - I also don't get compensated for the extra hours worked during personal time. I'm an hourly employee and most of the others who do this are salaried.)

I recently took 3 days off (I used most of my vacation time this year to deal with illnesses and family emergencies, so these have been the only days I've had for myself in 2023) and was adamant that I would not be working, responding to emails, etc. during that time. Everyone was respectful of that and said "Of course, you need to take time for yourself! Self care!" but upon my return to work received questions as to why I didn't do certain tasks over my vacation.

I had delegated these tasks to others and there seems to have been miscommunication because none of that was done...and I got thrown under the bus by those people I had delegated to (this is extra frustrating as these are people I thought I could trust, but have done similar things before and are frankly starting to make me feel paranoid that this is intentional.) I could've set things up so these tasks could be done automatically during that time, but chose not to because doing so would've potentially thrown those people under the bus. In all fairness, everyone at my job is currently wearing multiple hats and have to do various jobs outside of their actual position, so I do understand how things can easily be lost in translation and miscommunicated.

Sorry for the rant, but I wanted to share this to find out if anyone is in the same boat or has advice for how to deal with this. Honestly, I've been pretty fed up with my job for the last year because of nonsense like this. I initially adored my job and everyone I worked with, for the first few YEARS, but I'm starting to feel like a rat on a sinking ship, ready to jump and take my chances in the sea.

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AnonymousOctober 11,2023 at 5:16PM UTC
Thank you! I realized my biggest error in this situation was not looping my manager in on task delegation. Usually, I'm big on creating a paper trail but in my rush to get things done before my time off I mentioned it in a conversation instead of putting it to writing (lesson learned!)
AnonymousOctober 11,2023 at 6:10PM UTC
If you are an hourly employee, are you paid for this work? If you work while on time off, is the work time taken off of your total of used time off? If you are an hourly employee who is being asked to work and not being compensated for it, that company has really big problems. I agree, find a way out.
AnonymousOctober 11,2023 at 6:14PM UTC
Put down all of your hours worked. If you are hourly they should have to pay you overtime. You are entitled to your time off. When I am done for the day, I am done. There is always going to be some pressure at work, but you can't work 24/7, you will make yourself sick.
AnonymousOctober 11,2023 at 6:39PM UTC
I think too many of us are in the habit of being accessible 24/7 and feel like a failure if we are not. I've been working on that habit since2014. And, for me at least, COVID, flexible working options, hybrid/remote, all have made it that much worse. In June, I took a vacation that was Friday through all of the following week, not returning until the following Monday. I told my boss before leaving that I was going to take my work phone, checking emails at least once a day. I prepped everyone that I supported for at least a month or two out that I'm going to be gone X date through X date. If you need something say something now or wait until I get back and someone else can deal with emergencies. The day before I left, I told my boss that I changed my mine - my work phone was staying home. I survived. They survived (and we are a chaotic company). If we can't truly check out then what good are we and what good is a vacation.
AnonymousOctober 11,2023 at 7:26PM UTC
I started setting "do not disturb" times on my phone, during which only immediate family members could get through, and everyone else went to voicemail. If you can't be off when you're off, then you need to be paid like a 24/7 employee and compensated for the time you DO work. Especially if you're hourly. If you work during a vacation, the hours you worked need to go back into your PTO bank. Otherwise, it can be considered wage theft and illegal. Where I live, so many companies were converting hourly workers to salary to get around paying overtime, so the state now mandates that anyone making under a certain amount (I think it's $75,000/year) gets mandatory overtime for any hours over 40 that are worked, regardless if they are hourly or salaried. I had to take a certification class (it was all done virtually during COVID), and they paid me overtime for that because they wanted me to do it on my own time.
AnonymousOctober 11,2023 at 7:38PM UTC
You need to set firm boundaries but since this is the culture you must ALWAYS take precautions and document your coverage and communicate who will be overseeing which tasks while you're gone. Just taking it for granted without broad communication in writing that those you trust have your back is dangerous.
Next time make sure you're really covered by documentation and communication.
AnonymousOctober 12,2023 at 12:44PM UTC
What you allow will continue. It is against the wage and hour laws to have you work as an hourly employee and NOT compensate you properly for work done. You are going to have to meet with your manager and/or HR to make your dissatisfaction known and come to an agreement that since you are NOT salaried, that you cannot continue to be available during your personal time off. Associates that were tasked with doing your work while you were approved to be off are the ones that should be held accountable for NOT doing that work. You (or any other employee) should not HAVE to do work while off on personal time. I know I have always coordinated with my coworkers to cover critical functions and what wasn't critical was addressed when I returned.
Sarah BordersOctober 12,2023 at 1:14PM UTC
I’m sorry you’re dealing with this. I have always felt that paid time off should be treated as though you are being paid NOT to work, especially if you’re an hourly employee. Unfortunately, in my experience, the only way to get out of a situation like this is to leave. It takes a massive shift in company mindset—from the top—to change this expectation. It’s most insidious because they’re paying lip service to work/life balance while expecting the opposite. There are places that actually honor paid time off, and they would be lucky to have you.
AnonymousOctober 12,2023 at 7:37PM UTC
That's on you. You have a case for not doing. Why would they expect anything different if you keep doing the same thing. You have a voice to say I won't have access, etc. Sounds harsh, but come on people. We've come a long way and continuing to accept this we are empowered to change things. Just because that is the way it's been DOES NOT make it okay to continue. Feel Empowered.
AnonymousOctober 13,2023 at 12:20AM UTC
Hell on these days if you want a job, you’ll do what they say even if it’s unethical to keep your job. B S. To whistleblower retaliation and anything else like that. It may be written out but it’s not completed according to policy if you asked me.
AnonymousOctober 13,2023 at 12:42PM UTC
You are doing the company a huge favor by not working on vacations and weekends since as an hourly employee you would have to be paid for that time. Start practicing the statement “since I’m hourly, that would put me in to overtime, not sure the company can afford that”. It will get the message through.
AnonymousOctober 13,2023 at 6:31PM UTC
They are likely exempt - No overtime, no clock punching.
AnonymousOctober 14,2023 at 4:36PM UTC
Exempt is the same thing as salaried. OP specifically states they are hourly, which specifically means they are not exempt. That's why everyone is advising her to claim overtime.
AnonymousOctober 13,2023 at 12:52PM UTC
Your PTO is part of your employment package and pay, you are entitled to it. That being said, if you are taking 8 hours of PTO and end up working 2 of those hours, then you only took 6 hours of PTO and your time sheet should reflect that. If you work on the weekend, then you should put in for overtime pay. You have the right to state that your working hours are 8 -5 Monday - Friday, and any work done outside of those hours will be considered overtime which you are entitled to compensation. Unless you are a salary employee, in which case you don't get OT, and you should guard your non-work hours.
Our VP takes time off, she clearly states in her out of office message that she will not be checking email, contact [blah] if this is an emergency. Then she says that she will be deleting all emails upon her return and if your question has not been answered and you still need assistance, please send another email after [this date]. We have all started this policy since our VP obviously understands the importance of time off.
I will say that when I am off, I will check my emails (usually late at night/early morning) answer if it is quick, forward it, if necessary, delete or ignore. I do this because once I was away for 1 day, didn't check my emails and came back to 153 of them. My boss has accepted that I check emails (so does my counterpart), she doesn't like it and reminds us that the office will not implode during our absence and reminds us that we shouldn't do it but understands why we do it.
AnonymousOctober 13,2023 at 6:30PM UTC
Agree with the sentiment, but if the OP is exempt, overtime doesn't exist.
AnonymousOctober 13,2023 at 10:33PM UTC
Some states now require salaried employees under a certain amount to be paid overtime on any time spent over 40 hours per week. That was put in place because too many employers were converting hourly employees to salaries and then making them work 50-60 hours per week, which resulted in a cut in pay for many of them.
AnonymousOctober 13,2023 at 6:30PM UTC
It doesn't sound like the expectation was that you would do the tasks, but rather that you would have coverage for the tasks and something fell apart with the coverage. It seems short-sighted to now set things up automatically if that was an option.
AnonymousOctober 14,2023 at 1:21PM UTC
I was in a similar situation at my last job except I was salaried. I was given a guilt trip any time I wanted to use vacation and felt like an outlier, trying to have a work-life balance. My manager at the time even harassed me via text message because i was unavailable during a long weekend (on time off she herself approved) out of town for my anniversary. That was the final straw for me. This issue was only part of the much larger problem, which was a highly toxic work environment. Though i was very passionate about the actual work I did, I left. I'm now in a job with a much better culture and am treated well. I would advise trying to get out and find a better situation for yourself. You don't want to look back on your life and realize you dedicated so much of it to work and not really living.
AnonymousOctober 14,2023 at 5:39PM UTC
I was on similar ship, I was a manager for a boutique and ran the store day to day. I was hourly and did not get paid on my off days - If it was my day off or I was on vacation I still answered questions and tried to help my team as i loved my job. One Saturday night, I was spending time with family and did not respond to the owners text[my boss] at 7pm that night[again, I was hourly].
I saw the text Sunday morning and responded and started my Sunday shift. A few hours into it, the owner called me to go over the schedule. All good.
Tuesday rolled around and the other owner[who was not involved in the convo] crititzed me for not answering and that they expect their manager to respond. I explained I did not have my phone and I was not on the clock and he responded with it is "allowed by law for an owner to call up an employee off hours and have them answer". This was my breaking point because i was hourly and the whole thing was idiotic [and untrue by law] as it would have been my issue anyway. This one only one issue of many and it was a highly toxic work environment.
I left after finding a new job, I still miss what I did there but overall I am much happier and reccomend you leave the sinking ship before you go down with it.
ReachingGoalsOctober 14,2023 at 6:09PM UTC
Just because it is "allowed" doesn't make it right or mean that you are required to answer your phone.