August 19, 2013 at 2:20 pm
djackson 22568 (8/19/2013)
Jack Corbett (9/26/2008)
I guess I've been fortunate to have not had an "Eric" in any departments I've worked in, unless I was the "Eric" and didn't know it. I have had to deal with "Eric's" in other departments though and I don't recall any of them being fired. In this case I agree with most that "Eric's" deficiencies need to be documented, confronted, and a plan for change developed before firing takes place. While I am big fan of flex schedules, I really have a problem with an 11 am start time and then complaining when you have to be available for conference calls before that time, especially when you can do them from home. I'd let him know that he is required to be IN THE OFFICE for the calls and when he misses one he's done.Hmm? What about the guy that has to be available 24/7/365? What about when that person ends up supporting an issue all night long? What about a person that works mostly later in the day so he is able to conduct maintenance on systems used earlier in the day?
Blanket statements about how one must always be available during certain hours may be fine for a development team. Those of us who support systems that developers failed to design and build properly tend towards understanding that life has unexpected things come up. Frequently we end up supporting systems that were so poorly designed that they require a twice yearly downtime because they cannot handle DST.
It sounds like your organization, your department, or your role, works well using standard work hours. Organizations that allow flexible work schedules have reasons behind them. Employees who are expected to be available at all times have legal rights to protect them, due to how so many companies have abused employees in the past.
Agreed, managers must be careful before making assumptions about the way some support people work. I know people who have current ongoing lawsuits who felt they were wrongfully terminated or discriminated against because they had an disability, or they were discriminated against because of their age. So far, most of them look like they are going to either win the suit outright or get a pretty good settlement out of it. Bottom line, don't let low-to-mid-level managers push you around. Most of them only care about their own careers anyway. So, know your rights and stick up for your rights. Don't be afraid to lawyer up if you feel the need to. You have a lot more power in the workplace nowadays than you think you do! Once HR knows they might be liable, they tend to take on a much different attitude towards taking just managment's word real fast. At least in the gov. sector anyway. If you feel your year-end review was unfair or judged on criteria that doesn't exists that someone just made up at the end of the year to stalemate you, then challenge it in writing through HR and speak to an ATTORNEY!!! You have rights and options nowadays in most work places. Just because you sign it does not mean you agree to it. 😀
"Technology is a weird thing. It brings you great gifts with one hand, and it stabs you in the back with the other. ...:-D"
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