"If you work some weekends, you'll take weekdays off." (employment, felony)

[mitsguy2001]

This post is exactly why I keep saying that salary is a scam, and should be outlawed for anything other than extremely upper level jobs. Too bad the corporate shrills who dominate this board don't agree with me.

[mitsguy2001]

Question for the OP: is it absolutely mandated that you physically be in the office on most weekends? Or do they just expect you to get all of your work done, but give you more work than can be done in a regular workday? If the later, then is it possible to stay later during the week, in order to avoid working on weekends? I know that's not ideal either, but, at least in my opinion, I'd gladly work until 3 AM every weeknight in exchange for not having to work weekends.

[ccm123]

A salaried position generally offers more flexibility, while an hourly one generally does not.

Originally Posted by mitsguy2001

This post is exactly why I keep saying that salary is a scam, and should be outlawed for anything other than extremely upper level jobs. Too bad the corporate shrills who dominate this board don't agree with me.

[bande1102]

Originally Posted by mitsguy2001

This post is exactly why I keep saying that salary is a scam, and should be outlawed for anything other than extremely upper level jobs. Too bad the corporate shrills who dominate this board don't agree with me.

I completely agree.

To the OP: How does the working weekends thing happen? Is there an assumption that you'll be there?
Why are you working so many hours?

Depending on the circumstances, I'd either not show up on the weekend or, if pressed, simply say that I have plans. I wouldn't ask permission. It's up to you to set boundaries. Trust me, business will let you work as many hours as you want.

[kharing]

Originally Posted by mitsguy2001

This post is exactly why I keep saying that salary is a scam, and should be outlawed for anything other than extremely upper level jobs. Too bad the corporate shrills who dominate this board don't agree with me.

I agree. A few years ago, I took a supervisor position in a major health care organization. One of the most important lessons of my career. I was salary with "road warrior" bonuses but worked 60 plus hours a week and was on call seven nights a week. I didn't have a life. Go to the movies, called to handle a situation at one of the centers I coordinated care for. Couldn't make plans, go out with friends....I was completely screwed.

My direct manager was a jack off! He would actually call me from the golf course, spewing requests for me to help this or that client. I felt like I lived in my car and slept with my cell on my pillow. Took some time, but I bailed out of that job after getting robbed for almost 18 months. Never again. I thought the experience would have lead me to a better paying position, but I realized that having a social life and freedom was way more important than trying to crack the glass ceiling.

Find another job.

[bobtn]

Originally Posted by freedom125

I was told this when starting my job. I'm a full-time, exempt employee.

I was specifically told during one of my final interviews "If we end up having to work some weekends, we will take some weekdays off to make up for it."

I've been at my job here for a little over a year now, and this quite simply does not happen.

We work normal 8-5 weekdays, sometimes more than that. Then we are expected to work most weekends as well. Sometimes 8-10 hours a day on Saturdays and/or Sundays.

I'm not afraid of hard work but don't appreciate being lied to during the interview. I'm not sure why he would say that if it just wasn't true.

Is there any way to diplomatically bring this issue up without coming across as a lazy worker?

Start searching for a job now. I've seen corps grant comp time, seen some renege, and neither result is accidental.

Whenever folks start job-searching if you feel you have been mistreated, do not overlook the obvious. Your first search should be checking to see if your present employer's fiercest competitor has suitable spots for you. Inevitably, in an interview process, you'll start miles ahead of all other candidates there.

[slcity]

4 months ago, my lying boss sent out an email to the whole team saying that we had a ton of work to do to meet an end of July deadline. He asked us to work weekends if possible, and for each weekend day we worked, he would let us take a Friday off after the deadline. I ended up working 7 weekend days and other people worked on weekends as well, but of course after the deadline passed, my boss never mentioned to anyone that they could take some Fridays off.

The good news for me is that my company has way too many managers. My boss is not the person who signs off on my timesheet - a different manager does that. So when I took a week of vacation last month, I didn't use any vacation days - instead I just billed 5 days to the project without telling my boss since he never sees my timesheet. The timesheet manager signed off on it as I expected since he works on the other side of the country and had no idea I was on vacation! Anyway if they had caught me, I would have just showed them my boss's email and told them I was taking comp days as my boss had promised.

[Rabrrita]

Originally Posted by pierced

If you are in a right to work state there is no good way to bring this up.

What does Right to Work have to do with anything in this topic???????

[don1945]

I worked for a company one time that had a 6 day work week, Sunday was our only day off. It got to the point where you couldn't get any chores or shopping done on just one day, so every employee got together and we agreed to tell the owners we couldn't do it any more.

We sat him down in a meeting and said "We want to go to a 5 day work week because we are all burned out on working 6." He said that he was afraid we would fall behind in our work, but we told him we felt we would still do as much and maybe even more because we wouldn't be so tired all the time. He asked when we wanted to start doing that and we said "Today !"

He had no choice because he knew we were ready to walk out, all of us, and he agreed. Productivity DID go up and we stayed on 5 days a week from then on.

Don

[pierced]

Originally Posted by Rabrrita

What does Right to Work have to do with anything in this topic???????

If you work in a right to work state you have less rights. The employer can fire you at will and can also mandate that you work as many hours that they want.

For example: http://www.nclabor.com/wh/fact%20sheets/overtime.htm

This is a direct quote from the NC Dept of Labor website:

There are no limitations on how many hours an adult employee can required to work regardless if they are a salaried-exempt employee or a non-exempt employee. The employer is only required to pay time and one-half overtime pay based on an employee's regular rate of pay for all hours worked in excess of 40 in a workweek to its non-exempt employees, but there is no limit to how many hours the adult employee may be required to work. The decision to work employees in 8-hour shifts, 12-hour shifts, 16-hour shifts, etc. is entirely up to the employer. The decision to call an employee back in to work on a scheduled day off is entirely up to the employer. An employer can make the working on a scheduled day off or working a full shift as a condition of employment regardless of an employee's start-time or end-time. An employer can make the working of overtime hours as a condition of employment. Since an employer can make the working of overtime mandatory, the employer can terminate an employee if the employee refuses to work overtime regardless of how many hours the employee has already worked that day or workweek. And the employer does not have give its employees any advanced notice of having to work extra hours. An employer can come up at the last minute to inform its employees that they have to work overtime. And the employer does not have to consider how the working of the extra time will affect an employee's personal life.