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Flexible and core hours are the best thing to happen to the workplace since paid vacation. My last employer allowed employees to start work anywhere from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m., with a 7.5-hour workday. Your exit time depended on how much time you took for lunch. You were expected to adjust your schedule should be required to attend any meetings that occurred earlier than your usual start time, or later than your usual exit time. Most department managers requested that if you were coming in at 7 or 10 that you keep the same schedule every day, but some flexibility was permitted.
I have primarily worked hourly shift work positions until my most recent job. I generally worked some variant of second shift, weekend hours, or both, so I had some business hours during the week to get things done. At one position, I also had the occasional ability to work from home if needed.
At my current role, it is "butt in seat" 9-6 with no flexibility to work from home, make up hours on one end of shift or the other (there is enough work that it can be done after hours), etc.
I make a decent living but not enough to where I don't think I could find a job that offered more flexibility and discretion. How important is some control over your hours and working conditions to you?
So important Ill give up some pay or anything just to keep my sanity.
I never knew how important it was to me until I had it. My company allows flexible hours and working from home is accepted and encouraged, depending on your division and job, of course. I usually like to go in around 7 AM so that I have some flexibility in the late afternoon for sports and hobbies. When the days get short, sometimes I'll take a longer lunch to ride during daylight hours, but make up the time at the end of the day.
That all said, I often have meetings with India which requires very early mornings, and some days I have so many meetings overall, that I need to add extra hours onto the end of my day to get work done. I typically have two days (sometimes more, sometimes less) during the week where I work (by my own choice) 10-11 hours. But then I also typically wrap up a little early on Fridays and otherwise use the flexible option to fit in my personal stuff. I usually work from the office 7 - 2 or 3 and then will work the last few hours from home. I have a 15 minute commute, so going from desk at work to desk at home doesn't require a long gap in time. Fridays I like to work from home for the day, but I play it by ear. I am able to work from home as I want or need. This week a number of people in my office are traveling. I was supposed to be traveling with them, but I am nursing a sick dog, so I am working from home all week.
These flexible options definitely contribute to a very strong work/life balance and contributes to great staff morale. It allows me to work very hard for my company while still enjoying a high quality of life. But, as someone mentioned above, I worked for years to get to a place where this is an option for me. Although, to be fair, the workplace has changed greatly in the many years I've been in it as well.
Very important to me. I think I need flexibility in all areas of my life to be balanced. I've worked in jobs where you punch the clock coming and going and you better not be off by more than a minute coming or going - and that went for clocking in early or clocking out late. It was awful but I'm sure to some those were firm boundaries that made them feel better.
My customers love me, my boss loves me, I work hard and earn my pay. I put in my 80hrs a pay period and, if need be, more. Totally love my job.
i would LOVE the option to work from home maybe 1-2 days a week. i think the next job i look for i will try to find that opportunity - but i don't have high hopes because i'm in the accounting industry and it seems all accounting jobs are old school in the fact that you need to be IN THE OFFICE everyday
i would LOVE the option to work from home maybe 1-2 days a week. i think the next job i look for i will try to find that opportunity - but i don't have high hopes because i'm in the accounting industry and it seems all accounting jobs are old school in the fact that you need to be IN THE OFFICE everyday
I really enjoy my job, but wish we had time flexibility. We do get to telecommute one day a week, which is a nice perk. However, the other 4 days we have to be "butt in seat" from 9-6 pm (except on Fridays, when we get to leave an hour early).
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