Poll: Salaried, Exempt employees: Why do you regularly work over 40 hours per week as a lifestyle? (consulting, average)
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I work OT, even though I almost never get extra $$ for it (it has to get pre-approved, which often, there's no need) b/c I end up needing the extra time to get work done. I guess I'd pick "I just feel that it is the "right" thing to do". However, I'm not doing it just because "it's expected". I'm doing it b/c I need that extra time. If I have something that can wait the next business day, then I'm going home when it's time.
I've had some coworkers like that... they'll leave after 4 hours on the job on some days. Lets them take care of issues with kids and such. Other times, they'll come in on the weekend to get work done. It balances out.
I've heard some cultural things about working OT in Asia that still amuse me...
In Chinese corporate culture, you're expected to get in before the boss, and can only leave after he does. Otherwise, you're not a team player, and are stealing from the company!
I had a coworker who worked a bit in Japan. They have a thing where they have to stay after "the new guy". One day, my coworker tested that theory out by staying until 9pm. They followed suit too! Once was enough. If he did this often, he'd really be screwing with the rest of them, as even if they didn't have families, they definitely had errands and other stuff to attend to.
This poll is for exempt, salaried employees who choose to work significantly more than 40 hours per week as a lifestyle, but are not paid extra for those hours. Before you answer, let me explain who this poll is not intended for:
1. Not intended for people who are paid overtime for working more than 40 hours per week, since it is obvious that money is a motivator there. This poll is for people who are not paid for overtime.
2. This poll is not intended for people who generally work 40 hours per week, but occasionally work extra in order to meet an especially tight deadline, to deal with an emergency, or to cover for a coworker who is sick or on vacation. That is all generally expected of professional employees. This is intended for the people who, as a lifestyle, always work significantly more than 40 hours per week, regardless of workload. The people who consider their start time to be something earlier than what is in the company handbook; the people who consider their end time to be something later than what is in the company handbook; the people who consider Saturdays and/or Sundays to be working days; the people who choose to work on holidays listed as days off in the company handbook.
3. This poll is not intended for people who work about 45 or so hours per week. I'm thinking more of the people who work significantly more.
4. This poll is not intended for people who work long hours but for fewer than 12 months per year.
Anyway, I'm curious to see what options people choose here. I included "Other" since there may be other options that I haven't thought of yet. Be sure to post your thoughts here. Thanks!
Your poll is missing one of the reasons:
I am dedicated to my job; I stay to finish my various projects at times because that's how long it takes. I go home, knowing I did a good job at something I like doing and that I'm good at, and my bosses will be pleased when they see the work product.
I don't know why people insist on choosing outrageously high COL places to live in, because the wages and salaries so rarely make up for it. Unless you're at the very top.
Because if you want to get the very top, you need to live in premier areas. Not everyone is content with mediocrity, including living in a mediocre place.
My poll was to determine why it is that so many employees willingly allow their employers to abuse them.
Why is long hours abuse? Maybe there is a point where it becomes so. In my case I always felt reasonably paid, enjoyed my job and felt appreciated for the extra effort.
I'm an hourly employee now, but voted anyway because the answer was the same for every salaried job I've ever had: I'd lose the job if I didn't. There has never been any sort of reward/redemption or anything for extra effort...it simply became the "new standard".
For the record, I work in IT, where off-hour work is extremely common (and thus, hourly positions are extremely valuable)
No reason to be sorry, it's not so much how much you earn but what the cost of living in the area is.
According to Money Magazine I would have to have a little over $145k in San Francisco to enjoy the exact standard of living where I am nearly paid half of that. In San Diego I would have to have $119k and in Buffalo, NY I would have to have $144K in Brooklyn.
The possibility of being laid off, being replaced by someone younger and finding a job are three things I've never had to worry about.
I am in a very small niche field in a heavily regulated industry that requires a certain certification to obtain a license to do business. For federal projects it takes a minimum of ten years to obtain the level of certification required while to hold a state license it takes a minimum of five years and there isn't any fast way around it. Checking the registry there's a total of 56 people who hold my level of certification living in the state of Georgia. The youngest certificate holder is 39 years old while the median age of all certificate holders is 61. 74.2% of certificate holders are older than 50 so seeing how we're all older folks I've never had to worry about my age. Tell you how bad it is; I'm 67 and 26.8% of certificate holders in Georgia are older than I am. Good luck finding a 22 year old puppy to replace me because they don't exist.
I have always been the first hired and last fired because most state laws, I know Georgia, Florida, Alabama, the Carolina's, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Texas, etc issue licenses to companies to enable them to do business and the big requirement is they employ, stipulated as a full time position, a certified technician to be the license holder for the company. We're licensed in five states and on every license there is my name as the license holder. By law if I leave employment I am required to notify the respective state licensing board who then gives the company 30 days to find a replacement. Very hard to do because I've never known a license holder to be out of a job for more than a week unless he didn't want to work.
It is standard that my name as certificate holder be written into federal contracts that I remain in employment as a "full time" employee.
I get along with "management" pretty well, they let me do my thing while they do theirs, but the few times we've had "issues" they glare at me, I glare at them and it's a big Mexican standoff. I always win.
That said I put 100% into my job and take it very seriously.
Hopefully you realize that your situation is not the norm.
I don't know why people insist on choosing outrageously high COL places to live in, because the wages and salaries so rarely make up for it. Unless you're at the very top.
I live here because it's where the rest of my family lives, and I want to stay near them.
No reason to be sorry, it's not so much how much you earn but what the cost of living in the area is.
According to Money Magazine I would have to have a little over $145k in San Francisco to enjoy the exact standard of living where I am nearly paid half of that. In San Diego I would have to have $119k and in Buffalo, NY I would have to have $144K in Brooklyn.
The possibility of being laid off, being replaced by someone younger and finding a job are three things I've never had to worry about.
I am in a very small niche field in a heavily regulated industry that requires a certain certification to obtain a license to do business. For federal projects it takes a minimum of ten years to obtain the level of certification required while to hold a state license it takes a minimum of five years and there isn't any fast way around it. Checking the registry there's a total of 56 people who hold my level of certification living in the state of Georgia. The youngest certificate holder is 39 years old while the median age of all certificate holders is 61. 74.2% of certificate holders are older than 50 so seeing how we're all older folks I've never had to worry about my age. Tell you how bad it is; I'm 67 and 26.8% of certificate holders in Georgia are older than I am. Good luck finding a 22 year old puppy to replace me because they don't exist.
I have always been the first hired and last fired because most state laws, I know Georgia, Florida, Alabama, the Carolina's, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Texas, etc issue licenses to companies to enable them to do business and the big requirement is they employ, stipulated as a full time position, a certified technician to be the license holder for the company. We're licensed in five states and on every license there is my name as the license holder. By law if I leave employment I am required to notify the respective state licensing board who then gives the company 30 days to find a replacement. Very hard to do because I've never known a license holder to be out of a job for more than a week unless he didn't want to work.
It is standard that my name as certificate holder be written into federal contracts that I remain in employment as a "full time" employee.
I get along with "management" pretty well, they let me do my thing while they do theirs, but the few times we've had "issues" they glare at me, I glare at them and it's a big Mexican standoff. I always win.
That said I put 100% into my job and take it very seriously.
Good for you. I imagine that the majority of people employed in this country don't enjoy regulatory or statutory job protection. Wouldn't you agree?
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