I'd go nuts if I was still an employer.

[alchemysa]

I spent most of the last 30 years running my own business and employing people. I was no tyrant but I used to get annoyed if people spent too much time on private phone calls or emails. A couple of years ago I wound the business down, closed up shop, and retired early.

Thank heavens I got out when I did. It must be infuriating trying to get a decent days work out of staff these days. What with mobiles, texting, emails, twitter, facebook, blogs, and heaven knows what else it, seems that many staff seem to give their 'social network' top priority even during working hours.

Big Business and the Public Service can probably manage (or ignore) the problem better than small businesses. Employing staff is a mugs game at the best of times but for small business these days it must be utterly infuriating.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

Sounds like shutting down your business saved your mind. Most are not cut out to manage people.

 

[alchemysa]

Most are not cut out to manage people.

Neither was I but it took me 20 years to figure that out.

 

[Sumpter]

I'm not the employer but I am a manager and I have to battle this all the time. I manage several craft groups and also the admin staff. Guess who is the worst? On top of that the employer tells me I can't restrict cell phone use since we are in a remote location. I know how you feel.

 

[Cat_Driver]

Not difficult at all for me. NO electronics are allowed while working. Law requires breaks and lunch brakes so employees can do as they wish.

Before I applied that rule I had an employee that opened a competing business while he still worked for me and was taking business phone calls while on the clock.

Ya not real hard for me to apply the no electronics rule. If they don't like the rule - don't come to work, real simple.

 

[EddieWalker]

I know some companies that require their employees to leave their phones in their car. I also know a lot of people who text and surf the web all day long while at work. I've had a few employees that I gave up on partially because of their addiction to texting. The thing that gets me the most is those who are on the clock, and posting on facebook about how they can't wait for their day to end, and what they are doing to avoid doing any work. Hiding, goofing off and playing games. I also know some managers that will search online for those who do just these things. I know of one person who was not hired because of her facebook postings about her current employer. This would have been a big raise for her, but it never happened because of those postings.

Eddie

 

[alchemysa]

Not difficult at all for me. NO electronics are allowed while working.

That's very hard to enforce when most of your staff are desk bound, need computer access, and often get work calls on their mobiles. Its especially hard when you've got a small staff of specialised people you've spent years training. Its not always easy to say 'its my way or the highway'. You could be shooting yourself in the foot. Its a constant balancing act that I'm glad I'm finished with.

A client once said to me. "Look, there are 2 sorts of bosses. B*st**ds and poor ones."

 

[Willl]

It's nuts on both sides.

 

[Skyco]

I agree many employees nowadays need to get a clue.
I'm particularly annoyed as a customer to approach an employee in a store to either check out or ask a question.
But no- they are too busy talking to their coworkers about their personal lives to handle a customer.
Wal Mart seems to be really bad about this...the light is on at the register but no clerk is there, she's 50 ft away chatting. I turned off the light once and boy they got mad!:thumbsup:

 

[Egon]

Mm, interesting.

Wonder how many here post while at work??