Posts
27
Joined
10/8/2023
Location
Claremore, OK
US
I'm probably gonna get some company men that disagree with me and can't get enough OT. And there's always someone that works more hours. But after 18 months of 5 10s and 8 on Saturday I burnt-out of OT.
I currently work 4 10s and was told I need to make myself available on Fridays now. And I hate that they word it like I have a choice. I haaaaate being at work any longer than I have to be. There needs to be a law that makes it illegal for an employer to relatiate against you for refusing to work OT. My time off/family time is very important to me as we are very close.
You know the saying. "Poor planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on mine"
Sorry fellas just wanted to rant a little bit. One less day I get to ride
I don’t blame you . That much OT for that length of time , tells me that your management is failing large . What kind of work do you do ?
Overtime would be alot more appealing if Uncle Sam wasnt allowed to tax anything over 40 hrs a week.
Wait til you hear about working overtime as a salary employee.
Edit: 18 months at 50+ hours is way too long for that kind of schedule. Have guys been quitting because of it?
Even coming from the management side of things, I definitely understand your frustration. My guess is that they don’t want to hire more employees, and reduce their ‘salary burden’ of all that OT, because they’ve calculated that the benefits of adding employees is higher than the cost of the OT.
I’ve had stretches of time where I’ve had to mandate OT, but I hate doing it and try to stop it as soon as possible. I always offer voluntary OT first and mandating it is really a last resort, but at 18 months it sounds like they’ve made it their new ‘normal’.
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LOL, in some countries we have laws against mandatory overtime!
I understand your dilemma, and it sounds like your company does need better planning after 18 months of mandatory overtime. They should look at temporary workers, either through agencies, contracts or part time workers. Most companies force OT for short periods of time to get through surges or to catch up, but after 18 months it seems more like a situation of understaffing for the projected workflow....
Are they predicting a light at the end of the tunnel or are they just maintaining the currant status for as long as they can?
Is this a union shop?
Figured out when I first started getting paychecks, overtime is a frikkin scam.
Anything over 4-5hrs a week, and the government gets most of it.
Not to mention burn out, and its inevitable lack of productivity per hr.
Third shift should be illegal also. When the hell are you supposed to sleep?
MOT only works if there is an end in sight. When it's week after week, month after month it is doing way more harm than good.
If you have a project that has to be done by a certain date, MOT all you want, people will work their asses off to get it done. If every Thursday they come into work saying you have to work this weekend, and extra hours during the week, people just give up. If you built 20 widgets in an 8-hour day, you can guarantee they will build 20 widgets in a 10-hour day, and 10 on Saturday. They should incentivize you building 25 widgets during an 8-hour shift instead, and no, pizza aint it.
I understand from a management point of view MOT is much cheaper than a new hire, but it's also a great way to throw money in the trash and lose great employees.
I've never worked anything but first but I know people that prefer 3rd over 2nd shift .
Ot does suck after awhile. I've worked my way into a desk job now and only do 40 a week ,but I've been at places that had mandatory 5 tens and 8 every other Saturday. It got old .
Why do you still work there?
I'm a commercial/industrial electrician
That's exactly it. They don't wanna hire more guys. I was running a remodel job ALONE when the job was originally bid for 5 guys. 2 journeyman and 3 apprentices and I did the whole thing by myself. That's how they make their money by running skeleton crews and only giving you temporary help for a couple days to get you caught back up when you get too far behind. It's very frustrating
Honestly it's only because I have a company vehicle that I get to drive home and that saves me alot of money in gas.
So the company vehicle is worth the overtime? If not, I’d be looking for a new job…make that management pound sand…they aren’t doing themselves any favors.
I get that they are trying to maximize profits by minimizing employees…and I support that, actually…but I also support employees who don’t feel they are treated fairly and find better jobs. Happy employees lead to a thriving business…
There is really no such thing as mandatory overtime in America…because it’s not mandatory that you work for a specific company. Don’t wait on the government to save you (make mandatory overtime illegal), if the company wont change, you control what you can control, and you make a change. (Unless that company car is that big of a deal to you?)
Sounds like you are working for a bad contractor. They take on more work than they can handle and then they have a choice. Piss off the customer with delayed completion or burn out the employees.
I'm having a difficult time in understanding the situation. First, you said you have been on this 5/10 + 1/8 schedule for 18 months and then you said you currently work 4/10 and are being asked to work Friday's. Maybe I'm reading that wrong but is doesn't make sense to me.
Maybe you can clarify it for me because there is no way that I would be in my 18th month of 5/10 + 1/8. If you are a qualified commercial/industrial electrician, you can get another job at the drop of the hat.
Ok ya sorry. I've been on 40hrs for awhile but previously a few yrs ago was when I was working 6 day 58hr work weeks. That 18 month experience burnt me out of always being at work and I just want my 40 hrs. Especially now that I'm a father and wanna be home with my wife and kid and/or at the dirt bike track with them. So yes I'm currently working 4 10s but now having to work Friday. It's not the end of the world I will still get Saturday and Sunday off I'm just bitching that I have work OT when it's deeply not wanted.
In 15 months I will eligible to take my contractor test and get my contractor license and then I plan to start my electrical business and just work for myself
Good luck with the new business when the time comes. But just a little caveat, make sure that you have ample savings and also bid your jobs based on a 50% bad debt/slow pay scenario. I know at least 3 electricians who went out on their own who didn’t factor those in and ended up having to go back to being an employee. And the last 2 were pretty good friends with the first one but still didn’t think that it would happen to them!!!!!!
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If I were you i would not start my own business. If you don't like overtime, you will either hate being a business owner or you will fail. The first few years at least, you will not be getting much riding in. It could pay off in the long run but for a while, you will be in a constant struggle over work/family time.
That is why I left my previous job. I was getting mandated 'forced overtime'. I missed a lot of my daughter's first year of life because of that job. The checks were nice, but taxed heavily, especially here in hell'ish Illinois.
Honestly you're probably right about that. I've been self employed before but it wasn't contracting work. I guess ive forgotten the relief of stress I felt when i went back to being an employee and having that guaranteed check every week
I don't know, I am 58 and have been working never less than 50 hours a week my whole life. Lot of seven day weeks, lot of 12 hour days. But I really enjoy my job too, kind of made my hobby my job, and my customers are all like family. My family and I never seemed to lack time together, and now that my kids are older they both are very ambitious and career driven. I can't imagine working any time at a job you hate or is boring though, let alone overtime. I genuinely feel bad for people stuck in that grind.
Heh.... worked salaried at previous companies who work you to death. Tech companies are notorious for this. Google wanted to hire me, but I would not relocate to Nor-Cal (requirement). I worked onsite at Google (customer of a company I worked for) and saw what the employees went thru. Sure, free meals/food, onsite gyms, etc etc....but many of them are there into the wee hours of the morning. Apple is one of the worst sweat-shops in tech and the attrition there is insane.
I don't mind putting in the gratis extra time here and there....but when it's expected and forced and endless, it's time to move on.
Fortunate to work at company now who pays OT. ...but as JB mentioned, the freaking "looters" take most of it.
I keep a healthy work/life balance. The OT $$$$ is not a big motivator for me.
Same, except I am 50. I couldn't even begin to calculate the amount of hours I have worked over the 28 years I have into my career (actually I can, 72,958 per MPIPHP statement as of 2022). I average about 2 months off a year, so it comes out to right around 60 hours a week. For 28 years straight. And people glamorize the tv business.
The fucked thing is, my job could EASILY be a 40 hour a week job if studios had a realistic schedule, but they don't. My OT is exponentially more expensive then adding time to the back end, but they don't care.
So all that to say, mandatory OT is required at all times in my world.
I don't hate my job but I don't love it either. And I really believe our nation's mental health would be improved if we went with a 4 day work week and people had 3 day weekends. 2 days just isn't enough and I've been on 4 10s for 2 months now and I love it. Hopefully this OT doesn't last very long. Like others have said the amount of money you make on OT isn't worth it and with how much it gets taxed. I refuse to work Sundays for this reason. Even if double time. One time I would my 5 10s, 12 on Saturday, then 8 on Sunday for double time. I ended up only making $150 more on my check because it got taxed so much. The whole crew at the time told the foreman to never ask us to work a Sunday again (was a union shop)
My dumbass volunteers for the overtime. It’s just past mid-October with 10 paydays left and I’ve made more money than I ever have in my life.
And I am absolutely fried. Burnt the heck out and mad at myself. Weather is turning cool here and I look back at my summer and realize that I’ve had very little fun. Definitely not worth it.
I've been getting forced in on Saturdays. If I have something planned I just come in and leave when I have to ,they can force us in but not force us to stay the whole shift.
I sacrificed a lot of my personal life and, time with my family at my last employer.
I worked ten hour days only to get a call on my way home to take care of a service call or, just go look at something that turned into an all night deal.
My wife was sick at the time so, I needed their insurance and, the extra money for medical bills.
During her surgery, they almost lost her on the table. All I could think of was, I wish I would’ve been there more for her. After, I told them I wasn’t working this so called, mandatory overtime. I’ll give them as many hours during the week but, I want my weekends back. They didn’t like that obviously. I got overloaded with ot during the week. Sleeping maybe three hours each night. My attitude went to shit, I was constantly irritated. Calling a coworker a pussy for always complaining day in and, day out was the best thing I could’ve ever done. I got fired over it. I moved on to a better company. Over time is optional and, I still have a company van.
Not to mention the pay is nearly 70% better.
Don’t like your situation. Just call someone at work a pussy. It’ll open a lot of doors. Even one on the way out lol.
Wow, let me guess, he went crying to HR and they had to follow policy.
What a Pu$$y !
Your State must have punitive income tax laws, or you are in a screwy bracket/deduction situation maybe. Here it does pay well, non OT employees compare checks to OT employees all the time at our place, it's not even close. Add to it the addition to your SSI and 401k contribution, potential added unemployment or disability benefits, it is worth it to some. But time at home is worth smaller checks to some folks, that is cool too.
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