Boss told me to get off my personal phone in a meeting

What you should have done when you realised it was a message from the school is excuse yourself & leave the meeting & see if it was an emergency that you needed to deal with. If it wasn't return to the meeting quietly & explain to your Boss afterwards that you had to leave to check there wasn't an emergency with one of your kids. Being on your phone during a work meeting is rude & your Boss reprimanding you was right in calling you out as you should be concentrating on the meeting not your phone.

hmmm perhaps OP is more peeved off about the way her boss addressed her. I think being pulled aside rather than snapped at in front of everyone is a more professional way to handle things. If they want to set an example of professionalism. That could give OP the chance to explain and assure boss it won’t happen again and they meant no disrespect?

That's the whole point!!

It's not as easy as just finding another job, hence why she has to follow the rules.

I agree that you shouldn’t be on your personal phone during a meeting so you are in the wrong for that. However, I also make sure not to use my work phone during my own personal life, which is a boundary that some companies don’t like as some expect you to answer calls or emails in your own time, in my opinion if a company expects that then they can expect me to do some personal stuff on work time

Sorry, you're in the wrong. If I were your boss I'd have handled it differently, afterwards, but that doesn't mean you were in the right.

Ever heard of smart watches? Turn it face up on the inside of your wrist and it is much less noticeble.

I don't actually think most people consciously think this way actually. I think phones, and our phone habits, have become so ingrained, that the behaviour is often autopilot. I had to work quite hard with some people in my team to help them understand that "family friendly" doesn't mean you can ignore or interrupt your colleagues or customers in a meeting for every little bit of family trivia that comes through your phone.

I think YABU for pulling your boss up on it!

Who are you referring to that thinks that? Do you mean the op looking at the school message?

Context is key though. My workplace is very family friendly in many ways - yes, you can plan to take time off for the Christmas play, Easter fair and sports days. Yes, if you have a family emergency, whether it's kids or caring for elderly or infirm adult family, you go take care of it, no questions asked. But it's give and take, it's not all taking and no giving, like some people seem to think.

I don't think it's necessarily sector or job based, it's probably more company and workplace based. In some companies it will be fine, in others it will be frowned upon. It's a difference in culture. Different workplaces, different vibes.

But it's not a thing you can expect, either it will be allowed or frowned upon, and if you end up in a work place where it's frowned upon then they're not being unreasonable to tell you off.

That’s a straw man — I never said all jobs that aren’t like mine are transactional, old-fashioned or hierarchical; you’re misrepresenting my point purposefully to try and ‘gotcha’

You’ve done this to posters throughout the thread. It’s quite a pointless thing to do isn’t it?

But clearly from other posts on here, this isn’t the norm in other jobs, particularly those that are more transactional in nature or monitored. It seems in these workplaces it’s still very hierarchical, and ‘Me boss. You worker.’

It's weird that you think the numerous jobs where being on your phone and leaving early/taking random time off is simply not acceptable because it affects everyone else at work (no, I won't list them again, I'll just get mocked by a certain poster if they're around) are transaction, old fashioned and hierarchical

YOU were the one to ‘pull up’ your boss afterwards? Should have been the other way around, surely?

Im very laid back and dont care too much for rules but even i think that is disrespectful and rude. End of. Your an adult and should've known better.

I would also consider apologising to your boss to show you have some respect for their authority.

Next time maybe excuse yourself before looking at your phone.

Thing is we’ll never reach consensus on this thread as people have such different jobs and careers.

I work a senior role in a large London company. Checking a phone, using a laptop etc are all completely normal behaviours during the workday and in meetings. I can sit and do my Ocado shop (not in a meeting, I mean at my desk) and no-one would care. Because I’m paid for my expertise and output and ultimately getting the job done. My workplace has the attitude of ‘family first’ and I can leave early to pick up or take a morning for sports day and the like, again no problem. We even have regular comms emphasising this.

But clearly from other posts on here, this isn’t the norm in other jobs, particularly those that are more transactional in nature or monitored. It seems in these workplaces it’s still very hierarchical, and ‘Me boss. You worker.’

And I assume that those that work in these roles wouldn’t like others having the freedom that roles like mine offer, because they can’t. I’d be annoyed too! Hence the vitriol towards op for daring to check a school message in a meeting.

And again, there appear to be a number of others on here that haven’t worked in years and have some fairly antiquated views on the workplace. That’s to be expected. Things change fast.

Op, I’d say YABU if everyone at your place is called out for it and YANBU if you were singled out. That’s all there is to it right everyone?

Get a smart watch.

Over looking at a message 😂😂😂😂. You bloody psycho!! Imagine the turnover in a company which got rid of people for this.

I keep my personal phone on me at all times at work (office job), it's on the desk wheather in a meeting or not because my child is at Nursery and if the nursery/ my child needs me I'm answering that phone!! It's no different form having a work phone or laptop on your desk in a meeting. Anyone who had a problem with this could Jog on. You're absolutely in the right!

Get off your phone!
The comment ‘they don’t have kids’ is very telling. What’s that got to do with anything? It shows you as entitled and rude. You were in a professional working environment. You should be focused and present in the meeting. Show respect for your colleagues. What you do in your office is your own business but in a meeting it’s incredibly rude and unprofessional.

I lead a large function in a fortune500 company so completely get the pressure of corporate life. But your boss sounds like a dick. I would never humiliate or berate someone for looking at a message on a phone, especially if it was to do with someone’s children. Christ! Family first, always. I’d have no issue with mic dropping in a senior forum if I need to respond to someone about my kids.

I'm with you, until the end, because of the "just get another job" line because frankly the many people without work who have been applying for job after job without success would find it insulting to have it implied getting another job is easy.

My phone never went into a meeting. School had an office number for if I didn't answer my mobile, which a colleague would answer and take a message. If it was urgent, like one of my kids was on the way to hospital, they would interrupt the meeting and call me outside. Its not difficult

Your boss is right and, I suspect, your career is over with that employer.