AIBU to expect my staff to work overtime or more than just 9-5

[TeeterTotter]

I manage a large team of 20 staff and I have two members of my team who refuse to do anything beyond the core hours in their contract. In at a set time, out the door right on the dot like clockwork.

If these staff members were junior I wouldn't expect more of them but they are both on a managerial salary of £41-£44k per year --I think at this level there is a general expectation that you're generally more engaged and committed and that you'll work at home or stay late when needed. I also feel times have changed and in these dicey financial times people are giving more to their jobs than ever. In a perfect world no one would have extra work or overtime, but that's just not the way things are in 2012!

One of the staff members is a mom to 2 kids and she says it is impossible for her to stay late (due to childcare commitments) or to do work on weekends (she's too busy with the kids); the other is a single guy who has no appetite to do more than he's contracted to do.

I find this situation very irksome, especially because I have two kids but do a lot of late nights and work from home, which I think is expected at my level.

DP thinks I need to stop imposing my protestant work ethic on everyone I work with, but I feel these staff members aren't pulling their weight. I'm not a slavedriver but I expect more. Are I reasonable or are my views skewed? I would really welcome the opinion of others.

I'm not aware of anyone thinking public sector workers should have better conditions of employment LaQueen. Personally, I think everybody should have reasonable salaries and employment rights.

This split between public/private is meaningless anyway, since both sectors have their low paid and high paid workers. Annual pay rises don't mean much if you work in one of the very many low paid public sector occupations, like the cleaners and carers.

No LaQueen and neither do you, so who are all these people allegedly thinking public sector workers are somehow magically deserving of better employment conditions?

Anyway, the division between public and private sector workers is a red herring. What we are talking about in this thread is bad management practices, which abound in both sectors.

well the public sector workers i come into contact with (social workers) need to do some WORK for their wages
imho

sorry

but they are a pile of shite here

OwlLady - I don't doubt you, but we can't generalise about a whole profession based on our own experiences.

I would say, no matter what their job, if people have a good manager who truly understands and respects their efforts, most will go the extra mile.

Good managers seem few and far between.

This article in the Guardian makes some interesting points about accommodating both employers' and workers' needs in a way that does not disadvantage those employees who have to leave at 5pm:-

www.guardian.co.uk/money/2012/oct/05/women-work-life-balance-twitter

We also shouldn't forget that needing to leave work on time is a feminist issue.

I come across private sector workers every week who are rubbish. Bank staff, checkout workers, call centre people etc etc. I don't tar a whole sector of people with the same brush though.

Doesn't everyone think they deserve better employment conditions?

If you don't pop a CV in the post to me. I'll gladly offer you reduced pay, increased hours and trim the fat off your pension. Everyone's happy :)

We also shouldn't forget that needing to leave work on time is a feminist issue.

What a crock of crap.

That's me out.

Yes but ShellyBoobs it's an issue that negatively affects more women than men (see the article I linked to) so we all need to be careful about placing an expectation on all staff to do unplanned overtime.

I don't disagree with your earlier point that there is a middle ground - this thread has pushed us all into defending extreme positions. Of course there are some jobsworths who never give an inch ... but people who leave at 5pm are not necessarily those jobsworths.

I think there is this misconception amongst public sector workers that the grass is greener in the private sector. It's not.

I know so many people in private sector who have not had a pay rise or cost of living increase in at least four years. Companies that contribute to a pension are almost non-existent now, and as for final salary pensions, well I think they went out with the ark. Very few industries have unions now so if you have a problem there is just no one to turn to and no support network. It's tough and employees seem to be getting shafted left, right and centre. There is no security and no loyalty from employers and in turn no employee loyalty. It stinks.

I've been really interested to read this thread and see how many other people feel. Up until now, I actually thought I was in the minority!

Been following this thread with interest.
When i worked in retail for not much more than minimum wage we often had to stay late.
But if people working in shop and factory jobs complain the attitude is usually "Well its better than being on benefits"!

It's a shame some workers are (or feel) so powerless that they have to put up with that kind of attitude Darkesteyes.

I wonder why some employers are so cavalier - I suppose they think they have a ready supply of replacement labour, but surely they have some staff that they value enough not to piss off.

I think the thing that annoys me most about how the social service is organised is that they think they are meeting objectives and proving services because they work within a given timescale In my opinion, that is not providing a service, that is working to protocol and ticking all the boxes, yet even at complaint level they wheel out that the timescales have been met so complaints cannot be upheld even though a[appropriate support and services are not provided that's too much management

My mum is a public sector worker, she has better pay and conditions than her equivalant in the private sector, managed to dodge all the bullets in the pension debacle and is doing very well thank you. She will indeed get a final salary pension.

Except that according to her, she isnt that well off. She has been in that job for 30 years and has no idea how lucky she is. She conveniently forgets that we dont all get guaranteed pay rises, good pensions, union protection etc and is very disparaging of people who complain how hard things are at the moment. Her attitude is that you should just work harder

It really does get on my tits that just because she works in local government she thinks that she automatically deserves things that the rest of us would count ourselves bloody lucky to have. And she is a baby boomer who made money in her property. I am sure you can imagine the rows......

Where are these public sector workers who expect or get pay rises every year? Round here council workers got pay cuts last year; this year they are looking at massive redundancies. Noone seems to have mentioned magically deserving.

It's sad how many people have been sucked into the race to the bottom.

Because some workers have a relatively good deal, does that mean everyone should?

Why the jeff aren't people complaining about the incredibly insane pay rises that senior staff get in the private sector, especially in banks despite the billion pound bail outs and crashes which caused a global recession?!

All in it together my arse.

Totally agree with you OwlLady - not just social services but many organisations public and private think if the boxes are ticked everything is hunky dory. It's a real bugbear of mine. For the record, a lot of the employees don't like it either - there is no job satisfaction when you know the customers are pissed off.

Also agree with Iggly that we should all be looking to improve our working conditions rather than bitching about those who are slightly better off. Unfortunately there seems to be a culture of fear, especially during recessions, that has employees thinking "better not complain or I might lose my job."

I am not rich and there have been times when I have been in debt and the only person paying the mortgage, but I have never put up with unreasonable and bullying employers. It's a state of mind that I have cultivated: a belief that I am good at my job and will always be able to get another one.