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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think that my boss should pay for my phone contract if I have to use my personal phone for work?

90 replies

Liliannna1 · 12/07/2017 20:38

This isn't a scenario where I have work emails coming through that I must respond to, but I do however have to make maybe a few phone calls throughout the day plus sometimes use the map feature to get to destinations.

I wouldn't really care, however I have used all my data up 2 months in a row now as I understand using the map feature uses lots of data.

What do you think?

OP posts:
Kursk · 13/07/2017 11:49

I was in that situation, on a pay as you go. When I ran out of credit I would buy another top up and expense it with a note saying which project.

After about 3 months of doing this I was given a work phone

Increasinglymiddleaged · 13/07/2017 11:53

I don't think using your own phone for work is unreasonable

It depends what you are using it for. Many people wouldn't like customers to have their personal number for example, for a variety of reasons. Colleagues can call when you are on holiday etc.

I prefer to have a separate work one that I can turn off when I am not there. And that is entirely cost aside.

Gottagetmoving · 13/07/2017 11:56

It depends what you are using it for. Many people wouldn't like customers to have their personal number for example, for a variety of reasons. Colleagues can call when you are on holiday etc.I prefer to have a separate work one that I can turn off when I am not there. And that is entirely cost aside

Exactly! I was harrassed by a customer constantly when I was on holiday even though I explained I was on leave. I wouldn't want work contacts having my personal number.
If your employer doesn't provide the equipment you need you can't do your job. I wish people would stop making employment conditions more difficult for everybody.

AntiGrinch · 13/07/2017 12:18

I don't think you should have to give out your personal number to work contacts.

If you can phone people and withhold your number (they never need to call you) AND this only happens occasionally, then you should AT LEAST be able to expense these calls.

If you need to go to lots of places, and time is an issue, realistically, you do need to use a phone or satnav. I was the last person in the world to start doing this and stuck to maps and written directions for years, but it does take longer, and if navigating to places is part of your job, they will expect you to be efficient. My work wouldn't expect me to leave 20 minutes early to allow time to pull over and check the A to Z. They would expect me to use my time efficiently. which means leaving at a sensible time and just using your phone to head straight there.

Your work need to pay for at least the data (I think they should get you a phone and a plan). If you are on a plan and you can't isolate that data you need to ask for a percentage of the cost.

BackforGood · 13/07/2017 12:30

I agree that I wouldn't expect your employer to pay for data because you are incapable of using a map (or even your sat nav?).
However, I would not use my own phone for work - if your job needs you to make calls then you should be provided with a work phone.
If you are a lone worker, visiting people in their own homes, then ask to see their risk assessment that covers your own safety if they are not providing you with a phone.

notomatoes · 13/07/2017 14:39

If you cannot see what the issue is with driving around reading an A-Z when in 2017 there is a better option then it isn't the OP who is 'special' as you put it.

Yes. A special snowflake who cannot be expected to use such outdated technology...

If it is using all her data and costing her it's hardly a better option is it? And finding addresses is what these were made for. And used for. And still used for, by people who can't or don't want to use smart phones.

But I've just noticed it's 2017!!! Forget everything I said, only the best will do!

AntiGrinch · 13/07/2017 14:52

On a personal level, I am very happy to use A to Zs in my own time.

If I got one out with work colleagues I would be laughed at, viewed as a bit of an idiot and my reputation woudl be damaged.

AntiGrinch · 13/07/2017 14:53

It's like my clothes. Around the house, wfh, I'll wear things that I could never wear to the office and be taken seriously. It isn't because I (or anyone) is precious that I think I need smarter, newer things for work. It's because people judge us as being lesser when we don't use them.

LaurieMarlow · 13/07/2017 17:25

It's not that 'only the best will do' ffs, but that's it's the most efficient, timesaving method. Her employer is happy to rely on the efficiencies that mean she gets through her rounds quicker, but wants her to foot the bill herself. That isn't on.

I imagine that if her employer told her to fuck off and use an a-z instead, she'd end up relying on the phone anyway, because and a-z is a huge faff if you're used to the other.

It's not an unreasonable request in the modern world and it shouldn't be coming out of the OP's pocket.

Original poster
Liliannna1 · 13/07/2017 18:03

I cover the whole of Kent and southeast for my job, ranging from Greenwich all the way down to Thanet coast and along to Brighton. I simply cannot use maps for such wide areas.

I am not phoning through card payments myself, however I phone our office and my patient will give their card details over for payment

OP posts:
TreesAreLeafy · 13/07/2017 18:54

Why can't you download the maps using wifi then you won't use data when out.
You can ask them about expensing the minutes

CPtart · 13/07/2017 19:31

I worked as a district nurse and often had to use my mobile which wasn't subsidised. Usually to phone a patients landline when I couldn't gain access. Or other necessary matters where the patient didn't have a phone. Just used to bump up my mileage claim a little to cover the cost.

CPtart · 13/07/2017 19:33

..have to say they did provide radios for this reason, but there often weren't enough to go round or the charge didn't last.

MJDinner · 13/07/2017 19:47

I don't think using your own phone for work is unreasonable

No reputable organisation would be comfortable with that setup! Apart from anything, it means service users get the OP's own mobile number, they can't control costs or be on a corporate rate/etc.

And from a risk POV, it's not cool if service payment details are being provided via a random personal mobile, surely?!

This one's easy to solve though: "Woops [boss], I dropped my phone in the sink last week, no longer have a mobile. how should we be collecting payment details from service users now i can do it per the normal process? and where's our company sat nav?"

Taking a personal mobile out of the equation solves all of those issues and forces a professional reasonable conversation about what tools you need to do your job effectively.

hibbledobble · 13/07/2017 21:21

Yabu about the map. Do you know you can download it to your phone so it doesn't use data?

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