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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

New manager keeps disturbing me with irrelevant things every time I’m on my phone :/

579 replies

Ghostpost · 19/09/2019 15:49

I was employed before her, and have been here a couple of months. We’re in a research type environement and everything is really laid back with phones, work hours, days off etc. Everyone knows work gets done, deadlines are met so everyone is happy that the place is so flexible around family life.

She’s been here 3 days and has mentioned twice if I have enough work to keep me busy (😒).. I’m an adult and I know what I need to do. And although it would be really easy to take the piss here, I have been working incredibly hard to make a difference to our department.

I’ve noticed today she keeps coming and disturbing me every time I’m on my phone reading twitter or whatever. She’s making me feel like a school child not being allowed on my phone. She’s looked over at me a few times already whilst I’m typing this.

If I wasn’t working she would have a point to make, but I refuse to be micromanaged like this, as I’m not a child. It’s making me uncomfortable.

OP posts:
73Sunglasslover · 19/09/2019 23:23

I don't think asking you to work in work hours can be seen as micro-managing and like others I am confused as to how you have enough time to do a full days work if you are spending 2 hours a day not working and you don't seem to stay 2/3 hours at the end of the day everyday. So although you feel like you should get credit for doing a project in a month, I (and maybe you manager) might wonder whether you could have done it in 3 weeks if you actually did the hours you are paid for. An average full time job is 35-40 hours a week and that leaves loads of time for the rest of life so I don't think this can be considered de-humanising or like a work house. I wok for the NHS. We deal with complex data and high emotions every single day. In my team we are only interested in employing people who can sustain attention for a working day with only short breaks. This is not a problem to find. Most people can do this. My colleagues can check their phones if they need to be if they did so more than a couple of times a day outside of their lunch break, this would be a concern. If someone from their family needs to get hold of the person urgently they know to call the office and not their phone as it is not being monitored much of the time in the working day. I think there can be a fine line between relaxed culture and just not doing the hours and although you don't want to hear this I personally think you are the wrong side of the line and risking you job.

Simkin · 19/09/2019 23:25

Some people don't get paid for just being there. They get paid for using their brain, or their expertise or whatever, which is not necessarily affected by looking at your phone. It isn't necessary to work 9-5 with an hour for lunch and 2 15 minute breaks to do some (let's face it most) jobs. I don't suppose the OP is downing tools and saying 'sorry I finish at 5' when there's a deadline to be met.

drspouse · 19/09/2019 23:35

My contract doesn't specify hours either. Which makes it confusing when I work two half days a week!
I've always understood it as the difference between a salary and a wage.

Jux · 20/09/2019 00:31

So go and check with HR that you are allowed to be on your phone for a couple of minutes every quarter or an hour, and sometimes a little more than that. If they tell you it's fine ,then make an official complaint against your manager for disturbing your leisure time.

2 minutes every 15.
So 8 minutes an hour.
What does that add up to in a day? 8x7 is 56 minutes in every 7hour day is spent not working.
And you wonder why your manager gets on your back. Go to HR, it's the only way.

ilovepixie · 20/09/2019 00:50

So how would you feel If a check out operator in Sainsburys started checking their phone while scanning good through the till? Your paid to work not go on Twitter.

YesQueen · 20/09/2019 00:53

@ilovepixie Confused that's totally different. When I worked as a carer, I didn't use my phone unless my service user wanted to watch cat videos on it
My job now isn't customer facing and I'm fine to use my phone as much as I like, providing I'm not dealing with a customer over the phone at the time. Sometimes we even watch films Shock or play quizzes or I read a book

helacells · 20/09/2019 00:57

So basically you've admitted to being a thief stealing paid time from your employer to mess about. In most jobs that would get you a formal warning or worse. Why can't you save your socializing till lunch? You obviously don't have enough to do but you have a workshy attitude which makes it worse.

MorganKitten · 20/09/2019 01:13

Is this real? If so you are full on first world problems.

BritInUS1 · 20/09/2019 01:19

Wow YABU ! You are being paid to do a job, have some respect for your employer

madcatladyforever · 20/09/2019 01:24

Really? I have never been allowed to use my phone or surf the net at work. It's a disciplinary offence.
Sounds like your place of work needs a good shake up to me.

Winterlife · 20/09/2019 01:41

Your manager is probably documenting every time she speaks with you about your workload. She's also probably documenting your online use for non business purposes. She sees it as a problem, therefore, it is a problem for you, unless you want to be looking for other employment.

You are not the CEO, so what the CEO does is irrelevant.

Graphista · 20/09/2019 02:55

Literally a few minutes every 10/15 mins.

If u "work" 8 hours a day that could EASILY be over an hour a day! That's over £100 a week MINIMUM you are effectively stealing from your employer - i'd sack you!

"I’ve only been here 4/5 months! I don’t expect a promotion" OMG! Have you even completed probation yet?! You will end up out of a job and unable to claim benefits for considerable amount of time (because it's YOUR FAULT) and struggling to get another job!

Get a clue!

"I think I’ll give the manager time to settle in and learn the work environment. It would be quite sad if she creates awkwardness in our little team." Oh good grief I've heard it all now! The manager is in a stronger position than you! You are a workshy, newbie of lower status they can replace in a heartbeat!

And at this point the CEO barely knows who you are! Those long lunches are likely to be to reward the ones who ARE working

Seriously can see you posting in a month or 2 that you've lost your job "don't understand whyyyyyyy"

spanglydangly · 20/09/2019 06:26

@Ghostpost what sector do you work in?

Ringdonna · 20/09/2019 06:28

Well challenge her then. Never understand why people let managers walk all over them.

Tonnerre · 20/09/2019 06:39

Is it really so impossible to understand that not all jobs require constant 'busyness'? And that the needs of some businesses include having staff present but with no specific tasks, some of the time, because the nature of the work is not wholly predictable?

But it doesn't sound as if that is the case for OP, because she talks about projects - so the work is there, it's not as if she's waiting for it to come in. If you can complete a project within a month when you've interrupted your work every 10-15 minutes to mess around with your phone, it's pretty clear that you could actually complete it within 2-3 weeks if you worked the hours you're paid to work. If, say, the business makes a profit of £1000 per project, that's the difference between a profit of £12K and £18-24K a year - and multiplied by several employees, that's very significant.

Tonnerre · 20/09/2019 06:44

deal with a lot of data, which means sometimes staring at excel sheets and numbers and fiddling around with them..I do check my phone every 10/15 mins because it gives my eyes a break.

Moving from figures on a screen to reading from another small screen really isn't giving your eyes a break, OP. It sounds to me as if the reality is that you are over-dependent on your phone to the point of obsessiveness, and that is what your manager is noticing.

Lana08 · 20/09/2019 06:51

Wow any job I have had has had no phone during working hours policy. I never thought that was weird. I actually think having your personal phone during work hours is strange. At the end of the day she is your manager so I would put the phone down.

Mummadeeze · 20/09/2019 06:54

You sound addicted to your phone. You need to realise that checking it that frequently at work does look bad. I take mine to the loo and check emails out of site a few times a day. Every 15 minutes is ridiculous even if you are getting your work done. If you are managing your work load but have so much spare time still, be proactive and ask for an extra project. Your attitude is way off if you want to do well at work and develop your career.

FattyPeddledFuriously999 · 20/09/2019 07:07

the thing is she is now in charge so it is her rules, she won't be aware what you were told previously and just views you as someone taking the P, maybe have a conversation with her about it before she gives you a formal warning?

PerkyPomPoms · 20/09/2019 07:09

That is a shocking amount of work time used on personal activities. Are you running a personal business on the side or something?

Original poster
Ghostpost · 20/09/2019 07:12

Why the hell are you using your phone in the loo? That’s ridiculous and unhygienic.

OP posts:
spanglydangly · 20/09/2019 07:13

@Ghostpost it's unhygienic because if what exactly? What sector do you work in? Public or private?

palahvah · 20/09/2019 07:25

  1. you sound addicted to your phone

  2. most contracts I know allow for 'limited and reasonable' use of personal email/phone. A couple of minutes every 10-15 mins is not that. It's a phenomenal amount. Plus if it's that often how are you really getting stuck into projects.

  3. 'she keeps coming and disturbing me every time I’m on my phone' - seriously, you're concerned because your manager is talking to you about work in the workplace, during working hours? Should she stay off until you've finished tweeting?

  4. as others have suggested, go to HR.

  5. I'd be pissed off to be in the same team as you. You might be meeting deadlines but if you can do it in 10-15% of the time you're actually employed for then I'd be looking to cut down your working hours accordingly...

MythicalBiologicalFennel · 20/09/2019 07:33

Why the hell are you using your phone in the loo? That’s ridiculous and unhygienic

Ghostpost a lot of mumsnetters don't wash their hands after the loo because reazonz Grin normal rules don't apply, I haven't touched anything, urine is sterile, if you use toilet paper in this particular way lah dih dah. It follows from there that your phone will remain pristine through the whole loo operation.

I would however love to know what effect working on the public or private sector has on this particular question Confused

Anyway. This thread keeps on giving Grin

NaturalBornWoman · 20/09/2019 07:57

That is exactly what working in a place like this is like. You have the freedom to do whatever you want, and you do to an extent. But you’re too grown up to take the piss. I always arrive to work on time, take shorter lunches or work through at my desk and eat. Nothing wrong with taking my phone and looking at it if I want.

If you are breaking off to check your phone every 10-15 minutes you cannot be effective. I don't care how 'relaxed' your culture is, no one can be properly focused breaking their concentration and flow that frequently.