To question WhatsApp group on personal phone for work?

[Diedre44]

WFH permanently small team Customer Service for local government housing association. Got an email from manager today stating for business continuity and case of emergency everyone needs to be contactable and if don't already have it please download WhatsApp and let us know when you have so we can create a WhatsApp group.
I'm just confused as to why we are being "told" to do something on our own personal phones. I do not use my personal phone for work. I am contactable by telephone, I'm available on teams whilst working, email etc.
My manager knows I have WhatsApp already, we speak outside of work on occasion. I just find this strange all of a sudden.
I don't know how to approach it with them as don't want to seem to have an issue. Surely if it is needed as a "needs of business" issue they should provide a work phone.
AIBU to be sceptical?

There are designated apps for this sort of thing, where alerts can be sent out for systems down / travel warnings / suspected terrorist attack imminent or whatever. An HA IT team should be familiar, something similar will be used for support staff working with vulnerable residents. Suggest that as being a better solution than a WhatsApp group which people can mute or archive.

My work has one, I left it! 🤣 I am literally the only person who isn't in it and I do not care one bit.

I feel the same way as you, it's my phone and I don't want to receive texts about work.

My husband fell
into this trap and he gets messages all day every day, even during his day off, and they just assume he’ll do what they say. Even the slightest notification sets him off and he can’t enjoy a day off without being reminded of work.

I wouldn’t do it.

There is no way I would join this group. I am on a whatsapp group with colleagues and it is strictly fun stuff.

I mean if I'm using WA "in work time" Not that I'm on my phone all the day but DH and I text through the day and it shows "typing" when you're active on contact list. Only realised when DS's showed all the time.

That's a fair point, a friend got me on that point even though I was ment to be in ghost mode, so to speak

I think that they need to supply a work mobile which you can use during work hours & switch off at the end of the working day.

Be careful of work related WhatsApp groups. If personal data of residents or jobs etc is discussed then it would fall within the scope of SAR/Gdpr too.

If a workplace wanted me to join whatapp I would insist they supply a work phone to use. And I would turn it off outside working hours.

That's my thinking. My contract is that I am expected to be available to work any hours up to 41 a week between 8:00am and 19:00pm and I am. So more or less on call. I have only ever missed one call in 6 years and was only as was driving and didn't have hands free at the time. I am reachable and if need to share a message they can send a text. I really do think this is just a way of checking up on you incognito but in plain sight.

For business continuity purposes and provided it was not abused I wouldn’t have an issue. I did however refuse an Authenticator to log into my work laptop and an app for right to work checks I have to do being expected to be installed on my personal device.

Agree it sets a precedent. The expectation that either you'll be available to talk about work all the time or that you'll join in with some social chitchat.

I think I'm the only person in our team who's not in the WhatsApp group, by choice. They're mostly lovely but I just don't want work invading my personal time at all. But we don't use it for emergencies: we have a phone tree so if managers need to get in touch with me they can find my number.

YANBU and I would send a reply saying that you do not wish to have a work-related group on your personal phone, but that you're happy to be contacted via call/text if there's an emergency. I don't see how they can insist.

If it was genuinely for real emergency only - dont come into work today as building has burnt down, then fair enough. Confirm this and first sniff of it being used for anything else leave the group.

I wouldnt carry a second work phone unless paid for it.

I think you're being OTT. It's so they can contact all employees at once when theres an unexpected snow day or the police have cordoned off the road outside the office and they want to say 'stay at home' to a lot of people, quickly. Or if all the systems are down and if you turn on your computer it will trigger a virus or something. Of course they're not going to buy a work phone for everyone on the off chance that employees keep it charged / on / with them at all times and it might get used every 18 months.

If you want to be left out of the loop in a true emergency, then crack on opting out.

It's been like that for ages and its got worse since covid. It's ridiculous I have to mute mine I absolutely agree with OP. I'm nhs too our allocation is released and updates are posted via watsapp so I have to have it.

I wouldn't want my personal phone number shared to everyone and there is no way to hide it in a WhatsApp group.

Totally agree with personal phone & separate workphone. Your privacy invaded. Its a no from me.

My work tried this. I told them that my phone doesn't support apps but if they provided me with a phone that does then I would be happy to download Whatsapp. It was never mentioned again.

Yep - what I was going to say. We had one set up at the beginning of the pandemic, in case of requirement for urgent contact outwith work hours, in our case, when systems went down.

I'd reply "No thanks"

I wouldn't want the stress of seeing constant notifications on my phone about work chat when I'm not working - this is my personal mobile not works. They are separate.

And if I don't read the chat as it's too long and given I wpuld turn off the notifications anyway - it wouldn't work as an emergency chat as I simply wouldn't see it.

So I won't pretend that I would have a work WhatsApp in my personal mobile. They can give you a works mobile. Or ring you in an emergency like they've always done

When I'm at work there are plenty of ways to contact me- email, MS teams chat or video call, Telephone ...(I'm not adding another route I have to monitor but aren't interested in!)

We have similar, we have work phones but aren't able to have WhatsApp on them. The group is for signing in and out of at either end of the day as we work all over the county.

It can be annoying at times for example if I'm on leave/day off so I've silenced notifications!!

You're not being a twat. Just a lot of people don't mind or they do mind but don't push back.

It is an invasion. It is part of the way that work has crept into private life in subtle but annoying ways.

If it was me I would say 'I prefer not to use my personal mobile for work' unless it was a contractual requirement that I did. And see what they say.

I am lucky though - I work somewhere where we have to use a supported messaging service and we are never required to use personal mobiles (it is allowed, but not required, so communciation arrangements never assume they can be used).

This is a good point - there is presumably no way the organisation can get round this issue.

I think it would be OTT for them to provide your all with work phones just so you can receive WhatsApp messages.

I remember before whatsapp we all shared personal phone numbers for business continuity reasons and I think it's the same. You could maybe make the point that you're happy to do so as long as that's the only purpose as there's a good chance it will become a chat group which you would likely have to mute but then you'd potentially miss the important messages, which defeats the purpose. I wouldn't make an issue otherwise or demand a work phone.