Page 37 | 22:30 work call - completely unacceptable?

shortbreadconsumer · 2026-05-05T10:21:08+00:00

I received a work call from someone in my organisation at 22:30 last night. I answered, thinking it was an emergency. The colleague was completely hysterical and impossible to understand. In the end I had no choice but to end the call with 'we can discuss this in the morning.' This morning I spoke to the persons line manager about it, who said that it was 'unfortunate, but not unreasonable' for this individual to have called me as I had not answered any emails from said colleague over the weekend. They had sent me over 50 emails this weekend. I did not see the emails as seniors within the organisation take an 'if it's urgent, they have my number' approach. I am more senior than both of of these colleagues and I was 'on call' all weekend as the most senior point of contact in the organisation. However, this was not an issue that required weekend working and, more importantly, it was not an issue that I needed to be consulted on. It was very simple and should have easily been resolved in working hours by this individual alone - her direct line manager would not have needed to input either. AIBU to think that this was unprofessional and unacceptable from both of them?After no sleep, I've reached that 'was it really that bad' point where I am so sleep deprived that I am not sure whether I am overreacting in my annoyance or not!

ChillingWithMySnowmies · 06/05/2026 18:59

Bookaholicwithwine · 06/05/2026 18:54

again I just went by the details shared in original post .

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Yes, on an 800+ post thread. Did it not occur to you to read all of the OPs posts because further information that may be relevant might have been provided?

MrsBennetsPoorNervesAreBack · 06/05/2026 18:59

Bookaholicwithwine · 06/05/2026 18:52

I very clearly told you that I had just responded to the OPs original post . So I responded with an opinion of what they said in original post . Sorry I gave an opinion on what they said

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Yes, and that's exactly why the pp had reason to be exasperated and you did not. You only read the first post. I rest my case.

Megifer · 06/05/2026 19:00

Wooky073 · 06/05/2026 18:57

Ok so it sounds like the process and triage needs revision or the policies and guidance for contacting the on call manager needs revision. That should be looked at,

but blaming the junior individual is not the right thing to do. They need support and the system may need review or guilines clarified.

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The process couldnt be any clearer and easier. It could have been written in crayon by my dog its that easy to understand.

godmum56 · 06/05/2026 19:01

Wooky073 · 06/05/2026 18:57

Ok so it sounds like the process and triage needs revision or the policies and guidance for contacting the on call manager needs revision. That should be looked at,

but blaming the junior individual is not the right thing to do. They need support and the system may need review or guilines clarified.

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why? its clear and its simple
Point one, Incoherent person should not have been at work
Point two she should have phoned or contacted the first line/triage contact as per the out of office instructions
Point three the OP's contact details were not even published on that OOH message.

Growlybear83 · 06/05/2026 19:02

I think you were extremely unreasonable from a professional point of view, particularly if you were on call and did not look at your colleague’s emails. I think you were even more unreasonable from a personal point of view - I can’t imagine being so cold hearted as to end a phone call with a colleague if they were hysterical and extremely upset whatever the time, but 10.30 isn’t particularly late anyway.

Original poster

shortbreadconsumer · 06/05/2026 19:02

@Megifer no mentioning dogs without paying the photo tax!!! You get bonus points if it's something sassy like a Greyhound or a Husky that gives brilliant side-eye. It could be the mascot for this thread😀

OP posts:

Witchonenowbob · 06/05/2026 19:03

Growlybear83 · 06/05/2026 19:02

I think you were extremely unreasonable from a professional point of view, particularly if you were on call and did not look at your colleague’s emails. I think you were even more unreasonable from a personal point of view - I can’t imagine being so cold hearted as to end a phone call with a colleague if they were hysterical and extremely upset whatever the time, but 10.30 isn’t particularly late anyway.

Dear god …. No!!!

QuietComet · 06/05/2026 19:03

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

She's exactly the type of leader I appreciate;

Knows and follows processes, knows her limitations and communicates clearly.

What I hate are females who bring female leaders down because they don't fit some kind of unattainable mould.

I don't read any arrogance, I read someone who is reviewing a situation in a clear and dispassionate way.

What I read from your comment is undeserving nastiness and mean assumptions. Not exactly a mental health ambassador, are you. Shameful.

loislovesstewie · 06/05/2026 19:04

Growlybear83 · 06/05/2026 19:02

I think you were extremely unreasonable from a professional point of view, particularly if you were on call and did not look at your colleague’s emails. I think you were even more unreasonable from a personal point of view - I can’t imagine being so cold hearted as to end a phone call with a colleague if they were hysterical and extremely upset whatever the time, but 10.30 isn’t particularly late anyway.

RTFT. Please, how many times!

Ifeeltheneedtheneedforcoffee · 06/05/2026 19:04

The op spoke to the person (who shouldn't have been working and who should contact the person "fully on call") for 45 minutes.
Then after contacted HR and their line manager saying she was concerned about them.
The next day checked with hr that all action by her was done.
The person who rang isnt in ops team and isnt someone she knows.
Not sure what else you want to happen

Didnt quote for some reason but in reply to @Wooky073

Bookaholicwithwine · 06/05/2026 19:05

MrsBennetsPoorNervesAreBack · 06/05/2026 18:58

Yes, which is really fucking annoying for everyone else on the thread. At least read all of the OP's posts, or if you can't be arsed to do that, don't comment at all.

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Or alternatively post all the relevant details in the post you’re looking for opinions on as unlike you I’m not going to look through 35 pages of replies for the drip feed of what should have been posted originally to get a fair judgement

Ilovelifeverymuch · 06/05/2026 19:05

shortbreadconsumer · 05/05/2026 12:02

To be clear, we have formal 'on-call' procedures. They are written down and kept in a shared online area everyone can access. They are even stated in an email we sent at 18:00 every Friday to all stakeholders detailing who is on call and what their email is.

So Friday's email said:

'Department X is closed for the bank holiday weekend.

If your query is urgent, please contact 'A': 'insert email address and phone number'.

If necessary, 'A' will escalate it to the duty senior point of contact who will be in touch.'

The 'junior' person on call is expected to monitor emails all weekend and reply to anything that needs actioning. They are very generously compensated for this.
The expectation is everything urgent goes to the 'junior' person who will escalate to the senior person, via phone call, if their input is needed. Juniors are any grade up to Deputy Director.

The 'senior' person on call is expected to only answer the phone and not to monitor emails. In five years, averaging being on call once every two months, I have only had to be rung once on the weekend and that was due to a death on the premises. That is how high the bar is for contacting my level.

This colleague who called me and emailed me, was not on call and nor was her query urgent. She should not even have been working. She did not, in any way, attempt to contact the junior colleague on call. She emailed me directly, multiple times, on a non-urgent query knowing that I would not be checking emails. She then rang me in utter hysterics making no sense because I had not replied to emails she knew I would not be monitoring.

I honestly cannot stress how non-urgent her issue was.

For those of you who understand civil service structures...think of it as a HEO ringing a SCS3 to ask for guidance on something very routine (say, an email to an internal colleague about a meeting). That's the closest comparison I can make. Or think of it as a trainee lawyer ringing the managing partner.

This information would have been useless in your opener, the way you wrote it I assumed you were on call and the person was reaching out to you through the agreed on call channels but that's not the case

You were not wrong to not check you emails because you only expected very serious issues escalated to your via phone call not email so the colleague messed up.

And sending 50 emails on a weekend is ridiculous especially for a non critical issue, that in itself would piss me off.

The colleague and his/her manager need to work on understanding what constitutes a critical issue to issues that can wait until Monday and also the proper way to handle such situations.

Megifer · 06/05/2026 19:06

shortbreadconsumer · 06/05/2026 19:02

@Megifer no mentioning dogs without paying the photo tax!!! You get bonus points if it's something sassy like a Greyhound or a Husky that gives brilliant side-eye. It could be the mascot for this thread😀

Ah id love to, but shes REALLY distinctive, way more outing than anything I've ever posted under this NN. Trust me shes gorgeous and thick enough to have been able to write your unbelievably simple on call process.

In crayon.

CoverLikelyZebra · 06/05/2026 19:06

If you are the senior point if contact "on call" over the weekend but do not intend to check your emails you need to set up an OOO auto reply directing people what to expect. Outlook lets you set different OOO messages for people inside and outside your organisation. As someone senior you share responsibility with other senior colleagues for ensuring that all staff know the correct procedure for matters arising over the weekend including how to judge what constitutes an emergency, what to do if it is and emergency and what to do when it isn't. If this staff member got so upset as to be incoherent then that is a massive failure of leadership that is very much not that staff member's fault, even when the issue turns out to be not actually urgent.

godmum56 · 06/05/2026 19:08

Growlybear83 · 06/05/2026 19:02

I think you were extremely unreasonable from a professional point of view, particularly if you were on call and did not look at your colleague’s emails. I think you were even more unreasonable from a personal point of view - I can’t imagine being so cold hearted as to end a phone call with a colleague if they were hysterical and extremely upset whatever the time, but 10.30 isn’t particularly late anyway.

and here we go again FFS RTFT

godmum56 · 06/05/2026 19:08

CoverLikelyZebra · 06/05/2026 19:06

If you are the senior point if contact "on call" over the weekend but do not intend to check your emails you need to set up an OOO auto reply directing people what to expect. Outlook lets you set different OOO messages for people inside and outside your organisation. As someone senior you share responsibility with other senior colleagues for ensuring that all staff know the correct procedure for matters arising over the weekend including how to judge what constitutes an emergency, what to do if it is and emergency and what to do when it isn't. If this staff member got so upset as to be incoherent then that is a massive failure of leadership that is very much not that staff member's fault, even when the issue turns out to be not actually urgent.

Edited

FFS RTFT

ChillingWithMySnowmies · 06/05/2026 19:08

Growlybear83 · 06/05/2026 19:02

I think you were extremely unreasonable from a professional point of view, particularly if you were on call and did not look at your colleague’s emails. I think you were even more unreasonable from a personal point of view - I can’t imagine being so cold hearted as to end a phone call with a colleague if they were hysterical and extremely upset whatever the time, but 10.30 isn’t particularly late anyway.

we've got another one guys!

Psst... RTFT. The OP has updated, several times.

Tsundokuer · 06/05/2026 19:08

Growlybear83 · 06/05/2026 19:02

I think you were extremely unreasonable from a professional point of view, particularly if you were on call and did not look at your colleague’s emails. I think you were even more unreasonable from a personal point of view - I can’t imagine being so cold hearted as to end a phone call with a colleague if they were hysterical and extremely upset whatever the time, but 10.30 isn’t particularly late anyway.

How long should she stay on the phone for to not be unreasonable? All night? 4 hours? 2? She isn’t the mental health first aider, she isn’t the colleagues line manager or even her line manager’s line manager.

It is a good idea to RTFT. Or at least the op’s updates. You can find them by pressing the filter symbol on the app. Really very easy, if people can follow basic instructions.

Wot23 · 06/05/2026 19:09

how senior are you?
if you cannot resolve this yourself and turn to MN for "help" that says rather a lot...

being on call means whatever your HR policy says it means
answering the phone and/or emails is defined in whatever the on call policy expects

saying that a junior should have been capable of resolving it and should not have sent you 50 emails is a job performance issue for you to resolve with their line manager N
none of these issue are ones you should asking on MH as that suggests seniority performance issues of your own...

Tsundokuer · 06/05/2026 19:09

CoverLikelyZebra · 06/05/2026 19:06

If you are the senior point if contact "on call" over the weekend but do not intend to check your emails you need to set up an OOO auto reply directing people what to expect. Outlook lets you set different OOO messages for people inside and outside your organisation. As someone senior you share responsibility with other senior colleagues for ensuring that all staff know the correct procedure for matters arising over the weekend including how to judge what constitutes an emergency, what to do if it is and emergency and what to do when it isn't. If this staff member got so upset as to be incoherent then that is a massive failure of leadership that is very much not that staff member's fault, even when the issue turns out to be not actually urgent.

Edited

Or you follow the process set out by your organisation and clearly explained in an email in Friday?

loislovesstewie · 06/05/2026 19:09

CoverLikelyZebra · 06/05/2026 19:06

If you are the senior point if contact "on call" over the weekend but do not intend to check your emails you need to set up an OOO auto reply directing people what to expect. Outlook lets you set different OOO messages for people inside and outside your organisation. As someone senior you share responsibility with other senior colleagues for ensuring that all staff know the correct procedure for matters arising over the weekend including how to judge what constitutes an emergency, what to do if it is and emergency and what to do when it isn't. If this staff member got so upset as to be incoherent then that is a massive failure of leadership that is very much not that staff member's fault, even when the issue turns out to be not actually urgent.

Edited

Oh for crying out loud! Please could you just read subsequent posts that explain that the OP doesn't have to read emails, that employees are notified about who they contact and that she is only contacted if the actual on call person deems the situation serious enough. It's really simple to understand.

godmum56 · 06/05/2026 19:10

Ilovelifeverymuch · 06/05/2026 19:05

This information would have been useless in your opener, the way you wrote it I assumed you were on call and the person was reaching out to you through the agreed on call channels but that's not the case

You were not wrong to not check you emails because you only expected very serious issues escalated to your via phone call not email so the colleague messed up.

And sending 50 emails on a weekend is ridiculous especially for a non critical issue, that in itself would piss me off.

The colleague and his/her manager need to work on understanding what constitutes a critical issue to issues that can wait until Monday and also the proper way to handle such situations.

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The company need to consider whether they can cope with having a "colleague" who goes into work when she shouldn't and then fucks up the simple on call system and loses it down the phone.

godmum56 · 06/05/2026 19:12

Wot23 · 06/05/2026 19:09

how senior are you?
if you cannot resolve this yourself and turn to MN for "help" that says rather a lot...

being on call means whatever your HR policy says it means
answering the phone and/or emails is defined in whatever the on call policy expects

saying that a junior should have been capable of resolving it and should not have sent you 50 emails is a job performance issue for you to resolve with their line manager N
none of these issue are ones you should asking on MH as that suggests seniority performance issues of your own...

I don't think the OP turned to MN for help (probably a good job!) but to have a vent.

ChillingWithMySnowmies · 06/05/2026 19:13

Bookaholicwithwine · 06/05/2026 19:05

Or alternatively post all the relevant details in the post you’re looking for opinions on as unlike you I’m not going to look through 35 pages of replies for the drip feed of what should have been posted originally to get a fair judgement

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you don't need to read all 800 messages.

There is a handy litle "See Next" and "See All" link in the bottom right of the OP's post that, guess what? Allows you to SEE ALL of the OP's posts and nothing else.

Gee. if only it was easy to spot...

Ilovelifeverymuch · 06/05/2026 19:14

Ilovelifeverymuch · 06/05/2026 19:05

This information would have been useless in your opener, the way you wrote it I assumed you were on call and the person was reaching out to you through the agreed on call channels but that's not the case

You were not wrong to not check you emails because you only expected very serious issues escalated to your via phone call not email so the colleague messed up.

And sending 50 emails on a weekend is ridiculous especially for a non critical issue, that in itself would piss me off.

The colleague and his/her manager need to work on understanding what constitutes a critical issue to issues that can wait until Monday and also the proper way to handle such situations.

Show quote history

@shortbreadconsumer sorry useful not useless 😂