dslreports logo
 
    All Forums Hot Topics Gallery
spc
Search similar:


uniqs
9439

The Limit
Premium Member
join:2007-09-25
Denver, CO

The Limit to JALevinworth

Premium Member

to JALevinworth

Re: No Facebook at work? I'll look elsewhere...

I'm certainly not trying to say that Facebook is a requirement, it's just another X for people to exercise their self discipline, or lack thereof.

My argument here is that Facebook isn't the problem, being lazy and lacking self discipline is the problem.

For future reference, I've worked at places where lunch was paid. It was a nice incentive, but not a requirement. Our work values differ in that actually "working" towards completing a task efficiently is work vs looking busy, which is more unproductive than sitting around and browsing the web.
The Limit

The Limit to JALevinworth

Premium Member

to JALevinworth
And if taking breaks and going on lunch aren't on company time, then should completing tasks that your boss asks you to do while on lunch or break considered work? I think it is.

JALevinworth
@embarqhsd.net

JALevinworth to dave

Anon

to dave
said by dave:

I wasn't assuming the job-seeker was unemployed. I said, " Being the person without the job" not a job. Meaning if you want said job in question, no matter if you have one or not.

Does that make it more clear now? Obviously, you can't know about all there is about a position you've never held no matter how many times you've held positions similar nor done what appears to be the same type work. Different employers, different needs, different workloads, different expectations, etc, etc. even different economies.

I'm not offended.

-Jim
2012-09-20 15:42:04
JALevinworth

JALevinworth to The Limit

Anon

to The Limit
If a person has done all their work and still getting paid then maybe they need to ask for more work.

I agree people shouldn't do things to "look busy". They should be busy with work.

My comments thus far aren't personal, and not aimed at you. It's just a discussion, you know? We're talking about people requiring facebook at work. Requiring is the operative word. I already acknowledged and agree that different jobs have different environments. I get yours may be different, but it's not about you and your particular job. It's about a single item (facebook) being a blanket requirement applied to a broad spectrum of jobs, and I say that because the stat is 1 in 5.

2012-09-20 15:57:06

The Limit
Premium Member
join:2007-09-25
Denver, CO

The Limit

Premium Member

I see, then we are in agreement it seems.

I just get frustrated when I see people making aimed accusations against college grads, which the accusation in question isn't true.

College is more difficult than holding a job down IMO. I worked full time for a while, and having a job is way easier than the work I'm doing now. I struggle to pass some of the Abstract exams that I take (case in point, I have one tomorrow, and my instructor is requiring us to know information that we just finished covering yesterday and finishing a complex homework on top of the exam, and said homework will be on the exam).

I'm not having a great week, and unfortunately my instructor is the cause of it. Disorganized, scatterbrained, inconsistent, etc. It almost convinces me that formal education is really not worth the effort when I could be teaching myself (which is what I'm doing), but I have two semester left. Might as well just swallow the bitter pill and get it over with. Frustrating, because I love academia.

rcdailey
Dragoonfly
Premium Member
join:2005-03-29
Rialto, CA

rcdailey to The Limit

Premium Member

to The Limit
That sort of thing happens all the time. If you "volunteer" to do company work on your own time, then don't complain.

As for all this Facebook stuff, many companies and organizations use Facebook in the course of their activities, so that makes Facebook part of their business. That further complicates the issue, doesn't it?
dave
Premium Member
join:2000-05-04
not in ohio

dave

Premium Member

It's no "volunteering" per se, at least not in my case. In some sense it's an acceptance of the modern employment condition, but the quid-pro-quo is that we don't have employers watching every minute of the day. Gain: loose hours. Loss: loose hours.

FWIW, I was working throughout today. At home. So the chances of my employer preventing me accessing my non-existing Facebook account were zero. I understand that not everyone (a) has a job that even could work like this - the furniture-factory guy is a good example, (b) has employers that see the world like this. But we could do without people claiming we're pampered, lazy, etc.

Thanks for listening.

JALevinworth
@embarqhsd.net

JALevinworth to The Limit

Anon

to The Limit
said by The Limit:

I see, then we are in agreement it seems.

I had a feeling we weren't that far off.
said by The Limit:

I just get frustrated when I see people making aimed accusations against college grads, which the accusation in question isn't true.

I didn't see the part in the article about this being aimed at college grads, but if I missed it up thread, I'm sorry. FWIW I wasn't thinking of college grads myself.

I understand your sensitivity, though. I have one in college now and another one heading there. In many ways I can't compare my time in college to now. The costs are even more outrageous, the economy and outlook for college grads wasn't as bleak, and therefore that pressure is higher - yet, like so many groups these days, just being in the group you're stereotyped. "kids these days" - As generations before, My generation was once called that too.

I too get annoyed at some of the things said about students and post-grads because I know how very hard mine have worked to get where they are and they are just starting out. Hard work has been clearly instilled in them, and lack of entitlement has too. I can't speak for all kids of course and some may not have these values - same as some adults.
said by The Limit:

College is more difficult than holding a job down IMO.

I believe that's the case for you. But I will offer that there are people who have done both and their job was the harder one. It depends on the job too - And THAT brings our discussion full circle.

Good luck with your studies and thanks for engaging with me.

-Jim
2012-09-20 21:36:54

Frank
Premium Member
join:2000-11-03
somewhere

Frank to JALevinworth

Premium Member

to JALevinworth
said by JALevinworth :

said by JALevinworth :

doing a work-related task == producing work
producing work == productivity at work

doing a non-work-related task == not producing work
Not producing work == non-productivity at work

said by The Limit:

In other words, taking breaks or lunch is considered unproductive.

Your logic is flawed. Doing a work related task != productivity.

However, doing a work related task efficiently and effectively == productivity. If all work is completed, then what work related tasks are left? Being busy for the sake of productivity != productivity.

Taking a break or lunch is of course not on work time. You're not being paid to work then.

My logic is not flawed to me, it's flawed to you. We have differences of opinion about work.

As dave was just saying, and see my reply - Of course there are different levels of jobs that are structured different. It's not one size fits all as careers and jobs go. Some have more latitude than others depending on type.

You can certainly earn the privilege to have that latitude, but it's not a right.

Requiring personal facebook access as a job seeker seems to fall into believing it's a right.

IMHO - you certainly can disagree.

-Jim
2012-09-20 14:20:22

The thing is..........nobody should ever want skilled employees to be producing work 100% of the time, ALL THE TIME, because it accounts for micromanaging, poor planning and is virtually setting up a department to fail.

In other words, If you have skilled employees and they are working every second of the day (with the exception of lunch and two 15 minute breaks) then they wont have time to train on new things and a few people calling out sick or anybody taking a vacation will throw a monkey wrench into the department's workload. Eventually.... the more talented staff will quit and move on to greener pastures due to burnout which will make things worse.

Of course..... you can attempt to replace the people who quit, but while you're in the process of doing that your current resources will be strained significantly causing even more burnout and worse work output. Unlike unskilled employees, It can take weeks to find the right person with the right experience for a high-skill job and months to train them (which is time the current staff wont have time to do very well).

How does this relate to facebook? It's pretty simple... There has to be a balance. In other words, we're all adults, as long as a reasonable expectation is set and everybody does their work then everything is peachy, morale is high, and nobody cares if an employee does some occasional web surfing. If someone is slacking and not doing their job then they get fired and there are resources available to comfortably cover the work while a replacement is being found. If an emergency occurs and a few employees cant make it to work then it doesn't throw a monkey wrench into the operation of the department because it can still operate at 100% capacity if needed.

JALevinworth
@embarqhsd.net

JALevinworth

Anon

I agree with all that specifically related to skilled office professionals that you describe.

Since the topic is, per the article, that 1-5 job seekers wouldn't take a job without access to facebook; I wonder how many employers would reject a candidate that made that inquiry in the interview? I have a feeling higher than 1-5. I could be wrong or it could be double that.

Signing off..

-Jim

wxboss
This is like Deja vu all over again.
Premium Member
join:2005-01-30
Fort Lauderdale, FL

1 recommendation

wxboss to StuartMW

Premium Member

to StuartMW
I understand the spirit of the conversation thus far, but I will submit my opinion, or maybe a better word would be acceptance of the employer's expectations from me.

I am contractor. As such, I have to abide by the client's rules whether or not I have a personal affinity towards said rules. I have the option of accepting their terms and receiving a paycheck along with it, or rejecting them and looking for a job elsewhere.

My real need for a paycheck (for practically obvious reasons) far outweighs any personal needs I may have for access to certain websites while at work. In short, I do what my client wants and they pay me. What a concept!

The Limit
Premium Member
join:2007-09-25
Denver, CO

The Limit to JALevinworth

Premium Member

to JALevinworth
It wasn't, someone had posted something idiotic about how college students are lazy and usually unemployed.

I would jump at a job in a second if that meant that I could continue in my studies while working. Being a math major, I don't have that option. I literally spend my entire day on campus, and I am swamped. What breaks I take set me behind in SOME class, and it's usually the one that this particular instructor has scheduled to be "let's take an exam on Friday, and then have a mathematical proof paper that usually takes about 4-5 pages of math symbols to write due in a week, and then a quiz that following monday, and then a homework that spans 4-5 pages two days after the quiz, and then the final corrections due two days after that."

This instructor is terrible with keeping a schedule, and contradicts herself when she wants us to be particular, but the solutions that she posts after we have turned in said homework are all shorthand and sloppy, and in some places not copied well.

I am not dropping the class, this is not an option. I want to get out of this class with a passing grade, and if that means a C, then that's what I'll accept I guess. I'm working 4 times as hard to make up for her mistakes.
Sukunai
Premium Member
join:2008-05-07

1 recommendation

Sukunai to StuartMW

Premium Member

to StuartMW
The problem with Facebook is mainly how easy it is to get to Facebook.

And we all know that people simply can't not live without their*&#@* cellphone in their hand.

And there isn't much in the way of work out there that prevents a person from having a cell phone in their pocket. And if people are commonly incapable of driving and shutting up, or walking down the street and not texting, then I can't picture ANY job where a person will be disinclined to not take their phone out of their pocket and fiddle with it.

And that includes factory floors and contruction sites. As well as nice white collar yuppie jobs.

I'd be inclined to tell an employee cells were a 3 strike process. 1st and second are warning and final warning with 3rd offense being 'you are fired'. People expect all manner of job security and perks just because they work for someone. I myself, would expect an employee to be working every last second they are on the clock. Use your break/lunch time to Facebook.

For those on non structured employ, well that is their call. As long as the work gets done on schedule, I doubt the employer cares what you are doing.

Which is why it is nice to get those sort of yuppies forms of employment.
dave
Premium Member
join:2000-05-04
not in ohio

dave

Premium Member

said by Sukunai:

Which is why it is nice to get those sort of yuppies forms of employment.

A little class warfare going on here?

Re: phones. The average office employer has a simple choice:

- let me make a personal phone call on company time, cost to productivity, 5 mins.

- require me to make a phone call on my own time, I'll leave the office on the dot after 8 hours, or else take a full lunch hour; cost to productivity unclear, could be from half-an-hour up.

That is, it's not a case of someone wanting to give me a free ride, it's a case of someone wanting me in the office for as many hours as possible. Letting me make necessary personal phone calls increases the company's bottom line.

You seem to be of the opinion that if I can use a phone at all, I will automatically be yakking on it all the time. That's a little insulting, doncha think?

(FWIW, I'm also working while typing this. That's how it is with computers.)

ROCINANTE
Original Member 007
Premium Member
join:1999-06-29
Hartsdale, NY

ROCINANTE to The Limit

Premium Member

to The Limit
said by The Limit:

Is that so? Lazy? Maybe unemployed, but lazy? I work harder than most people do in a REAL job. People with REAL jobs get BREAKS. People like me DO NOT. So piss off and take your generalizations elsewhere.

Notice how I used the word "many" and not "all" or even "most" to prevent the "HE'S TALKING ABOUT ME!" type of emotional outbursts that proved two of my points I listed.

The Limit
Premium Member
join:2007-09-25
Denver, CO

The Limit to dave

Premium Member

to dave
I find that those who say "WORK EVERY SECOND ON THE CLOCK! MICROMANAGEMENT!" are usually the same people who actually don't work every second on the clock, or are in a nice position to tell us peons that this is how it should be for us, just because.

I've found that these same people don't hold up their end of the bargain either. You work hard, get your work done, etc but that other person who complains about unproductivity ends up being the unproductive one.

Some of you need to chill out. This isn't a matter of life and death, and I can tell you from experience and observation that employees are less productive when a manager is hovering over their shoulder every 5 minutes. Just because one person has a problem with self control, doesn't mean that everyone has a problem with self control.

The American way of thinking really bothers me. We work so that we can live, not the other way around. Work shouldn't be idolized, or become someone's identity. Period.

I am in agreement with you Dave.
The Limit

The Limit to ROCINANTE

Premium Member

to ROCINANTE
I don't care what word you used, it's not true. I don't see sources, citations, no proof. What I see is an opinion that ignorant "elders" like to pass off on the younger generation when in fact, we have it much harder than they ever did.
The Limit

The Limit to ROCINANTE

Premium Member

to ROCINANTE
If you want to call my post out as being emotional, then by all means, do so. But I had a right to do so, because that kind of information is misinformation and has not been proven as far as I can tell.

howardfine
join:2002-08-09
Saint Louis, MO

howardfine to neonturbo

Member

to neonturbo
said by neonturbo:

Facebook is not always a time waster, it is how many young people communicate nowadays.

Communicate what? Are you discussing work related stuff on Facebook for all the world to see? I'd fire you, too.

goalieskates
Premium Member
join:2004-09-12
land of big

2 recommendations

goalieskates to The Limit

Premium Member

to The Limit
said by The Limit:

What I see is an opinion that ignorant "elders" like to pass off on the younger generation when in fact, we have it much harder than they ever did.

Enough with the pity party.

You do not have it harder than your elders, your expectations are different. You never worked in a coal mine at age 6, or starved through the depression, or worked on a farm. Working through lunch and breaks has gone on for years.

The difference is your elders were raised from the beginning with the idea they would have to work, not doted on in schools. They were prepared, our young ones weren't. So let's not get carried away here, and welcome to the real world.

Name Game
Premium Member
join:2002-07-07
Grand Rapids, MI

1 recommendation

Name Game to StuartMW

Premium Member

to StuartMW
To clear up some confusion...there are many businesses who use facebook and have a business page. This is not a personal page and they will soon be charge under a new model.

»wcni.wordpress.com/2011/ ··· profile/

»www.latimes.com/business ··· 56.story

That is not an uncommon event even for the "older folks"..we called it networking even before there was a facebook. I also know two people who got jobs because of a facebook account.
scelli (banned)
Four More Years!
join:1999-08-07
FLOT/FEBA

scelli (banned) to The Limit

Member

to The Limit
said by The Limit:

I don't care what word you used, it's not true. I don't see sources, citations, no proof. What I see is an opinion that ignorant "elders" like to pass off on the younger generation when in fact, we have it much harder than they ever did.

What I see is an opinion that ignorant "elders" like to pass off on the younger generation when in fact, we have it much harder than they ever did.

Congratulations! In my mind at least, you've managed to completely negate some fairly decent defenses of your position in this thread with the little ditty above.

Since you seem to demand sources, citations and proof, then I also demand the same: Just what empirical evidence in your possession would possibly justify one of the more patently offensive and downright ridiculous statements foisted upon these boards in quite a while?

rcdailey
Dragoonfly
Premium Member
join:2005-03-29
Rialto, CA

rcdailey to dave

Premium Member

to dave
I have a Facebook account, but I go there very infrequently. OTOH, I go to this site on a daily basis, mostly for useful information, but I also make comments, which probably is a waste of time. I certainly have seen employees using company equipment during lunch hours, but that is approved by the owner of the business.
scelli (banned)
Four More Years!
join:1999-08-07
FLOT/FEBA

scelli (banned) to goalieskates

Member

to goalieskates
said by goalieskates:

said by The Limit:

What I see is an opinion that ignorant "elders" like to pass off on the younger generation when in fact, we have it much harder than they ever did.

Enough with the pity party.

You do not have it harder than your elders, your expectations are different. You never worked in a coal mine at age 6, or starved through the depression, or worked on a farm. Working through lunch and breaks has gone on for years.

The difference is your elders were raised from the beginning with the idea they would have to work, not doted on in schools. They were prepared, our young ones weren't. So let's not get carried away here, and welcome to the real world.

He's also obviously never fought in a world war that nearly decimated half the planet, built a bomb shelter, been denied equal rights because of Jim Crow laws, gotten drafted, lived through numerous assassinations...and on and on and on.

rcdailey
Dragoonfly
Premium Member
join:2005-03-29
Rialto, CA

1 recommendation

rcdailey to Name Game

Premium Member

to Name Game
I am pretty sure that if they made businesses pay for all of the tools at Facebook, many of those businesses would just drop their accounts. If they simply add a charge for services that provide more advertising punch than the free tools, then they will get some more revenue. Facebook has to prove that this is cost effective advertising, of course.
dave
Premium Member
join:2000-05-04
not in ohio

1 recommendation

dave to goalieskates

Premium Member

to goalieskates
said by goalieskates:

You do not have it harder than your elders, your expectations are different. You never worked in a coal mine at age 6, or starved through the depression, or worked on a farm. Working through lunch and breaks has gone on for years.

... or had to write software with only zeroes, because you couldn't afford the ones.

Gimme a break. We're talking about whether people applying for office jobs (which was implicit in the original article) expect to have access to a web site blocked.

Yeah, you're right, some of us have had a relatively safe life, but this is not the exclusive domain of the young (I'm old enough that the AARP have started sending me snail-main), and the walk-uphill-both-directions-in-the-snow rant can't be taken seriously, even if our young friend was exaggerating a little about how hard he had it. He's probably spot-on in that competition for advancement is stiffer, though.
Sukunai
Premium Member
join:2008-05-07

2 recommendations

Sukunai to dave

Premium Member

to dave
said by dave:

said by Sukunai:

Which is why it is nice to get those sort of yuppies forms of employment.

A little class warfare going on here?

Re: phones. The average office employer has a simple choice:

- let me make a personal phone call on company time, cost to productivity, 5 mins.

- require me to make a phone call on my own time, I'll leave the office on the dot after 8 hours, or else take a full lunch hour; cost to productivity unclear, could be from half-an-hour up.

That is, it's not a case of someone wanting to give me a free ride, it's a case of someone wanting me in the office for as many hours as possible. Letting me make necessary personal phone calls increases the company's bottom line.

You seem to be of the opinion that if I can use a phone at all, I will automatically be yakking on it all the time. That's a little insulting, doncha think?

(FWIW, I'm also working while typing this. That's how it is with computers.)

I can't seem to walk down the street without having a dozen people inside of ten blocks nearly walk into me because they are walking looking at a screen and madly pushing buttons. I actually DO think some of society actually CAN'T put the things down.

I've had situations where some people actually get annoyed that I won't run to the phone just because it rings. I find it amusing to see people aghast that a ringing phone can be ignored. No I don't feel a need to use every second of my day not doing something else, on a phone.

I call just about everyone under 30 a potential yuppie. Especially if they a laptop and definitely if they have a tablet.

I wasn't aiming to be a 'little insulting' actually, I am never a 'little' anything

I think cell phone users are more addicted than chain smokers. At least they have come to finally realise there are places we don't want them

I have a friend, who has told me the consequences of not being available for unpaid bonus efforts at the office. They get let go first when the office needs to downsize. As such, he has remained employed often when almost everyone was let go. I suppose it just depends on your desire to remain employed.

Sure leave precisely on the dot, you are not obligated to stay unpaid. The boss is also not required to pick you to remain when 5 out of 7 people have to be laid off either.

Another friend of mine, he can routinely do the work of 3 people. As such, he's considered a keeper. In fact, they tend to let people go if they can't look worth the saving.

The only real way to safeguard a job, is to be considered valuable.

Because even though only a pampered spoiled brat actually would state that life is harder today than even say only as far back as my own young adult years, the facts are, there is simply merely more people fighting for your spot on the pay roll.
That doesn't = harder life, that = good reason to pick the right college course or learn to be self employed.

I'd rather be dealing with a climate change conditioned future, than a nuclear wasteland. I was completely stressed out for my entire 20s thanks to the Soviet Union. Job stress, phah, get real.

The Limit
Premium Member
join:2007-09-25
Denver, CO

The Limit to goalieskates

Premium Member

to goalieskates
How about I was raised on a farm? I know what hard work is? You have no idea what my life has been like, and I didn't start the generalizations, let's bring this full circle shall we?

It was stated that "many" grad students are lazy and unemployed or underemployed. I have a right to make my defense. The generalization had absolutely nothing to do with the article in question.

There is no pity party, because that implies that I complain about the work I do, when in fact I am here because I want to be here. What I DON'T like is when people start generalizing large groups of people, which in retrospect, I did out of anger which isn't justified so I own up to that conclusion.

However, in light of what I said, I think it's fair to stand up for my generation rather than watch the previous generation demonize this one. Sure, we haven't had to work in a coal mine, or walk miles and miles to get to school. Let me ask you this: do you think we would still do it if we had to? I have a feeling that we would, hell, I would if I had to. I would get used to it eventually.

The whole purpose that I even posted here in the first place was because I feel like Facebook gets way more hate than it needs to, and that it's "popular" to hate on them because people are unproductive BECAUSE of facebook. That is not true, and I think it's sad now that we have individuals who cannot muster up the self discipline to work rather than play.

And then the implication of "lazy grad" students came into play, which I was not going to allow go unchallenged, because I am obligated to speak up. It's a public forum, and even though the topic was "possibly" in the bounds of the OP, it shouldn't have been said at all. It contributed nothing to the discussion, and made sweeping gestures over a large population of individuals.

So before you go demonizing my post, realize the context of my post.

I am sure that if I lived back then, I would have conformed with the times.
The Limit

The Limit to scelli

Premium Member

to scelli
...Which is really not fair to compare me to as I wasn't even born then. In the context of the post, which is jobs, and your topics (which have nothing to do with the context of the post), I was referring to the fact that it's damn near impossible for some of us to get jobs out of college no matter how hard we work. Read the stats for yourself.

But humor me for a minute, if I were alive then, I wouldn't know what I would have been like then. I wouldn't be the person that I am now, that's for sure. I can, however, state that if I was raised then like I have been raised in this generation, I would be fine.
Sukunai
Premium Member
join:2008-05-07

1 recommendation

Sukunai to StuartMW

Premium Member

to StuartMW
I for the record like Facebook, and have zero interest in even caring about privacy.

I make it known, don't friend me if you don't want the everyone to know anything about them that will in effect get exposed to the whole of the net just by connecting with me.

I WANT the entire planet to see my comments. All of them. I wouldn't be online if I was paranoid.

But I tend to use Facebook in the morning when I am just getting up to speed. Then I might check it if I am relaxing from doing something else. But considering I live a retired senior citizens existence there is nothing to stop me.

Now if I could be all day at the shop, that would be so much better.
And the computer would be at home not the shop, and the only communications tool in the shop, would be the phone. An ordinary business phone. No special functions, just a phone you answer when someone calls the business.

All my electronics would be at home.
And I'd expect all my employees to be observing the same level of dedication to the work day as myself.