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View Full Version : What do you think? Is 24/7 access a blessing or a curse?



BlueLghtning
04-21-2010, 05:09 PM
Interesting survey that my company did. - http://www.intercall.com/about-us/press-releases_100420.php

It was picked up by the NY Times in their ReadWriteWeb Section - http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/always_on_one_third_of_employees_feel_the_need_to_ connect_24_7.php



Always On: One Third of Employees Feel the Need to Stay Connected 24/7
Written by Frederic Lardinois - April 20, 2010 12:21 PM

For a lot of us, the Internet has made it possible to work from anywhere and connect to work at any time. Without a doubt, this 24/7 connectivity is both a blessing and a curse. According to a new survey by web conferencing firm InterCall, 30% of workers in the U.S. who use technology to do their jobs feel the need to stay connected to work 24/7, even during weekends, breaks and holidays. One in two workers also say that taking time off is becoming increasingly challenging.

Clearly, the current economic climate isn't helping employees to relax. Almost 40% of all respondents noted that they are doing the job of two people because of the impact of the economic recession on their company. Today, 25% of workers think that their supervisors expect them to be online and connected to work after hours and that their job security depends on this. Almost 15% of respondents say that they plan to attend at least one work-related call or web meeting during their next vacation and 17% say that it is frowned upon if they don't connect to work during their vacations.

Given all of these pressures, it would seem natural for most of these workers to feel at least some resentment towards technology in the workplace, but 72% of respondents argued that technology helps them to do their job better and 81% say that technology makes them more productive.

Do You Stay Connected to Work During After Hours, on the Weekend and on Vacation?
What about you? Do you feel the need to constantly check your work email while on vacation? Do you feel like you are expected to do so? Do you get anxious when you can't check your work email? Or do you just check out, head for the beach and sip Mai Tais?

TLR67
04-21-2010, 07:29 PM
I do the very last sentence in that article...... I have too.... Every now and then I will log on to clear out the 100's of E-Mails that have nothing to do with my division so my Inbox Capacity wont crash.... Other than that I leave my Crackberry and Laptop at home and turned off... Life is more important than technology IMO...

jkhonea
04-21-2010, 07:49 PM
Hell, most of them are saying they'd be for 24/7 because they feel guilty about the time they spend on the forums instead of working and feel the need to make up lost time. :crackup:

BlueLghtning
04-21-2010, 10:55 PM
Hell, most of them are saying they'd be for 24/7 because they feel guilty about the time they spend on the forums instead of working and feel the need to make up lost time. :crackup:

haha, probably true!

patracy
04-21-2010, 10:57 PM
Guilty.

I'm working right now actually.

jkhonea
04-21-2010, 11:17 PM
I'm as guilty as the rest. Only difference is since its my company, I HAVE to make the time to make up the work. Or my ass is living in a cardboard box.

patracy
04-21-2010, 11:23 PM
Yeah, but it'd be a mac daddy pimp'ed designed cardboard box.

jkhonea
04-21-2010, 11:27 PM
Yeah, but it'd be a mac daddy pimp'ed designed cardboard box.

Good point, Drew. :crackup:

dzone
04-22-2010, 10:19 AM
I used to, long ago, then I realized I had a finite number of days to do what I wanted to do in life. And work didn't fall into that category. Once I leave the parking lot, I don't look at email until I sit down at my desk the next morning.

Now if a server texts me that it is not feeling well, I will take a look. That is a couple of times a year only.

sl500
04-24-2010, 01:37 PM
I used to check my bb at all hours, it was crazy. I understand that we get paid 24/7 but there has to be a time when you are disconnected. My job requires me to have a phone to approve overtime, calm ruffled feathers ect but I do not think that I needed to be responding to every priority 1 ticket that comes out. In fact my boss (a civilian now but retired LTC) finally told me to stop checking and replying to emails at 3 am, or I would burn out. In a war zone, hell yeah give me all the latest gadgets out there to keep me up to date with the fight; as this is real time, life threatening information that needs to be disseminated pronto. But in a garrison environment, that fact that COL so-and-so cant open up an attachment that was sent to him from some dubious website.....thanks server notification tool, that one can wait until the next day lol. if is is something that important, they will call me. Life is just too darn short to be messing around with work on your time off.

wicked
04-24-2010, 01:44 PM
im a web developer. ive been doing this for a long time. there was a time early on in my career where between office time and vpn-ing in i was putting in about 80 hours a week. somewhere along the way i decided that there needed to be a very definitive line drawn between my work life and my life life. now, for the most part, i only dial in on my telecommute days and leave my time to me. but on the other side of that, while i usually dont touch my bb or work network after hours i feel hobbled when either arent working...

signguy
04-24-2010, 02:38 PM
This sounds like it is only geared for EMPLOYEES... try owning a small biz. 24/7... that's nothing...

Actually as I write this I'm working .... but in all honesty that's a rare thing for me to do after hours. The reality of all things is that you have to know when to stop... either as an employee or or owner.

wallypiper
04-24-2010, 06:34 PM
I'm sort of available 24/7. The reality is though that I definitely screen calls at times. And I tell ya what. If you just leave me a message that says "call me" during non business hours, I rarely call back before business hours. If you leave me a real message that tells me what you're calling about, I'll almost always return the call. But there are times, like right now, when my phone is in my pants pocket upstairs in the bedroom. I'll look at it every now and then to see if there are any messages, but I don't keep it within reach 24/7.

MotoMike
04-25-2010, 08:47 AM
My recommendation is learn to use your "Out of office assistant" on company phone systems and company Outlook and go ride!