Does anyone work a 40 hour week anymore? especially in IT?

[slsmnaz]

45-50 hrs per week is normal for me. I may put in a couple extra hrs per week at home catching up on emails. I like my job so it's not a big deal and right now I'm happy to still have it.

 

[ViviTheMage]

40 hours on the nuts is what I do, every week, network administrator/IS stuff.

 

[Riverhound777]

I wish I worked 40 hours. I usually only get up to 30-38. But I don't mind too much

 

[Gunslinger08]

I work 40. Typically 10-6 or 10-7 (if I take lunch). I'll stay late/work from home at night/on a weekend if it's an emergency, but my time is more important to me than working.

 

[PlasmaBomb]

Work-life balance...

Key phrase for your vocabulary.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Originally posted by: Soybomb
It seems like every job interview I go on they spring a big work week on me. Talking to most of my friends, it seems like the norm. Is the idea of working "only" 40 hours a week dead for most professioanls, especially in IT?

The last interview I was at they asked me what I'd think of 45-50 hour weeks, maybe working for 7-6. I'd love it? And this was after we'd already talked salary like that 25% increase in hours won't factor in. The interview before that I asked the supervisor for that position what the average day would be like and was told "in this department we look at the work day as time to have meetings and then get our work done when we get home." Gee that sounds wonderful.

If you can afford to turn it down, don't walk -- RUN away. I once had a boss tell me that we were expected to make up meeting time on our own time. After I got done laughing, I made sure that never happened. My logic is that as a manager or supervisor, it is their responsibility to budget the appropriate amount of time for meetings and project work on COMPANY time, not your personal time. If a meeting is so important that you have to attend, then the manager needs to take that into account and either allocate additional resources to get your work done OR they need to realize that an hour of meeting time means one less hour of producing and they should plan accordingly. Obviously, emergencies do happen and sometimes it can't be predicted, but those should be the exceptions, not the rules.

I think Spidey said it best in his post -- if you are being paid for 40 hours of your time, then you should work 40 hours. Any more and you should be compensated appropriately, either with additional money or with comp time. People are beginning to realize that there is more to life than working all of the time, esepcially since most now realize that no matter how hard you work or what you produce for a company, they will cut you in a minute if they think they could save a dime or two.

 

[Brovane]

I am a hourly IT employee. Usually I work 40-hours a week. A little more sometimes but I am compensated for this so I don't mind a little OT.

 

[SacrosanctFiend]

Originally posted by: spidey07

Originally posted by: Soybomb
It seems like every job interview I go on they spring a big work week on me. Talking to most of my friends, it seems like the norm. Is the idea of working "only" 40 hours a week dead for most professioanls, especially in IT?

The last interview I was at they asked me what I'd think of 45-50 hour weeks, maybe working for 7-6. I'd love it? And this was after we'd already talked salary like that 25% increase in hours won't factor in. The interview before that I asked the supervisor for that position what the average day would be like and was told "in this department we look at the work day as time to have meetings and then get our work done when we get home." Gee that sounds wonderful.

Don't get me wrong, I've been doing IT for a number of years now, I understand late nights and long weekends are sometimes required but I personally don't want it to be the norm. I'm starting to think thats going to be a tough order.

Tell them if they expect you to work more than 40 you must be paid for it or officially documented comp time. Professionals are starting to take back their life and realize that 40 hours means 40 hours. Not any more without just compensation in the form of money or time. Calling you after hours also means you should be compensated for that time, minimum 1 hour so a 5 minute phone call = 1 hour of time or money.

If you start allowing accumulation or start calculating comp time for exempt employee hour by hour, the employee is no longer recognized as exempt and the company would be liable for OT backpay. (Note: This applies to private companies)

Exempt employees are usually compensated at a higher rate than hourly employees because they may be expected to work more than 40 hours. Likewise, if they work less than 40 hours (except for certain reasons) they are still paid for their full 40.

What you're saying professionals are advocating push to hourly-only, and I don't believe that for a second.

 

[AreaCode707]

45-60, though I've worked 100 hr weeks in previous jobs in the past.

 

[spidey07]

Originally posted by: SacrosanctFiend


If you start allowing accumulation or start calculating comp time for exempt employee hour by hour, the employee is no longer recognized as exempt and the company would be liable for OT backpay. (Note: This applies to private companies)

Exempt employees are usually compensated at a higher rate than hourly employees because they may be expected to work more than 40 hours. Likewise, if they work less than 40 hours (except for certain reasons) they are still paid for their full 40.

What you're saying professionals are advocating push to hourly-only, and I don't believe that for a second.

Then push for salaried non-exempt. What I'm saying is people are waking up to work/life balance and pushing back on working more than 40 hours and rightly so. Many companies are also recognizing work/life balance as a means to improve what is arguably pretty miserable morale.

 

[TwiceOver]

40ish hours... Unless something major is going on.

 

[SacrosanctFiend]

Originally posted by: spidey07

Originally posted by: SacrosanctFiend


If you start allowing accumulation or start calculating comp time for exempt employee hour by hour, the employee is no longer recognized as exempt and the company would be liable for OT backpay. (Note: This applies to private companies)

Exempt employees are usually compensated at a higher rate than hourly employees because they may be expected to work more than 40 hours. Likewise, if they work less than 40 hours (except for certain reasons) they are still paid for their full 40.

What you're saying professionals are advocating push to hourly-only, and I don't believe that for a second.

Then push for salaried non-exempt. What I'm saying is people are waking up to work/life balance and pushing back on working more than 40 hours and rightly so. Many companies are also recognizing work/life balance as a means to improve what is arguably pretty miserable morale.

Understandable, but there are plently of W/L initiatives that don't involve compensation (e.g. telecommuting, flex schedules, sabbatical leave, dependent care, phased retirement, etc.). There are plently of things that can be tailored to a specific company to improve W/L balance (and tailored programs are the most effective).

 

[amdhunter]

People in IT work 40 hours? Damn, I must work 2-3 hours a month... I love salaries.

 

[ggnl]

At my employer, the higher you get up the totem pole, the more you're expected to work. It's kind of an implicit rule that you won't get offered promotions over manager level if you don't demonstrate that you're willing work to long hours.

I don't agree with it, which means my future is limited here, but work/life balance is too important to me.

 

[Skiddex]

55-70hrs / week. salary. IT systems administrator. on call 27/7

 

[Gibson486]

It depends.....

If you are there just to work and get a paycheck, then yeah, 40 hours a week is doable. Just do not expect to be noticed.

However, if you want to make a career out of your job, then the 40 hr work week is dead.

So, answer this question, you want a career or a job?

 

[NuclearNed]

40 hrs/wk here, unless something big is going on (rarely happens).

I have to fight for this, though. Mgmt would love 50+ hours from everyone.

 

[clamum]

I'm hourly and cannot work OT if it is not authorized. But just about every week I work 50+ hours, for about a year now. I miss the days of 8-5.

Edit: I'm a software dev.

 

[Aikouka]

I work 40 hours a week normally, but have worked more... the longest was probably 52 hours in a week? Normally by 6, I'm rather bored and want to leave though .

 

[IceBergSLiM]

Why work extra for free when the company won't think twice about cutting you at a moments notice as soon as there are "tough times" ? a big FUCK THAT.

 

[Merithynos]

In the past I've worked 50, 60, 70 hour weeks on a regular basis during important projects, and on at least a few occasions I've actually slept under my desk (I'm an IT project manager). Over the past couple years the company I work for has been using the economy as an excuse to put it's employees over the barrel (I say "as an excuse" because I see the company financial statements, and things are nowhere near as bad as they're being made out to be). Bonuses have been slashed, incentive reward programs have been eliminated, the pension plan was terminated, our profit sharing is being cut this year, and the pay raises, which have sucked for years (they never really recovered after "tech bust") have been eliminated for this year. We've also been playing "Survivor" for the past 18 months, with my department dwindling from 45 PMs down to 12.

I now put in my 40 hours (if that) and go home - you get what you pay for.

 

[guyver01]

Originally posted by: amdhunter
People in IT work 40 hours? Damn, I must work 2-3 hours a month... I love salaries.

so how's life as a mcdonalds frycook? how's that $15/week salary treating ya?

 

[rh71]

If I worked at an actual office I wouldn't, considering travel time and all that. Being at home, logging off at 630pm (yes doing real work) isn't a big deal. We are salaried but get OT now... they cut our pay first of course.

 

[Gooberlx2]

Originally posted by: skim milk
pff that's nothing
I'm looking to jump to asset management, expected work week = 70-75hr

LOL, fuck that. They better be providing meals and cots to sleep on.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

I worked 60 to 80 hours a week for 20 odd years before I gave corporate food service the boot and took a massive pay cut. Now, I work hourly instead of salary, 40 hours or less a week and, have never been happier.