Cellphone use at work

Gern Blansten · November 2020

I'm curious what everyone is experiencing either as an employee or an employer.

What limitations do you put on employees or what limitations are you subject to?

static111 · November 2020

Lol it’s 2020 throttling phone use at work is about as effective as getting people to mask up.

Gern Blansten · November 2020

So no rules?

I was just reading about offices that require phones to be kept in desk drawers....also one that required employees to keep their phones on a shelf in the hallway that they could only check on their "breaks."

cincybearcat · November 2020

So - I;ve been in different manufacturing environments over the years. There is the safety aspect of no walking and using your phone, etc. HR overtime has come to realize that the phone, camera, video is not just a danger to secrets or a waste of time...it's become a tool to be used by line operators to share real time defects/issues and get the help needed to solve the problem more quickly.

So - it used to be "NO cell phones" on the plant floor...and now it's simply an adult business agreement in many places where the teams and leaders on the floor have to manage how much is too much...what use is not appropriate, etc.

In the office areas of all the plants I've worked in, there have not been any rules regarding phone usage. Though if you were not getting your work done, it would become a personal issue you might have to deal with.

josevolution · November 2020

In the OR no cellphone use for nurses techs & assistants, Doctors can do anything they want!

HughFreakingDillon · November 2020

work in an office. cell use is rampant. not controlled. people often have more than one; one person and one company-issued. i see people checking their texts in meetings all the time. that seems to be a break of etiquette but it happens from the top down.

i don't ever hear anyone complaining about it though.

Gern Blansten · November 2020

I told an employee today that she needed to tell her daughter to stop calling her during office hours. Daughter is like 28.

I have talked to her a few times about it and things had gotten better but now it was back to a daily call. What drives me crazy is that she tends to call around 430pm...a half hour before we get off work. It can't fucking wait 30 minutes? I know what happens...daughter gets off work and calls mom as she is driving home or something.

Her daughter is a nurse....I asked her if her daughter would be allowed to receive calls while she was at work...of course that was a no.

brianlux · November 2020

Cell phones have taken over peoples lives. I have one I use for emergency calls if I'm on the road. Otherwise, it never gets used.

But, honestly, I'm being a bit hypocritical. Looks who is on the computer instead of doing his chores.

Gern Blansten · November 2020

brianlux said:

Cell phones have taken over peoples lives. I have one I use for emergency calls if I'm on the road. Otherwise, it never gets used.

But, honestly, I'm being a bit hypocritical. Looks who is on the computer instead of doing his chores.

same...it's a good thing I'm self employed

1ThoughtKnown · November 2020

Work cellphones are provided as part of employment, however there are security measures in place which restrict what kind of apps you can have on your company-provided smartphone.

Almost everyone has a personal cellphone (carrying 2 phones sucks... but I’m getting used to it)
In the office environment our organization appears to have the philosophy that you have yearly deliverables and they must be completed on time. Occasionally and reasonable use of a personal cellphone is tolerated. The Periodic Review on executing your deliverables throughout the year (beginning, mid-point, end of year) ensures you aren’t spending all day playing Candy Crush I suppose.
When driving a fleet vehicle, hands-free cellphone use is only permitted by the Director of the division you work in and this is on a case-by-case basis. Calls are expected to be kept short to reduce distraction from driving. Any other use of a cellphone is strictly prohibited. I advise workers against making/receiving personal calls when driving. Should a family emergency occur we recommend having one family member call the work phone.

Field workers in safety-sensitive positions are required to leave personal cellphone use until break times. With the nature of their work, our Field Operations folks police themselves here from what I’ve observed. Any screw-ups in the field could have devastating consequences so focus is paramount. To give context on the danger, I work in electrical transmission (25kV - 500KV). The work includes power lines, substations and telecom.

Cellphone use at work

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