"How hard is it to look at your email?"
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Anonymous
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So, I'm sitting here in my front room. It's 11am on a rainy Sunday.
I'm reading the news, browsing recipes for a curry I'll make my family tonight during the snow. I've rested this weekend, hung a couple pictures that have been waiting for months, did some laundry, read a bunch about John Singleton Mosby and watched some olympics with my daughter. Two hours ago my phone rang. ID said it was a colleague so I immediately thought it must be an emergency (I work in Facilities Mangement- think taking care of large buildings). It wasn't. It was her basically crying that I didn't see an email sent Saturday morning by a client wanting an immediate answer. We don't work weekends unless its an emergency. This guys question was basically: "Hey, about that appointment we have to do a campus walk on Thursday- anyway we could move it to Wednesday?" I explained to my colleague that I didn't see it because I'm not looking for emails on a weekend and even if I had, I wouldn't have responded until 8 am Monday at the earliest. Because that is when I'm working and I have no desire to give clients the impression they can pepper me at any time and expect a response at 10 on a Saturday morning. "Yeah, but how hard is it to look at your email?" was her response. I told her that she was interrupting my Sunday and we can talk tomorrow. She got offended and esentially hung up on me. What would you have said? I want to check myself before I take this to HR. |
Anonymous
| Hanging up was beyond and I would indeed report it to HR. |
Anonymous
| I would not have answered on a weekend, but understandable you did thinking it was an emergency. What you said is fine. If she brings it up again you ask why she would call you for something so mundane. I'm not sure I'd raise with HR, just never answer calls from this woman outside work hours (in a true emergency she can text you details). |
Anonymous
| Why take this to HR? Id leave it unless it happens again, then start with our manager |
Anonymous
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What is your prior relationship with this person and what is her relationship to you within the organization? What is your supervisor’s relationship to her?
If there’s no expectation that you look at your emails on the weekend, then she was inappropriate for calling you at home on the weekend and then chastising you for not reading your emails. This was not an emergency, and normal people understand the concept of working hours and non-working hours. The client could and should have waited until Monday morning. It’s not brain surgery or a rocket launch, and nobody’s life was at stake. Whether you should report to HR depends on your answers to my questions. |
Anonymous
| Omg do not take this to HR. Talk to your colleague or your manager, if you must. What is HR supposed to do here? |
Anonymous
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I check my email a couple of times a day on the weekends, and I spend a moment responding to anything time-sensitive. Everything else waits until Monday.
To me, it would have been easier to just address the question, especially if the client would have benefited from a quick reply. |
Anonymous
| Here’s what is unclear to me: are you supposed to monitor your email in case of emergency or not? It’s clear that the client’s question WASN’T an emergency and didn’t demand a response. Your colleague was inappropriate and overreacted. But it seems like what you implied was that you weren’t looking at emails at all when maybe you’re supposed to keep an eye out for potential emergencies? Either way, I don’t think this rises to the level of reporting to HR. |
Anonymous
| Take it to HR? That says a lot about you. Good lord. |
Anonymous
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Something like this got posted recently.
How to handle this depends on the dynamics of your org. But most likely I would just flag this to your manager to CYA and make sure you're on the same page about handling weekend emails. |
Anonymous
Uhhh, document instances of harassment and abuse? Of which this clearly is. In what world do you think it's appropriate to call someone at 9 am on a Sunday morning, demand after hours work (unpaid), and then insult them when told they will handle the issue at the appropriate time and in the appropriate manner? I'm personally at Mass on Sunday mornings and I'd be absolutely irate if this person interrupted that for a rescheduling email. |
Anonymous
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OP I'm 100% on your side and agree. I do not open emails on the weekend.
That said, here is how I would have handled this situation. Suzy calls and says what she says. I would say: Suzy, I don't accept work emails or calls on weekends unless it's an emergency such as (insert what are emergencies). This situation is not an emergency. Wednesday is fine for the reschedule, but I will respond on Monday. In the future please do not call me for not urgent reasons on the weekend. /end That way you make your boundaries and direction clear regarding future interactions. |
Anonymous
| Feel sorry for your org and coworkers. People like you poison the organization |
Anonymous
Email is not for emergencies in most organizations. It doesn't confirm receipt out of the box. Calling is the gold standard for notification. Maybe text messages or an app specific notification on your phone (think push notification from your alarm app for example). |
Anonymous
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I am not required to look at my email when I am off. I do generally check in once day though. If its time sensitive my coworkers know to text me. Ill happily respond to a text.
Not sure why you are wanting to get HR involved unless this continues. You made your point. |