What is your obligation regarding being available on vacation days?

[Anonymous]

Excluding consultants at a Big 4 or McKinsey, if you are on vacation, does you feel your company has the right to interrupt for calls, emails, etc? What should the limit be? When do you ignore them contacting you?

[Anonymous]

I SAH. My husband is always on call even on his days off, and at night. He is a Sr. Software Engineer. When stuff breaks, he must fix it asap.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Excluding consultants at a Big 4 or McKinsey, if you are on vacation, does you feel your company has the right to interrupt for calls, emails, etc? What should the limit be? When do you ignore them contacting you?

No, but I'm not very important.

I'll scan my emails but I only respond if it's REALLY necessary. It usually isn't.

[Anonymous]

My attitude is that if it's important they should call -- I am not checking email. If they call, however, I pick up unless I can't (driving, whatever) and I call back later if I missed the call. Basically, both sides have to be flexible and respectful. I rarely get calls, so when I do get them I don't mind it.

[Anonymous]

I think they should contact me only if there is a great emergency.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My attitude is that if it's important they should call -- I am not checking email. If they call, however, I pick up unless I can't (driving, whatever) and I call back later if I missed the call. Basically, both sides have to be flexible and respectful. I rarely get calls, so when I do get them I don't mind it.

This. With my job responsibilities though, if I ignore things, they tend to get worse. And they definitely don't go away, they're just waiting for me when I get back.

[Anonymous]

None! I can't imagine an emergency that would require my input. Everything is in the files...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My attitude is that if it's important they should call -- I am not checking email. If they call, however, I pick up unless I can't (driving, whatever) and I call back later if I missed the call. Basically, both sides have to be flexible and respectful. I rarely get calls, so when I do get them I don't mind it.

This. With my job responsibilities though, if I ignore things, they tend to get worse. And they definitely don't go away, they're just waiting for me when I get back.

+1. Depends. My job does not require that I respond or make myself available - but I do based on the situation. If it is a weekly staff meeting or staff call - no. If it is a call regarding something that I am heavily involved in - probably. Sometimes it is best for me to be on the call and hear and address things directly as opposed to 2nd or 3rd hand. Makes it easier to hit the ground running when I get back. I check and respond to important emails at the middle of the day and in the evenings. But that is all my decision - I have NEVER been asked to. In fact, my boss is adamant that people not be fully engaged during a vacation and she will deflect when people want to reach you.

[Anonymous]

I used to be on call for my customers 24/7...when something happened, my input could have potentially saved lives. I was called 5 times over 7 years....Once my input may have saved scores of lives.

However, my work has transitioned to highly classified work which can not be done remotely. So, when I am home, I can get called in, but on vacation, I am free.

[Anonymous]

If it's an emergency, I don't mind being contacted (assuming I'm somewhere I can be reached). But, my colleagues cover for me while I'm out and vice versa. But, generally, if I leave out of office instructions saying I will be hard to reach, they get the hint.

-Government litigator.

[Anonymous]

Yea I am expected, and do, respond to work needs outside regular hours. I think it is part of my job as a professional.

[Anonymous]

DH has to be available via email or phone call for emergencies only. With the understanding that if we are abroad, the response time is going to be delayed. But he's the CTO so sometimes shit hits the fan with something and their system admins aren't sure what to do, so they call DH. Doesn't happen often though.

I leave all work at the hospital at the end of each shift.

[Anonymous]

Why should hoity toity lawyers be an exception? They really truly aren't any more special than anyone else. Maybe if everyone got better about respecting boundaries, we'd all be better off. I feel for the IT guy, but in places that really truly need to be up 24/7 (like the Pentagon), they have teams of people who can be on call. I work in one of those shops, and while I prefer to call person A, there's always a person B.

Everyone needs to practice a) not answering the phone on core off hours b) not responding to emails on core off hours (or alt least not hitting send) and repeating the phrase "I'll deal with it first thing in the morning/on Monday"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yea I am expected, and do, respond to work needs outside regular hours. I think it is part of my job as a professional.

When did "professional" become equated with an indentured servant? I know many many true professionals who do not deal with their job 24/7. And the rest of us figure out how to deal when someone is away, so they do the same for us.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yea I am expected, and do, respond to work needs outside regular hours. I think it is part of my job as a professional.

When did "professional" become equated with an indentured servant? I know many many true professionals who do not deal with their job 24/7. And the rest of us figure out how to deal when someone is away, so they do the same for us.

This. We're all dispensable, and as a PP correctly noted, the positions for which presence is essential (e.g., nurses) are staffed by teams of people who are essentially interchangeable. It's really not that difficult a concept.