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I Put In The Time, So Why Should I work Overtime?
Q: "I'm a supervisor at a manufacturing company, responsible for group of 8 employees. Most of us joined the company 2 years ago. Lately, I am getting quite a bit of flack from my manager that my employees are not putting in enough "time." The company has a history of working their personnel between 50 and 60 hours a week. I think that’s excessive, based on a study I read that proved working over 48 hours/week actually begins to deteriorate any added value from a standard 40-hour work-week contribution. When I mentioned this my superiors left me with the distinct message that I’m inexperienced and they know better. Our department has never missed a deadline and all our major projects are moving along on schedule, so what’s the fuss all about? I think my boss is forcing the issue of overtime just because he thinks it will make our department "look good."
ALISON ANSWERS: It’s quite possible that your boss thinks the vision of employees hunched over their desks, hard at work after-hours, will make him and the department look like high achievers. You already are efficient and work hard, but if everyone else stays 50 hours a week and you stay 60, the image is that you’re working even harder than they are! This might not be the truth, but "it looks good."
I tend to agree that productivity goes down when employees are exhausted, and their performance and morale suffers, but especially in the current atmosphere of the downsized corporation, the competent employee who can get his or her work done quickly looks like a "slacker" for leaving on time while the less-able worker who arrives super-early, eats lunch at the desk, stays late, and makes an appearance on weekends, is the one who is perceived as doing all the "hard work."
It might seem like of ridiculous to make a show of working long hours when there is no need for it, but if your boss wants visual proof that his department isn't made of "slackers" he may not care how the work gets done. As a new supervisor, you need to be tuned in to the corporate culture of your company. If the current culture at your company demands that you and your staff remain in the office longer than you feel is necessary, you will have to make some adjustments to accommodate this or suffer the consequences of not being a team player. You could slow down the pace of your work to fit the hours intended. As long as all the work in your department is getting done fast, You could also give the impression that your entire staff is there by assigning a few late nights to your staff on a rotating basis. Having a few people working later each day may solve the problem. To compensate, you would allow these staff members to come in later than normal, or to leave without being penalized for the time when they have a personal matter to attend to..
There doesn’t seem to be any logical sense to working employees to death, forcing them to nearly drop in their tracks from trying to "keep up". If only all companies could put systems and training in place so employees worked smarter instead of just longer..... Perhaps others reading this column will write me advicesisters@advicesisters.net with some thoughts of their own to share because they’re in a similar situation to yours. I’ll post them in an upcoming column.
Alison Blackman Dunham, aka. "Advice Sister Alison, " is a life & career expert, online advisor, freelance writer, and creator of The Advice Sisters online publications. "The Advice Sisters®" are credited with bringing the advice genre, online. If you are seeking advice of any kind, this website is the right place! If you have a question, dilemma or problem that requires personal attention, consult Alison privately. Also check out The Advice Sisters Features Page with the latest additions to the site. Read the Advice Sisters Blog and enjoy the Bulletin Boards and Forums. For even more advice, inspiration and up-close-and-personal reviews, information and reports, get the free, bi-monthly AdviceSisters Enews by Email.