Bell Cheeses at work

[The Clamp]

In a shocking buck to the thread I really like 99% of the people I work with and we had a great staff Christmas drink last night in Brighton. I think I had a row with Mrs The Clamp when I got in though. I'll have to look into that. Merry Christmas everyone.

 

[Papa Lazarou]

Can you take them off consecutively? Just bugger off for two months.

I know in my Org you can't - any leave over 2 weeks needs senior leadership approval. I'm off on a European roadtrip next summer (driving to Croatia via Belgium, Germany, Austria and Slovakia, and back via Italy and France) and it's just over 3 weeks in total, which I had to get approved by the head of my part of the Org. (I got it approved as I said it will probably be the last chance to travel Europe with border free access on a UK passport).

It is possible to take sabbaticals where you can take 3 months off, but that is rare, and a portion is unpaid.

 

[scamander]

Just to add a morbid tone.

Back in 2012 a pallative care nurse wrote a book about the most common regrets people had when they were dying. "Working too hard" was the second biggest regret.

 

[Notters]

In a shocking buck to the thread I really like 99% of the people I work with and we had a great staff Christmas drink last night in Brighton. I think I had a row with Mrs The Clamp when I got in though. I'll have to look into that. Merry Christmas everyone.

This is no place for you. NO PLACE. Either that or you're the bell cheese.

 

[Badger]

In a shocking buck to the thread I really like 99% of the people I work with and we had a great staff Christmas drink last night in Brighton. I think I had a row with Mrs The Clamp when I got in though. I'll have to look into that. Merry Christmas everyone.

This is no place for you. NO PLACE. Either that or you're the bell cheese.

This.

Get OUT.

 

[dazzer6666]

This.

Get OUT.

Seconded. We don’t need your type in here.

 

[Normski1989]

This is no place for you. NO PLACE. Either that or you're the bell cheese.

Mhmm.

 

[Guinness Boy]

Nothing to report. Turns out she was off yesterday, and today as well. Her duck vibrator is wrapped and sitting lonely-ly in the Secret Santa box.

Well, at least that's something to look forward to in the new year. I have a strong suspicion, however, that when she said "loads" of people would be off later in the week, what she meant was that she was only working on Monday and couldn't possibly miss Secret Santa.

The two girls who sit behind me when I'm on client site in Birmingham (one of them being the one who only eats the holes in Curly Wurlys) spent THREE HOURS yesterday discussing who got a Secret Santa gift that was either so good or so bad that they both knew what it was but would not say what it was, nor did they have any clue as to "Santa's" identity.

(You'll have to imagine the following in a Brummie accent)

"Could it be Kev?"
"Nah.....not bright enough him"
"How about Darren...?"
"DARREN (cackle), Nah. Not Darren"

And so on and so on.

 

[Notters]

Well, at least that's something to look forward to in the new year. I have a strong suspicion, however, that when she said "loads" of people would be off later in the week, what she meant was that she was only working on Monday and couldn't possibly miss Secret Santa.

Or she's not in because she's so upset at being left out @Easy 10

 

[pearl]

Or she's not in because she's so upset at being left out @Easy 10

yeah, @Easy 10 has probably RUINED her Christmas and she'll have to take time off sick in the New Year .... what a B'stard

 

[Guinness Boy]

yeah, @Easy 10 has probably RUINED her Christmas and she'll have to take time off sick in the New Year .... what a B'stard

Yeah Easy, you GRINCH.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

People who feel the need to send emails at 1.30am, or are martyrs to the long hours culture are usually just badly organised or unable to make decisions.........

If there's one thing that can be guaranteed with people working extra late, it's that they ALWAYS send an email letting you - and more importantly their big bosses - know that they've been working extra late.

 

[Guinness Boy]

If there's one thing that can be guaranteed with people working extra late, it's that they ALWAYS send an email letting you - and more importantly their big bosses - know that they've been working extra late.

I worked on a project based in Asia for three years. To start off with it was mainly the onsite team in Taiwan plus a couple of managers in the UK but as it "ramped up" (sorry), we brought in more and more "resource" (sorry again) from offshore and our head office in North America. You therefore had a team on Chinese time, one on Indian, one on UK and one on Canadian. Additionally everyone was desperate to prove how dedicated they were to the cause.

The net result was that, no matter where you worked from, you inevitably had to do a conference call at 11pm or 7am or just after all the normal people had left the office, and emails came in cc'd to EVERYONE non stop for 24 hours. Anyone who sent one at the weekend also cc'd EVERYONE.

When I left to come back to the UK I had well over 1000 unread emails in my in box and I was not, by far, the worst offender.

 

[FamilyGuy]

Both.....looking forward to my 40 days next year [emoji106][emoji106]

I'm retiring in March, looking forward to 365 days off every year =0)

 

[FamilyGuy]

If there's one thing that can be guaranteed with people working extra late, it's that they ALWAYS send an email letting you - and more importantly their big bosses - know that they've been working extra late.

I used to work with a guy who led a team of successful recruiters, and he seriously suggested to me that I should send emails from home, before breakfast, to make people think that I was working extra-hard and extra-long.

My reply was to accuse him of being something with similar qualities.

 

[Easy 10]

Well, at least that's something to look forward to in the new year. I have a strong suspicion, however, that when she said "loads" of people would be off later in the week, what she meant was that she was only working on Monday and couldn't possibly miss Secret Santa.

Could be. I have no idea of her shift patters, but I'd rather she come in before we close down till the New Year, otherwise I might be STEWING on it. Like a sticky plaster, best to get this ripped off quick and out of the way, then I can get on with the rest of my life.

Or she's not in because she's so upset at being left out @Easy 10

In my defence, I was off last Wednesday, Thursday and Friday using up the last of my holiday, so its not MY fault if some BC bint went and made an executive decision to do it on Monday in my absence.

Lesson learned. Next year, I'm just not doing it. Harrump.

 

[FamilyGuy]

I worked on a project based in Asia for three years. To start off with it was mainly the onsite team in Taiwan plus a couple of managers in the UK but as it "ramped up" (sorry), we brought in more and more "resource" (sorry again) from offshore and our head office in North America. You therefore had a team on Chinese time, one on Indian, one on UK and one on Canadian. Additionally everyone was desperate to prove how dedicated they were to the cause.

The net result was that, no matter where you worked from, you inevitably had to do a conference call at 11pm or 7am or just after all the normal people had left the office, and emails came in cc'd to EVERYONE non stop for 24 hours. Anyone who sent one at the weekend also cc'd EVERYONE.

When I left to come back to the UK I had well over 1000 unread emails in my in box and I was not, by far, the worst offender.

Is it me? I seem to have experienced all these bad practices?

It was once suggested to me that I should work to be the CEO's "right hand man" and take some of the load from him, because he was overworked and had to have frequent conference calls with teams across the globe - at all times of day and night, and over the weekends - and it was killing him.

I politely declined, they then "made it difficult for me", the end result was that I sued them and got a nice 5 figure sum from them before I left for a new and better job - working from home.

 

[The Clamp]

This is no place for you. NO PLACE. Either that or you're the bell cheese.

Sorry.

 

[SouthCoastOwl]

I worked on a project based in Asia for three years. To start off with it was mainly the onsite team in Taiwan plus a couple of managers in the UK but as it "ramped up" (sorry), we brought in more and more "resource" (sorry again) from offshore and our head office in North America. You therefore had a team on Chinese time, one on Indian, one on UK and one on Canadian. Additionally everyone was desperate to prove how dedicated they were to the cause.

The net result was that, no matter where you worked from, you inevitably had to do a conference call at 11pm or 7am or just after all the normal people had left the office, and emails came in cc'd to EVERYONE non stop for 24 hours. Anyone who sent one at the weekend also cc'd EVERYONE.

When I left to come back to the UK I had well over 1000 unread emails in my in box and I was not, by far, the worst offender.

I suppose I'm lucky to work for an enlightened company. Regardless of where an an e-mail has come from, if it turns up after 18:00 (Paris time) or at the weekend, it doesn't have to be answered until the next working day. However, this doesn't stop certain bell cheeses sending e-mails (from their own time zones) at stupid o'clock at night or the early hours of the morning to show how dedicated they are.

 

[dazzer6666]

I suppose I'm lucky to work for an enlightened company. Regardless of where an an e-mail has come from, if it turns up after 18:00 (Paris time) or at the weekend, it doesn't have to be answered until the next working day. However, this doesn't stop certain bell cheeses sending e-mails (from their own time zones) at stupid o'clock at night or the early hours of the morning to show how dedicated they are.

Aha, the clue. Classic French lassaiz-faire attitude to work. Bloody LAYABOUTS.

I tend not to look at emails at weekends except maybe Sunday night to be aware of any Monday morning crisis. It’s seems to be generally accepted in my firm that people mostly work in their own timezones. If it wasn’t I’d be fooked as my direct reports range from GMT -8 to +8, and one works on Sundays.

Definitely the case that the BCs who work late for effect always send something demonstrating the fact, and always find a spurious reason to copy in someone important.

Changing the subject slightly, people who get in the lift whilst continuing their conversation with someone not getting in the lift, but holding the door open while they do it. Grrrrrrrrr.