HELP! Being contacted by work whilst I'm on holiday....this surely can't be right...

Skintslimmer

I would answer the first X number of calls, find out what the person wants, and if it could have waited, do not deal with it, but tell them you are on holiday and do not deal with non-urgent calls until you return from holiday. Tell them to leave you an email that you can pick up when you return.

Or change your voicemail message to such and let them all go through.

mazza1970

feesh wrote: »

You're lucky, where I work there is a culture of Blackberry use on holiday and I am made to feel guilty because I am the only one who doesn't have one. My managers all send emails and texts throughout the night, and at weekends. And it doesn't stop if they go away.

Where I work, all the managers have blackberrys and it's the same they send emails when they are on holiday, weekends etc.

My boss is going away on holiday next week, first holiday him and his family are having since his wife has been diagnosed with cancer, I have told him to forget about work, and ignore any emails he gets, - I know he won't and he will still get in touch with everyone - I had to stand over him while he put his out of office on his computer, he told me I was worse than his wife nagging :rotfl:

I don't think he will dare email me while he is off as he knows I will shout at him

sanderson_2

bristol_pilot wrote: »

You are in management - being called on holiday / weekends goes with the territory. Stop moaning and think of the handsome salary you are being paid.

I wouldn't call it at handsome salary....I would get more working as a cleaner. I work for Charity, for the right reasons. I love what I do. I firmly believe a HOLIDAY is about you having time off from work.

Sanderson

Zazen999

I would have referred them to your assistant manager in every case until they get the message that you are on holiday. Simples.

getmore4less

I would push this back on the people that call.

Bring it up as an area of their performance that is not up to the required standard.

It needs to be clear that they are making the wrong decisions by calling you.

obliv1

I have great sympathy Sanderson. I think the variety of subjective answers here clearly highlight that it is perhaps an area in which legislation is needed but not yet in place.

At my workplace we are given misplaced but ultimately benign 'back to work' interviews after being off sick for only a day (to make sure that stress/work isn't the cause of time off) and yet are unprotected from regular 'stress inducing' contact during statutory annual leave.

I don't consider running two mobiles (or indeed any answer that causes the individual to spend time or money on protection from intrusion by work while on holiday) to be satisfactory answers to the query - what should you do if work started knocking on your door because you weren't answering your phone - get a second house?!

The best answers so far seem to be the "don't answer, and if you do be tough and make it clear how angry you are to be contacted while on leave" but I, lke Sanderson would also be interested in a genuine answer from a legal standpoint from anyone who has experience in this area..

pinkshoes

My OH ends up fielding calls and emails 24/7, whether it's a work day or he's on holiday. I've even seen him "set up office" at the side of a ski piste to solve someone's problem.

Yes, it is irritating for him, but on the plus side, he makes them pay his mobile bill, his broadband bill (well, if they want him to answer emails from home...) and he just got a 15% pay rise as his boss appreciates his flexibility in the roll.

I guess it's up to the individual.

As a rule, I do make him turn the phone on silent after 11pm!

myothercarisaferrari

my OH has a Blackberry and has people phoning/ringing/emailing at all hours. I hate it

colino

I am an adviser to all sorts of companies big and small and I always tell them that I will respond to the mobile, whose number they all get, if I can. If I can't that's because I'm with another client, driving or somehow otherwise detained - even might be away! They appreciate flexibility and use the mobile with discretion for appropriate quick-fixes.
They don't however have my private other number and that is sacrosanct. This means that I can filter calls on the business mobile simply by number recognition and the frequent/needy ones are simply ignored and we revisit their problem solving techniques when I next formally meet with them.

If you have done your handover, the duty manager is well trained and you are being pestered by tedious calls for things that are in their remit or could wait, then absolutely give them a telephonic bollocking and remind them they have been given a level of authority and responsibilty that they clearly are incapable of mastering.