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How many hours do you work a week?


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Lately too many.... I'm putting in 12-18 hour days lately and working weekends.  I was on "vacation" last week but ended up working about 10 hours over the course of my vacation...  since we are not a traditional office environment and everyone contacts me via cell I'm also fielding calls and texts at all hours from my staff who don't understand that I'm not working at midnight, 2 AM etc. but the messaging alert still wakes me up and since my business runs 24/7 I can't shut my phone off in case an actual emergency comes up. 

Today is my first "office" day this week where I can get caught up and catch a little breather but it'll be a 12 hour day at least. 

Freaking nuts right now. 

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Generally in the office at least 8 hours a day (commuting adds about another 45 minutes a day door to door).  However, when I'm, busy, I do a lot of work from home in the evenings and on weekends, It doesn't tend to be very regular hours.

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12 minutes ago, ChrisL said:

Lately too many.... I'm putting in 12-18 hour days lately and working weekends.  I was on "vacation" last week but ended up working about 10 hours over the course of my vacation...  since we are not a traditional office environment and everyone contacts me via cell I'm also fielding calls and texts at all hours from my staff who don't understand that I'm not working at midnight, 2 AM etc. but the messaging alert still wakes me up and since my business runs 24/7 I can't shut my phone off in case an actual emergency comes up. 

Today is my first "office" day this week where I can get caught up and catch a little breather but it'll be a 12 hour day at least. 

Freaking nuts right now. 

I feel for you man.  I hope you are being compensated for it.

Shu Fang

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I get paid for 40 hr work week.  Generally I work around 50, during hectic times I can work up to 75-80 hrs a week.  I get some OT but not a lot compared to what I work.  Some I work because I have to, some I work because I am never happy with something being "good enough' and work extra to make sure it is of a quality that I am happy to sign  my name to.

My wife also knows if there is outstanding work to be addressed, if I punch out and go home  I will just spend the evening thinking about the work not done so she'd rather have me stay a few hours and then be relaxed when I get home

I am also pretty much on call 24/7 (uncompensated) 

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18 minutes ago, Dirtyhip said:

40 hours a week.  I don't have responsibilities that require being contacted in my personal time, and I am never asked to work late. This is the reward I get for making peanuts.  The higher wage salary jobs come at a hefty price.

Yes, higher salary jobs do come at a price.  The one I have is out to kill me; if I let it.

Shu Fang

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12 minutes ago, Shu Fang said:

What do you do?  Perhaps you should hire me to help.

Shu Fang

I don't like to get into my work life on public forums but I'm the senior leader of a business that services SoCal.  I have a huge foot print but work from home.  When I'm on travel It's usually no more than 100 miles from home but I can spend 8-12 hours on the road on a given day which kills me.... tomorrow I'll be out at around 4:30 AM and won't be back home until around 7 PM... I need more field support but the powers to be won't approve it.... I'm actually really close to just pulling the rip cord and bailing out.  I'm tired of of working so many hours all the time and it's affecting my health.  I am actively looking for another job too but like I mentioned may just blow doors and then look for a job.. 

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5 minutes ago, ChrisL said:

I don't like to get into my work life on public forums but I'm the senior leader of a business that services SoCal.  I have a huge foot print but work from home.  When I'm on travel It's usually no more than 100 miles from home but I can spend 8-12 hours on the road on a given day which kills me.... tomorrow I'll be out at around 4:30 AM and won't be back home until around 7 PM... I need more field support but the powers to be won't approve it.... I'm actually really close to just pulling the rip cord and bailing out.  I'm tired of of working so many hours all the time and it's affecting my health.  I am actively looking for another job too but like I mentioned may just blow doors and then look for a job.. 

I hear ya.  Working that many hours isn't healthy.  But I don't think most companies care anymore.

Shu Fang

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I significantly changed my life and took a pay cut, so that I can have more free time.  We don't really miss the money too much, and I am much happier.  You get to a certain level of income and more doesn't make you happier.  If we made more, maybe I could be in a bigger house or something.  At this point, I am happy with what I have. 

My husband works 36 hours a week.  He sometimes has to stay over, if someone dies or if a nurse doesn't show for their scheduled shift.  He can't leave until he has relief for his unit of patients.

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Even though I'm an exempt employee, I have a pretty strict 40 hours a week policy at my day job. However I have put in some paid overtime the last few weeks.

I quit teaching at the local college a few years ago. I put in about 8 hours a week per class then.

I also do some database consulting work on the side, but have stopped advertising as I don't need the money. I still have a few people call me up either because I had done work for them previously or word of mouth. A few months ago I create a database for a crematorium. First time I've ever worked around dead bodies. They call for me when there is a problem (with the database) and to do enhancements. They also want me to create a database for their pet cremation side of the business. They can handle up to a Shetland pony and as small as a hamster - which they have done!

So in a nutshell, up to 60 hours a week in the past, but pretty much 40 hours a week now. In three more years I hope it goes to 0 hours.

As far as work affecting health, I did have my heart attack when I was doing 60+ hours  a week with one full-time and 3 part-time jobs.....

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This week I kinda like my job...but this new resident is gonna drive me wacko...I work 40 + I don't usually sign out for lunch because, I usually end up answering a phone or doing something during my lunch...and most often I leave at 4:30...but gee I stayed until almost 7 the night we had the leak...some nights it is just 10 minutes extra.  I also have a resident who has my home e-mail...so I get updates..It wasn't bad when the guy was younger...but 15 years later and he is updating me on all kinds of things I don't need to know about...

When you are working so many hours...you don't even have time to explore something new?   Then there is the job market?  What is it like where you are living?  A new job might require relocation...

You have done a great job with your recovery...don't let a fricking job screw up your health/life....

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1 hour ago, ChrisL said:

I'm also fielding calls and texts at all hours from my staff who don't understand that I'm not working at midnight, 2 AM etc

I can't shut my phone off in case an actual emergency comes up. 

I would suggest there are two training opportunities here:

-teach your staff when you sleep

- teach them what you consider a real 'emergency'.

It's difficult to do, to delegate the risk of someone mishandling an actual emergency, but in the balance your quality of life will improve - and if someone really does screw up an actual emergency you'll get to fix it after getting a good night's sleep.

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When I drove truck for a living I could only log 70 hours in eight days. All the other hours I worked I had to hide. When I started at the forge we were required to work ten hours a day but they wanted us to work twelve, we only had to work eight hours on Saturday and Sunday. I worked the twelve hour shifts every day and one of the guys asked me how I could work twelve hours every day? I told him it's easy to work half days when you are used to working full days. He just gave me a blank look. I don't think he was good at math. My last five years or so I pretty much worked fortytwo hours a week. 

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3 hours ago, ChrisL said:

Lately too many.... I'm putting in 12-18 hour days lately and working weekends.  I was on "vacation" last week but ended up working about 10 hours over the course of my vacation...  since we are not a traditional office environment and everyone contacts me via cell I'm also fielding calls and texts at all hours from my staff who don't understand that I'm not working at midnight, 2 AM etc. but the messaging alert still wakes me up and since my business runs 24/7 I can't shut my phone off in case an actual emergency comes up. 

Today is my first "office" day this week where I can get caught up and catch a little breather but it'll be a 12 hour day at least. 

Freaking nuts right now. 

You need to move to France

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I've quit 3 jobs in the last 5 years because the stress started to get to me. Working on the self employed thing, I'm really looking forward to doing it as my only form of income. Don't want to rush it though, still trying to establish some more contacts for a steady flow of work. The people that are working crazy hours need to step back and decide if it's really worth it. I was on call 24/7 in one of the jobs, hated it.

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50 minutes ago, Chris... said:

I've quit 3 jobs in the last 5 years because the stress started to get to me. Working on the self employed thing, I'm really looking forward to doing it as my only form of income. Don't want to rush it though, still trying to establish some more contacts for a steady flow of work. The people that are working crazy hours need to step back and decide if it's really worth it. I was on call 24/7 in one of the jobs, hated it.

Unfortunately I think this job might lead to an early grave -- years later.  

I need to find a different gig or a new career.  I've seriously been thinking about going back to school to get an RN degree.  My recent stint in the hospital enlightened me.  Nurses care and give a shit.  They offer something of value to society.  What I do, is not valuable to society.  

Shu Fang

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1 minute ago, Shu Fang said:

Unfortunately I think this job might lead to an early grave -- years later.  

I need to find a different gig or a new career.  I've seriously been thinking about going back to school to get an RN degree.  My recent stint in the hospital enlightened me.  Nurses care and give a shit.  They offer something of value to society.  What I do, is not valuable to society.  

Shu Fang

I can picture this. I wanted to be a nurse after high school. In those days in my area it was a woman's job. Everyone discouraged me from it so I took a job at a Chevy dealership. My life turned out fine but I think I would have been a great nurse.

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I would have answered sooner but I was sitting at the table working.  I'm salaried.  The buck mostly stops with me.  I made a New Years resolution to work no more than 11 hours a day.  I have failed miserably this week.  I will keep trying.

Mr. Couch--- you know I respect and admire you.  You would be a great murse.  

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Now 40 and that is plenty.  Did 58 per week for 3 months. If i had to do another 3 months, I would have found another job. The money ain't worth it imo. Had jobs where i work 6 days for 3 years. Another 13 days straight,  one off. I'm done with that. Not healthy, and I love my hobbies and health more than spending my time making extra cash. Looking into a job with long hours??? Don't do it! 

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40 hours a week sometimes 8 on Saturdays. In the bizzy season the company will make it mandatory 50 to 60 hours.

In a few years I would like to take a job where I can be a little more flexible in the hours that I work or work a seasonal job.  I would like to spend more working my health and my hobbies. After doing the same job going on 34 years I just feel that I would like a change. 

If I took a seasonal or a part time job I don't know what I would do for insurance. The insurance that I have at  is exalent and if I have medical issues I just go see the company nurse on company time and family members can use the company clinic for free. It works out for Wo46 since she works across the street from where I work.

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1 hour ago, BR46 said:

if I have medical issues I just go see the company nurse on company time and family members can use the company clinic for free.

They started something like this where I work. Had two excellent nurses who both quit. The new one, who seems like she will stay forever, has sent a few guys to anger management, drug tested damn near everyone that goes to see her. The program has lost it's popularity.   :(  

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4 hours ago, Shu Fang said:

 They offer something of value to society.  What I do, is not valuable to society.  

Shu Fang

...believe it or not, that's how I ended up working for the fire department.:)  It turns out that nothing anyone does any more is considered "valuable to society".  At least in terms of the way they are treated in employment situations. :( Who woulda guessed ?

 

 

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7 hours ago, Mr. Beanz said:

Now 40 and that is plenty.  Did 58 per week for 3 months. If i had to do another 3 months, I would have found another job. The money ain't worth it imo. Had jobs where i work 6 days for 3 years. Another 13 days straight,  one off. I'm done with that. Not healthy, and I love my hobbies and health more than spending my time making extra cash. Looking into a job with long hours??? Don't do it! 

The forum was much quieter without you during those three months!

My job has periods every couple of years when we are expected to work longer hours for a month or two, and I absolutely hate it.

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5 hours ago, Further said:

They started something like this where I work. Had two excellent nurses who both quit. The new one, who seems like she will stay forever, has sent a few guys to anger management, drug tested damn near everyone that goes to see her. The program has lost it's popularity.   :(  

Doh! :(  Nurse Ratchet.

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