Rigid Work Schedule 1

[Lion06]

I wanted to get a quick poll from users. I currently work for a large Structural Engineering Firm that affords me the opportunity to work on many interesting jobs and be exposed to all aspects of structural engineering. I love everything about my job except for the work hours.
Our office hours are 8:30 - 5:30 and other than coming in at 8 and leaving at 5, there isn't much flexibility in the hours. I can, of course, leave if I have something to take care of at home, but I would love to come in at 7-7:30 and leave at 4:30. Other places I have worked have had much more flexibility in the schedule. At my last place of employment, I routinely went in at 6:30 and left aroun 4.
There are several factors that contribute to my wanting different hours, not the least of which is my commute. If I could work earlier, I would shave about 15-20 off of my drive each way.
What is the norm out there as far as work hours go and flexibility?

 

[CarolinaPE]

I too live in a town where traffic sucks. Thanks to my flex schedule I get here around 7:15 AM and leave around 4:45 each day. It saves probably 10-15 mins each way from an already 40 minute commute. One manager will often try to re-schedule a weekly meeting at 4 PM or 4:30 PM and will only inform you during the day (not the previous day) as to this meeting. These meetings usually last about an hour. After I told him twice that I had been there since 7 AM and would now be leaving at 6 PM and "why not have the meeting at 3 PM?" I finally gave up and am going with the "have to pick up the wifes car at 4:30" excuse.

 

[Theophilus]

In such travel cases, I normally bill clients at a percent of my rate (such as 25%) for all time away from home, plus standard billing for "on-time" while at the destination. I cannot bill nothing for that time, so this seems to be something fair we can agree on.



Jeff Mowry

http://www.industrialdesignhaus.com

Reason trumps all. And awe transcends reason.

 

[JohnNabors]

I once had a job where I could work 5am-1pm with a commute of 40 minutes each way. I was in heaven. I lived right on the St. John's River in Florida. In summer the sun would go down around 8-8:30 so I would get home with at least 6 hours of daylight left. I had a dock to fish off of, my boat was kept in my boathouse so I could be underway 10 minutes after I got home, and there was a wonderful little Cracker seafood joint 5 minutes away by boat where people could sit on the dock outside and enjoy, as the sign said, "The Best Catfish On The River" and wash it down with an ice cold beer.

Sigh.

Now it's 8 to ???, I usually am doing my 1 hour commute home in the dark, and the closest body of water is a retention pond. The bottom of my boat hasn't been wet since October. I cannot imagine a more heinously tortured victim of the decline of the US automotive industry than my sorry butt.

John Nabors

Never try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig.