Workplace Scenario 3

[powerjunx]

My colleague confided me for his undertakings, i dont want him to offer with empty handed comfort and opinion. That's why i would like to brought this out in here for your further views.
He's about to be a shift supervisor on O&M department. But he wonders how would he react to his subordinates if he discover the fact that they are sleeping at work? He's a little bit hesistant to his reaction when he found it whether to be rude, else he thinks, subordinates would take advantage his kindness, if he does.

Anyone, had experience such sleeping - a workplace scenario?

 

[ctopher]

I worked with a guy that took naps everyday at his desk, sitting up with mouse in hand. He was warned several times a month, it was reflected at each annual review and pay raise.
Our manager didn't want to go any further with it because the employee was near retirement age, and wanted him to make to retirement instead of being fired or laid-off.

Chris
SolidWorks 06 4.1/PDMWorks 06
AutoCAD 06
ctopher's home (updated 10-27-06)

 

[NozzleTwister]

Sounds like your buddy doesn't have the stones to be a Shift Supervisor.

Supervisors are supposed to be fair, not kind. Sleeping on the job and getting paid for it is not acceptable (unless you're a fireman). To allow this violates the trust the company and managers have placed in the Supervisor.

Fired on the spot would not be rude but would be fair and appropriate as these slackers as they need a wake up call.

I was on one job site years ago and they had a problem with some of the laborers taking a siesta up on platforming or scaffolding high out of view. One project manager when finding a sleeper would simply pick up the hard hat, which had the name and badge number, off the deck and turn it in to the Construction Superintendent and they would be terminated.


NozzleTwister
Houston, Texas

 

[MadMango]

We had a cronic napper. After his 3rd warning, he was sent home for 3 days without pay. After his 5th, he was sent home for a week without pay. After his 6th, he was sent home permanently.

[green]"Art without engineering is dreaming; Engineering without art is calculating."[/green]

Have you read faq731-376 to make the best use of Eng-Tips Forums?

 

[corus]

Taking a pillow and blankets into work to get some sleep I'd class as fraud. People taking a nap at work can, however, be for various reasons such as
1) they're in a meeting
2) the office is too hot
3) the work is boring (see 1)
4) they're listening to the CEO's annual speech
5) it's after lunch and either 1) to 4) is occuring
6) not enough sleep
7) they have an illness
8) they're drunk

1 to 5 are perfectly acceptable reasons and can be dealt with by good management, 6 and 7 are probably worth a discussion. 8 is classed as gross misconduct.

corus

 

[ctopher]

Similar...
I heard a story here at my job.
Several years ago an employee was caught sleeping under his desk over-night. Was doing it for a couple years without being caught. Turns out he was homeless. All his money went to child support and alomony. He was fired the day after he was caught.
Sad

Chris
SolidWorks 06 4.1/PDMWorks 06
AutoCAD 06
ctopher's home (updated 10-27-06)

 

[Heckler]

I would tend to be a bit understanding and confront them individually to lay down the ground rules. Only because I went through a period of sleeplessness due to caring for a family member that was chronically ill. It showed in my performance at work but I was able to make it through those tough times without losing my job. If you just sack them immediatly do you sack everyone that has a human defect of some kind....that's totally irrational


Some interesting facts about sleep disorders.

http://med.stanford.edu/school/Psychiatry/narcolepsy/

Narcolepsy is a serious medical disorder and a key to understanding other sleep disorders. Narcolepsy is a disabling illness affecting more than 1 in 2,000 Americans. Most individuals with the disorder are not diagnosed and are thus not treated. The disease is principally characterized by a permanent and overwhelming feeling of sleepiness and fatigue. Other symptoms involve abnormalities of dreaming sleep, such as dream-like hallucinations and finding oneself physically weak or paralyzed for a few seconds.



Best Regards,

Heckler
Sr. Mechanical Engineer
SW2005 SP 5.0 & Pro/E 2001
Dell Precision 370
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o
_`\(,_
(_)/ (_)

Never argue with an idiot. They'll bring you down to their level and beat you with experience every time.

 

[oldfieldguy]

There's a big difference between somebody who just sort of drifts off into la-la land while at his desk/work station and the guy who leans back in his chair, props his feet up comfortably, and uses a rolled up coat as a pillow. The first guy maight have gone to sleep by accident.

For the first sort, a good talking-to is indicated.

The second guy gets a walk to the gate...

old field guy

 

[jpankask]

There are some companies (mostly non-U.S.) where napping at work is a custom. There are even some companies in the U.S. (less than 1% when I wrote my paper a few years ago) that are picking up on this and considering a nap time during the day one perk of a job. There is research to show that a short nap/rest during the day makes your other work time more productive, particularly in the afternoon.

Keep in mind, I am saying this from the perspective of an exempt (non-hourly) employee. I would not show them the door for a first offense but talk with them, find out if there is a legitimate reason (maybe there is a medical problem or something else that might make this a one-time offense). Document the discussion. If it happens again, consider a more serious consequence. Probably by the third time, you should consider unpaid leave or termination, depending on the circumstances. You should consider as well, how is the job performance and is the guy otherwise getting all of his work done, does he put in extra hours when required, etc. If a non-hourly guy performs well, gets work done and willingly works extra hours when required, do you really care if he closes his eyes for 20 minutes once in a while (maybe on break)? I know that I would rather have this working for me than one who works exactly 8 hrs (or less) and doesn't get his work done on time.

 

[casseopeia]

I would have a talk with the sleepy employees and give them ample warning first, not just fire them outright. Your colleague sounds like he/she would be distressed by taking strong initial action. You don’t have to have narcolepsy to get sleepy during the day. Over-consuming carbohydrates, and a poor exercise routine will do it. A simple diet change might work , especially with those who have a genetic condition that causes a high insulin response. If there is a physiological cause for the sleepiness, you cannot just will yourself to stay alert.

I would suggest telling them if they do not make changes, they may lose their jobs. See if these employees will try it for awhile. At the very least, a better diet and more exercise will improve their health and ultimately their value as an employee. If there are sociological causes, a warning about the loss of their income may alter their behavior. This way your colleague can be more at ease knowing an attempt was made to help before taking more drastic action.

"If you are going to walk on thin ice, you might as well dance!"

 

[KENAT]

I used to take a nap slumped over my desk at lunch sometimes. If anyone had complained I just would have gone out to the parking lot and done it there in my car.

I've also drifted off a few times when reviewing documents, and I've been in a meeting with a customer where one of their guys kept falling asleep.

It may sound like the cowards route but I'd refer it to HR/Personnel or at least get their input. Before conducting any disciplinary action I would familiarize my self with company policies and consult HR, otherwise you're just leaving yourself and possibly your company open.

One question, of all the things to be concerned about when taking over a new supervisory position how did employees napping get to the top of the list? Perhaps a slightly more detailed explanation will generate more targeted responses.

As for the guy sleeping under his desk, sounds a bit harsh, assuming he was even just a halfway decent employee I’d have tried to work something out. However, I’m sure we’ve all heard of people fired for less.

 

[MintJulep]

Sleeping on the job is not acceptable.

However, there may be reasons for it. None of them cause it to be acceptable.

A good manager needs to confront the employee, ask if there is something that is leading to the unacceptable behavior, and offer to help remedy the problem if there is one.

Then document that he did that.

If the behavior does not self-correct, or if the offer of help is not accepted, then the employee may be fired.

 

[whyun]

This is quite an interesting topic. Employees who are awake all the time are not necessarily "working".

I would give a warning to underachieving chronic napper but ignore the ones who doze off every now and then with good performance.

 

[Zapster]

In my opinion, 20 minute nap on the job is no worse than 20 minutes surfing on the web for personal use; however, it is much easier to make excuses/rationalizations for surfing on the web. By the way, is it better to spend 20 minutes reading/responding to eng-tips.com’s threads for entertainment or taking a siesta if you don't feel like working?

 

[TheTick]

"When you are the boss, you don't get to have friends."
--Frank Zappa

 

[ctopher]

The same guy I mentioned above ... once in a meeting with everyone there, he fell asleep and his head went back into the wall and hit the power switch for the overhead projector ... while the engineering director was making a presentation. I thought it was funny, but embarrassing for him.

Chris
SolidWorks 06 4.1/PDMWorks 06
AutoCAD 06
ctopher's home (updated 10-27-06)

 

[SomptingGuy]

When I was a sponsored student there was afairly senior engineer who'd always fall asleep at his desk. I never knew whether I should wake him or not ... so I never did. I just used to creep past him quietly.

When he left the department they had a whip-round and bought him an eraser for his pencil - so that he'd not poke his eye out when he fell asleep.

 

[ScottyUK]

I've slept on the visitor's sofa in our reception area after a long day followed by a long night. I wasn't about to drive 55 miles home at 0400hrs after being on the go for over 20 hours, so I made a little nest (not my phrase, but kinda fitting) out of coats and overalls and bedded down for the three hours before the workers started to drift in. There were one or two surprised faces - initially when they realised I was asleep, then more surprised when they tried to wake me and were told to "go away!" in slightly more prosaic terms. I am still 100% convinced that it was the best that could be done in a bad situation - these days I live a lot closer to work and would have got a taxi.

----------------------------------

Sometimes I only open my mouth to swap feet...

 

[graybeach]

This was back in the days of hand drafting and uncarpeted floors: We had a drafter who would fall asleep and snore while drafting. Judicious dropping of long metal straight edge on the floor by his table did the trick.

 

[JStephen]

To my mind, it would make a big difference whether this was some guy working 40 hours on hourly pay or working unpaid overtime on salary. Sleeping at work isn't good, but if a company expects that employees should work at hours they should be home, then you have to expect this sort of thing to happen to some extent. Same with making personal calls, etc.- if you don't give 'em time to do it off the job, it's got to be done while at work.