Work Woes

justjeepin86

justjeepin86

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 9, 2005
Location
Winston-Salem, NC
So everyone is stirred up here at work. They have decided it's not safe for people to walk across the street to the Sheets on break. I can understand to a certain extent if you are on a paid break. But, this time, I think they went to far. They also said we cannot walk across after we have punched out for lunch. The only way we can cross the street is to get in a car and drive over. My deal is, once i'm off the clock, how can they tell me I can't walk across the street? What do you guys think. Are they stepping outside their legal rights?
 
Is it a two lane road? Does it have sidewalks and a crosswalk? Legally your not suppose to cross if there isn't a cross work. But I agree if your off the clock they can't tell you what to do

I can see if your on a paid break they don't want you to leave the facility

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Loganwayne said:
Is it a two lane road? Does it have sidewalks and a crosswalk? Legally your not suppose to cross if there isn't a cross work. But I agree if your off the clock they can't tell you what to do

I can see if your on a paid break they don't want you to leave the facility

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I won't dispute that it's not a safe area or that is unlawful. It is two lane with a turn lane with no sidewalks or crosswalks. You have to use the same due diligence in crossing the rd with a car vs on foot.
 
justjeepin86 said:
So everyone is stirred up here at work. They have decided it's not safe for people to walk across the street to the Sheets on break. I can understand to a certain extent if you are on a paid break. But, this time, I think they went to far. They also said we cannot walk across after we have punched out for lunch. The only way we can cross the street is to get in a car and drive over. My deal is, once i'm off the clock, how can they tell me I can't walk across the street? What do you guys think. Are they stepping outside their legal rights?
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Just had a similar issue where I'm at. Went to a tobacco free campus...including outdoor break area and parking lot. They tried pulling the same BS, that folks couldn't walk across the street to Food Lion to do what they needed. Claiming it was a 'safety' and productivity thing. I'm not a smoker and thought it was a pretty bogus thing to do, so I reminded them if they're not paying for the break, they don't own/control that time. And their safety is covered by the insurance premium they pay every month. And best of all, if they're late from their break...get rid of them and hire someone better. It's ultimately just a power trip by someone trying to make a statement.
 
A 30 minute break for every 8 hours I believe is by law. Screw them.
At work we use T Sheetz. It automatically deducts 30 minutes a day regardless of whether we take it or not. Some of the smokers stop work up to 20 times a day for 5 minute intervals to smoke, which is way more than the allowed 30 minutes a day. That's negligible since quite a few of those people are management. Sometimes my break time is a 10-20 minute nap. Break time is break time. It's been brought up before that my naps are unacceptable even though I never stop to choke down a cig every half hour as I don't smoke. The complaints are met with a huge GFY.
 
A couple points. There is no break law. Only union guidelines. If you aren't union you have no legal right to any breaks. Wife used to work for a company that forbid employees to take bathroom breaks at anytime during their 8 hour shifts. Employees tried to challenge. Were told sorry, no legal protection. Quit if you dont like it.

They can not stop you from crossing the street, however they can fire you if you do. Right to work/at will employment state. They can fiore you for any reason they choose EXCEPT protected class status.

They dont own you off the clock, but they can fire you for smoking marijuana off the clock, right?
 
Ron said:
They dont own you off the clock, but they can fire you for smoking marijuana off the clock, right?
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Right. But smoking weed is illegal and they have a drug screening policy agreed to before hiring. So, slightly different circumstances
 
Ron said:
A couple points. There is no break law. Only union guidelines. If you aren't union you have no legal right to any breaks. Wife used to work for a company that forbid employees to take bathroom breaks at anytime during their 8 hour shifts. Employees tried to challenge. Were told sorry, no legal protection. Quit if you dont like it.

They can not stop you from crossing the street, however they can fire you if you do. Right to work/at will employment state. They can fiore you for any reason they choose EXCEPT protected class status.

They dont own you off the clock, but they can fire you for smoking marijuana off the clock, right?
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yep. Private company can fire you for any reason aside from protected classes.
So legally you don't have to listen at all if they say, "don't cross that road on foot", you can give them the GFY and be within your rights.
But then they can turn around and fire you and say "we didn't like the fact that you crossed that busy road. That's a sign of a reckless employee."
 
rockcity said:
Why do you need to go to Sheetz for lunch and break anyway?



Regardless, during break on the clock, they do have a say. Once clocked out, not so much.
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Well, I don't. It's not really a problem that I face, day to day. But, to a lot of the others, it does. They go get coffee at break and go get lunch over there. The break time isn't disputed since you are on the clock. The off the clock part is where they are just putting their thumb on you to keep you in line.

Ron said:
A couple points. There is no break law. Only union guidelines. If you aren't union you have no legal right to any breaks. Wife used to work for a company that forbid employees to take bathroom breaks at anytime during their 8 hour shifts. Employees tried to challenge. Were told sorry, no legal protection. Quit if you dont like it.

They can not stop you from crossing the street, however they can fire you if you do. Right to work/at will employment state. They can fiore you for any reason they choose EXCEPT protected class status.

They dont own you off the clock, but they can fire you for smoking marijuana off the clock, right?
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That's the crappy part. Who's going to be the first to test them. It's still shitty, no matter how you look at it. They reprimanded an Engineer this morning at break for getting in his car and going over there. Since it was just his, break, and not lunch, he was not supposed to leave the premises. That's a touch and go since we have so many hourly vs. salaried employees. So, they are serious. They have the security guard watching the cameras.
 
Ron said:
Wife used to work for a company that forbid employees to take bathroom breaks at anytime during their 8 hour shifts. Employees tried to challenge. Were told sorry, no legal protection. Quit if you dont like it.
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I would definitely not be working there. That's not healthy, and it sounds like it's probably a toxic working environment from a morale standpoint.
 
justjeepin86 said:
That's a touch and go since we have so many hourly vs. salaried employees. So, they are serious.
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That's ridiculous...right, wrong or indifferent...I generally give more wiggle room to salaried folks, for the mere fact, my expectation is they're salaried and should be available the majority of the time, day or night. In return, you don't have shit to do, or just can't stand being in the office one day...just leave then. I say that because I'm not going to enforce something on an hourly employee, that I'm not going to enforce on a salaried position. And if a salaried position wants to drive across the street to that Sheetz 10 times a day, who gives a rats ass, as long as their work is still completed?

Here's what will happen though, there will be a blow to morale, everyone will succumb to it anyway. Get over it in time. Over time, people will forget why you can't/don't go to sheetz. People will start going again when they see others doing it. And at that time, you'll see if management was actually serious.
 
UTfball68 said:
Here's what will happen though, there will be a blow to morale, everyone will succumb to it anyway. Get over it in time. Over time, people will forget why you can't/don't go to sheetz. People will start going again when they see others doing it. And at that time, you'll see if management was actually serious.
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This is a true statement. That's what happens any time a rule changes.
 
Fabrik8 said:
I would definitely not be working there. That's not healthy, and it sounds like it's probably a toxic working environment from a morale standpoint.
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I agree here. That's why my work is actually tolerable. I hate the work I do, but they give me total flexibility. If I need to take a long lunch and run up to the shop to take care of something, I can. If I need to take lunch at 10:15 to hit the bank or the DMV, that's fine.

I have worked in manufacturing plants before where they were a lot more strict, but I understand where they were coming from. When you are an assembly test engineer they needed me there while the machines are running. Here we are just a consulting engineer firm, so as long as I get my shit done it doesn't matter what time I'm here. If any job tried to tell me where and what I could do on my lunch hour, they can find themselves a new employee.
 
XJsavage said:
A 30 minute break for every 8 hours I believe is by law. Screw them.
At work we use T Sheetz. It automatically deducts 30 minutes a day regardless of whether we take it or not. Some of the smokers stop work up to 20 times a day for 5 minute intervals to smoke, which is way more than the allowed 30 minutes a day. That's negligible since quite a few of those people are management. Sometimes my break time is a 10-20 minute nap. Break time is break time. It's been brought up before that my naps are unacceptable even though I never stop to choke down a cig every half hour as I don't smoke. The complaints are met with a huge GFY.
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The North Carolina Wage and Hour Act (WHA) does not require mandatory rest breaks or meal breaks for employees 16 years of age or older. The WHA requires breaks only for youths under 16 years of age. ... Again, there are no required rest breaks or meal breaks at all for employees 16 years of age or older.
 
Fabrik8 said:
I would definitely not be working there. That's not healthy, and it sounds like it's probably a toxic working environment from a morale standpoint.
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Agreed. And probably worth a little deeper explanation.
While still in high school the wife stated working this small retail job in the mall (remember when malls were a thing?) it was a small boutique accessory store but part of a national chain. Her store was a mid sized store and always had 2-4 employees working at a time. Within a year of graduating high school when she told them she was quitting the part time gig they made her a store manager. Regional Manager, District Manager, Area Director, and finally BU leader followed within 5 years. When she first got bumped up to a multi-store role was when she learned of the bathroom "deal". Smaller stores only had 1 employee working most of the time. If an employee pulled the fence down to use the bathroom the malls could fine the stores huge $$$. If the employee just walked in the back to the bathroom no one watched the store and people could walk in and steal. So company policy was "you do not leave the store front at any time while on shift" couple that with no food or drink in the store front and you had 8 hours of no food, drink or bathroom. A few employees thought they would sue the company. Couldnt find anyone to take the case despite having a written memo from corporate denying them the ability to use the restroom or eat while on shift.
 
justjeepin86 said:
yes
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I live very close. I always found it funny that the smokers were all trying to share the same 12ft of right of way there at the entrance in order to enjoy their smoke "off campus"
 
Time to find another job. There are definitely better places to work.
 
CasterTroy said:
I live very close. I always found it funny that the smokers were all trying to share the same 12ft of right of way there at the entrance in order to enjoy their smoke "off campus"
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they did away with that, thank goodness. We have a place for them now so they don't look like a bunch of idiots standing at the street.
 
I tested them where I work. They tried that jay walking mess in end could say a thing about where we walked off the clock


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