A reader from Asia commented on our article - Business Etiquette - More than Just Eating With the Right Fork with an excellent point.
I think Handphone Etiquette need to be share in this article as well. As managers enjoy calling employees and expected immediate reply otherwise above 3 times he cannot reach the staff, the employee is condemned.
How often and whether worker should bring handphone everywhere they go or forget about the interrupting calls and rely on schedule more. Need to address the importance of handphone in communication to different levels of staff at work.
- Y
On one hand, if an employer provides the employee with a cell phone (or requires it) and there is an agreement (as part of the job description or schedule) that the employee will answer the cell phone within 3 rings during certain hours, then that's all fair and reasonable. And as we all know, some jobs require employees to be "on call" during agreed upon timeframes.
On the other hand, if there isn't an agreement in place, an employer has no business calling an employee at home (or on his cell phone, which amounts to the same thing these days) unless it's an emergency. A business that has regularly occurring emergencies should re-evaluate its procedures. Employees need to have time "off the clock" to maintain their sanity and their family life. I also think that people should turn off their cell phones at restaurants, and avoid yakking away at the bank or the grocery store. (Or while driving, heaven forbid!) Cell phones are a great convenience, but we all need to confine them to reasonable parts of our lives and interact with live people the rest of the time.
I think it's probably time to write another article on cell phone etiquette. What questions or pet peeves do you have? What should we include in the article?
3 comments:
An employer should be able to call you on your cell when the cell is your only phone or the employer is paying the bill for your cell.
I'd say never because I hate using the phone a lot but some jobs really require that they drop you line. Also like MamaFlo said, if they are paying for it that's a pretty good reason.
I agree that attending business calls at home can interrupt your privacy but in case of an emergency, you certainly can attend them. The receiver and caller must however learn to keep the call short and precise. In a technologically advanced world, cell phones are the best medium to interact instantly and hence cannot be ignored totally. I personally feel cell-phones keep you connected to the bigger world even while you are building your small world (family).
Post a Comment