Live Better Work Union...in Germany

[Ifallalot]

Ok.

If my team of guys (one of multiple under company) needs to put in 60-70 hrs a week to stay on schedule, that’s not only dictated by the client expectations but also things we have zero control over such as weather and seasons; how do you propose one crams those 60-70hrs into 28hrs?

Your boss needs to be less cheap and hire more staff.

Adding bodies is simply not feasible sometimes. People do have skills and skills are scarce.

Beyond that, if you hire more bodies who are bad they can actually reduce productivity.

And why are the skills so scarce? I don't know what industry manbearpig works in that requires such hours but I am hoping every one of those employees is at least getting time-and-a-half pay over 8 hours and double time after 12 hours.

As long as they weren't dumb enough to sign up as salaried employees they are.

I put in long hours because I get that. I made 60% over my base last year

 

[StuAzole]

Ok.

If my team of guys (one of multiple under company) needs to put in 60-70 hrs a week to stay on schedule, that’s not only dictated by the client expectations but also things we have zero control over such as weather and seasons; how do you propose one crams those 60-70hrs into 28hrs?

Your boss needs to be less cheap and hire more staff.

Adding bodies is simply not feasible sometimes. People do have skills and skills are scarce.

Beyond that, if you hire more bodies who are bad they can actually reduce productivity.

So if they're scarce, wouldn't it be wise to bring more in through visa and immigration? Or are we ok with self-imposed caps on productivity?

Scarcity is a good thing. I'd rather have higher wages at the cost of reduced productivity.

Why? That leads to inflation, caps growth and eventually takes us to recession.

 

[Kento]

Ok.

If my team of guys (one of multiple under company) needs to put in 60-70 hrs a week to stay on schedule, that’s not only dictated by the client expectations but also things we have zero control over such as weather and seasons; how do you propose one crams those 60-70hrs into 28hrs?

Your boss needs to be less cheap and hire more staff.

Adding bodies is simply not feasible sometimes. People do have skills and skills are scarce.

Beyond that, if you hire more bodies who are bad they can actually reduce productivity.

And why are the skills so scarce? I don't know what industry manbearpig works in that requires such hours but I am hoping every one of those employees is at least getting time-and-a-half pay over 8 hours and double time after 12 hours.

As long as they weren't dumb enough to sign up as salaried employees they are.

I put in long hours because I get that. I made 60% over my base last year

Sometimes you don't have a choice in regards to being salary vs. hourly and other times, like in my case, you are exempt from receiving overtime.

 

[Surfdog]

I think we need per hour and time and a 1/2 Universal Income.

What union do I need to join for that?

Union of Sun-fried Socialist Regresifornia?

 

[manbearpig]

Ok.

If my team of guys (one of multiple under company) needs to put in 60-70 hrs a week to stay on schedule, that’s not only dictated by the client expectations but also things we have zero control over such as weather and seasons; how do you propose one crams those 60-70hrs into 28hrs?

Your boss needs to be less cheap and hire more staff.

Adding bodies is simply not feasible sometimes. People do have skills and skills are scarce.

Beyond that, if you hire more bodies who are bad they can actually reduce productivity.

And why are the skills so scarce? I don't know what industry manbearpig works in that requires such hours but I am hoping every one of those employees is at least getting time-and-a-half pay over 8 hours and double time after 12 hours.

We all get paid properly when we inevitably get overtime. The company is good people, the best you could think of but better. we get paid competitively for industry standards and almost all the guys are long term. Only one, maybe two spots are variable with guys coming and going. Just not a lot of people looking to get into this industry, so finding more reliable guys for a new crew is difficult but not impossible. And finding guys with the skills required and special licensing like mine is even harder. It’s a high end landscape construction/tree work company.

My comments weren’t meant as a complaint. Just an example that this model doesn’t work across the board so easily. My main concern as stated is time constraints. The majority of our work takes place from March-Jan. But within that season there’s even smaller time frames when dealing with certain elements; such as plant health care. I’d love to see an example that pertains to my particular industry though. But I remain skeptical.

 

[Kento]

Ok.

If my team of guys (one of multiple under company) needs to put in 60-70 hrs a week to stay on schedule, that’s not only dictated by the client expectations but also things we have zero control over such as weather and seasons; how do you propose one crams those 60-70hrs into 28hrs?

Your boss needs to be less cheap and hire more staff.

Adding bodies is simply not feasible sometimes. People do have skills and skills are scarce.

Beyond that, if you hire more bodies who are bad they can actually reduce productivity.

And why are the skills so scarce? I don't know what industry manbearpig works in that requires such hours but I am hoping every one of those employees is at least getting time-and-a-half pay over 8 hours and double time after 12 hours.

We all get paid properly when we inevitably get overtime. The company is good people, the best you could think of but better. we get paid competitively for industry standards and almost all the guys are long term. Only one, maybe two spots are variable with guys coming and going. Just not a lot of people looking to get into this industry, so finding more reliable guys for a new crew is difficult but not impossible. And finding guys with the skills required and special licensing like mine is even harder. It’s a high end landscape construction/tree work company.

My comments weren’t meant as a complaint. Just an example that this model doesn’t work across the board so easily. My main concern as stated is time constraints. The majority of our work takes place from March-Jan. But within that season there’s even smaller time frames when dealing with certain elements; such as plant health care. I’d love to see an example that pertains to my particular industry though. But I remain skeptical.

Cool. Nothing worse than when working your ass off for (essentially) free. Overall makes sense. If you're getting paid for your OT, that makes things a hell of a lot easier to live with. I even found horrible traffic quite tolerable when getting paid time-and-a-half to sit in it.

 

[$kully]

I love the classic boss line when they're leaving at 5pm and they say something along the lines of "Get it done but don't stay late" knowing full well that you'll get it done. Then when the time card goes in at the end of the week they ask why you're putting in for OT.

 

[Kento]

I love the classic boss line when they're leaving at 5pm and they say something along the lines of "Get it done but don't stay late" knowing full well that you'll get it done. Then when the time card goes in at the end of the week they ask why you're putting in for OT.

One place I worked, I was forbidden from working over 40 hours but most days were 13-14 hours so I still got my OT pay AND had 4 day weekends.

I surfed a lot (and quite recklessly - lot of TOADS) back then. Good thing I got large expense checks from mileage because I was breaking boards at pace of once every month or two.

 

[manbearpig]

My last job they very sneakily (so they thought) ripped me off of O/T hours. I called them out on it and got some pathetic excuse. Needless to say I was out of there pretty quick, it was a rad as hell job but i know I bust my ass off and have no patience for an employer that fucks around. Lots of businesses do this and many employees don’t have the balls to say something, presumably out of fear of losing their job that is probably vital to their lives.

This is obviously good reasoning for union protection but it’s my understanding that there’s laws in place that can be used on your own to pursue getting that fixed, or at the very least the employer paying for it (legally speaking).

 

[$kully]

I love the classic boss line when they're leaving at 5pm and they say something along the lines of "Get it done but don't stay late" knowing full well that you'll get it done. Then when the time card goes in at the end of the week they ask why you're putting in for OT.

One place I worked, I was forbidden from working over 40 hours but most days were 13-14 hours so I still got my OT pay AND had 4 day weekends.

I surfed a lot (and quite recklessly - lot of TOADS) back then. Good thing I got large expense checks from mileage because I was breaking boards at pace of once every month or two.

I would be A-okay with that :wave2:

 

[Billy Ocean]

Unions are good as long as there is a need to make a profit acting as a check

Government employees on the other hand should not be permitted to unionize

Dems used to understand this sh!t but they have been captured by government employee unions

 

[Kento]

I love the classic boss line when they're leaving at 5pm and they say something along the lines of "Get it done but don't stay late" knowing full well that you'll get it done. Then when the time card goes in at the end of the week they ask why you're putting in for OT.

One place I worked, I was forbidden from working over 40 hours but most days were 13-14 hours so I still got my OT pay AND had 4 day weekends.

I surfed a lot (and quite recklessly - lot of TOADS) back then. Good thing I got large expense checks from mileage because I was breaking boards at pace of once every month or two.

I would be A-okay with that :wave2:

As was I! A shame it was just for a 6-month contract job.

 

[grapedrink]

My last job they very sneakily (so they thought) ripped me off of O/T hours. I called them out on it and got some pathetic excuse. Needless to say I was out of there pretty quick, it was a rad as hell job but i know I bust my ass off and have no patience for an employer that fucks around. Lots of businesses do this and many employees don’t have the balls to say something, presumably out of fear of losing their job that is probably vital to their lives.

This is obviously good reasoning for union protection but it’s my understanding that there’s laws in place that can be used on your own to pursue getting that fixed, or at the very least the employer paying for it (legally speaking).

There’s a lot of salary abuse in the last industry I was in, which may be the same type of business you are speaking of. A lot of people are classified as salary, even though they spend huge chunks of time doing physical and tedious work, but they have just enough responsibility to be classified as management and therefore exempt. It’s BS. Problem is that there is a culture of just grinding it out “for the team” and being afraid of tarnishing their reputation in a saturated industry where employers have the upper hand in hiring/recruiting.

My current gig in a related sector is salary but clearly states in the employee handbook that an average of 40 hours is expected, so if I put in extra hours earlier in the week, come Friday after lunch I’m :wave2:

 

[ElOgro]

If Germany had waves, I might go.

Yeah. You might grow a pair too.

You, like the majority of the posters here, are going nowhere. Especially not for waves. I don't see you getting out of your comfort zone for any reason.

In German unions do they allow union members to spend the majority of the work day posting on a social media political forum?

Have you ever been a member of a union?

Which union?

What were your job responsibilities?

What were the the skills required for your job?

Are you upset because 700,000 dreamers were to lazy/to afraid to register for DACA?

 

[grapedrink]

If Germany had waves, I might go.

Yeah. You might grow a pair too.

You, like the majority of the posters here, are going nowhere. Especially not for waves. I don't see you getting out of your comfort zone for any reason.

In German unions do they allow union members to spend the majority of the work day posting on a social media political forum?

Have you ever been a member of a union?

Which union?

What were your job responsibilities?

What were the the skills required for your job?

Are you upset because 700,000 dreamers were to lazy/to afraid to register for DACA?

 

[casa_mugrienta]

 

[Surfdog]

I work "salary" but I negotiated my boss into paying me at least straight hourly wage when we needed to put in OT for certain hot projects, or when we were overloaded. So, I get paid for all my time, at least, counting time spent here. Shhhhh!! :sleeping:

In the earlier days when we were a larger group, we were "expected" to come in for 4 hrs on Saturday, too, most each week. Not a strict time to come in, but had to show up for 4 hrs, and that was part of the salary. So basically at least 44 hrs a week expected, give or take.

But as we got lean and mean (down to just me, him, his son and a few part timers) he needed to give me incentive to bust my ass when needed. So at least now I get paid for OT. So, some weeks 40 hrs, some weeks 50-60 hrs, and I get paid for all of them.

Hopefully, soon he will retire and I will get to run that deal. Hmmmmm, wait a minute.

Still, where's my universal income on top of that. acifier: If one gets it, we all get it. Stockton is our golden state hero

 

[Lance Mannion]

There are no homeless people with MerkleFones in Deutschland, slacking is frowned upon.

 

[StuAzole]

If Germany had waves, I might go.

Yeah. You might grow a pair too.

You, like the majority of the posters here, are going nowhere. Especially not for waves. I don't see you getting out of your comfort zone for any reason.

In German unions do they allow union members to spend the majority of the work day posting on a social media political forum?

Have you ever been a member of a union?

Which union?

What were your job responsibilities?

What were the the skills required for your job?

Are you upset because 700,000 dreamers were to lazy/to afraid to register for DACA?

LOL, I love a good lecture from a guy who's never met me!

And do tell about these 800,000 DREAMers too lazy to register for DACA. I particularly look forward to the explanation of how someone can be a DREAMer without having applied/registered under DACA since, by definition, DREAMers are those who are actually registered under DACA.

And yes, oddly enough, I have been a union member. Only had the job for a few years, but the pay was great and the scenery was even better.

 

[Ifallalot]

Sometimes you don't have a choice in regards to being salary vs. hourly and other times, like in my case, you are exempt from receiving overtime.

I realize there is not always a choice, but if I didn't get paid overtime and was classified as "exempt" (which should be illegal) I'd have a running spreadsheet going to make sure I didn't work an minute over the 2080 hours you're supposed to work in a year