Am I Being a Crotchety Old Boss?

[@TheHavocdog]

I am the old fashion guy and think an hour for lunch is the standard. But i have a son and daughter in law that have a situation where she works days and he works second shift. She need to get off work early enough so that she gets home and take over taking care of our grandson before he has to go to work. That hour getting off early is critical to them to avoid very expensive childcare. As an employer that can offer flexible time, you can offer employees a benefit that costs you almost nothing. It seems to me that if the rules are set up with clear limits, then you can have greatful employees that want to work for you.

[@mrtorryeddy]

Zzzzxxxx Sxxxxdd Y you

[@julieludwig8927]

Dave doesn’t get the the point. The employees are still coming into office but don’t want to waste an hour on lunch. Personally, I rarely eat lunch. 15 minutes tops. My recommendation: stagger work hours based on each employees wants. Then, every employee is happy. Who the hell set Biz hours as 9-5 anyhoo?? How about 10-6?? Noon-8:00 PM?? Think outside the box to accommodate your clients & keep employees happy to work for you.

[@bobbylibertini]

Yep! And we non-lunch eaters can keep things running while others are eating, so it really helps the business by not having a dead spot when someone calls or comes in during the lunch our. There are some businesses/positions where that might not work...but for many it would not only work, but actually be a benefit!

[@gmoney1089]

I would think having a flexible schedule for "team members" would breed loyalty to the company, not make them feel entitled 🤦‍♂️ Certainly there would be a way to stagger work schedules to minimize the absence of workers at certain times... BTW I've been on both sides, worked as an employee for 20 years and have been a business owner for the last 7.

[@chrisforgan731]

a local industrial supplier i deal with does it this way. they have a rolling lunch hr for the staff so that they can still service customers as that period from 11 till 2 is their busy period. so everyone gets a break.

[@jenniferheth8117]

For the first call it’s also possible to let those who want to work through lunch be split into two groups, half come in an hour later and the other half leave an hour early. I can bet there’s several people who would like to come in an hour later. This type of arrangement would show a lot of good will towards employees that they are being heard and the boss is trying to be flexible. Employees doing in fact value those types of gestures from their boss.

[@hockeyhalod]

Yea that one is just leading better and listening to your people. Not changing is a way to drive people away. He should just make it known to the employees his concerns and make a schedule.

[@hockeyhalod]

You don't tell the person above you what to do, but a good leader listens to the people making them money.

[@kerrybrooks1010]

The "crochety old boss" has couched the question in a way that all of the information is not available. What is their work flow? When does the greatest amount of work happen? Do they have a bunch of folks who have kids that need to be picked up at a certain time or be fined? is the traffic pattern so bad that people would rather not take a lunch? A little work on the "Crochety old bosses" part could find out the root of these problems and address them. Maybe their workflow dictates a better structured start/stop time.

[@deniselittle5558]

No[e. The business is open until (insert time). If the staff is gone, there is nobody to serve the customers in that hour) That translate to loss of business. School/daycare pickup times and traffic are the problem of the employee. That is for them to work out. If that means working somewhere closer to home or with different working hours then they are free to do that.

[@kerrybrooks1010]

@@deniselittle5558 Correct, in an era where the worker has no power and the boss has all of the power that is the dynamic. "My way or the highway" but in todays environs where it cost expodentially more to hire and train new workers because a boss cannot listen and understand the business flow better or refuses to adapt, you can enter into a death spiral. If you lose good people because you cannot be flexible because of things like childcare or other important activities your business will suffer. What if there is no work flow from 4-5pm? What if the employees are sitting around doing nothing at the end of the day because no one calls/visits after 4pm? What if your business is slammed between 8-4 and during lunch hours and because the company is stuck in a 8-5pm mindset the people who are left while everyone is at lunch are disgruntled because they are left to do the lions share of the work. The fact is the caller provided no business details asides from "I want people here at the end of the day" they didn't characterize the question with the full facts and this could be very well to get the answer they wanted to from Dave. If you listen to him enough you will understand his orthodoxy. While he has some gems out there, his individual advice is great when he knows alot more about the situation. But as soon as you ask him for a judgement call on incmplete information it reverts to an answer that can certainly destroy the moral of a business. It sounds good for his fans, but bad for general audience.

[@YaBoiBond]

I agree some context matters with his question. He might be in an office setting where that last hour doesn't matter. We have retail stores and our busiest times are between 4-5 p.m We require our managers to be there until 5:30 to help with this. No one is allowed to take breaks during this time. No one is scheduled to leave during this time. The customers and their needs outweigh everything else.

[@MarcSpectorComics]

I guess it all depends on what you do for a profession. In the hospital sector serving our patients doesn't have "office hours" so there isn't working through lunch we punch out and have coverage for the respiratory therapist and nurses. I take it that most people watching these shows don't serve the public in the way I do.

[@vancelewis9496]

100% it’s his company to run as he sees fit. However, I don’t believe all options were truly considered in this call. The employees are giving you insights into what they value. Honoring that while meeting/exceeding customer needs will build trust and loyalty. Consider staggered shifts or balanced shifts based on measured demand rather than stagnant, rigid 8 hour days.

[@lyndahammel9502]

Totally agree. Flexible hours could benefit both sides. Dave didn't dig into the facts.

[@OTR392]

"Am I Being a Crotchety Old Boss?" Dave, why don't you ask yourself that question?

[@hallwest9650]

Stagger the lunch break…

[@lyndahammel9502]

💯 %

[@ReadingGodsWord365]

It’s his business. If he wants people there until x-o’clock then fine. You could consider rotating who leaves early-as long as productivity isn’t going down the drain. But again, it’s his business. I’m thankful my employer allows me to come in early-and leave slightly early due to my commute.

[@theonetrueking2685]

Thank you for calling out the extreme overuse of the term narcissist.

[@jonathanmangen9988]

Love this show Dave. I've worked under plenty of bad managers. They were given the job as a reward for being a good techie, or to shut them up because they didn't want the hassle of firing them. (Yes, I worked for the Fed Gov't.) I did have a few Managers that when shown I could do the job, the leash came off. (Until I got too big for my britches,) About Leaders: I did have one that when I would get discouraged, sometimes I would have to tell him, he would give me a pep talk, and I would end up running with that for 6 months or more. those were the best times. I'm retired now. I still miss working under that guy. It was for 2.5 years and 20 years ago but, he left me with quite an impression and a role model to follow where I could.

[@evenbiggeral5089]

In my company it is required that you take your lunch and breaks as scheduled. Employee Rights attorneys are waiting in the sidelines and the deck is stacked against employers. This can come back to haunt you in the courts.

[@WanderCampesino]

1 -30 and 2 - 15s

[@deb9806]

We are audited and I’m glad because many of us never got lunch working at a doctors office because the doctor wouldn’t break. Now if we don’t take it or take a short lunch, they want to know why

[@jimmymcgill6778]

Required does not mean you have to take it.

[@evenbiggeral5089]

@@jimmymcgill6778 yes it does. Of course you can refuse to take it, get written up, and eventually get fired.

[@deb9806]

@@jimmymcgill6778 we do where I work because they get audited and they got in trouble when they saw how many people were working through their lunch.( no union ) I will not lie and say I took one and clock in and out when I didn’t because that’s just not right

[@lyndahammel9502]

Good bosses listen to their employees and find solutions that work for both.

[@Medge2sc]

Iv been in this situation, that equity is to keep you The truth is your an employee to then , I left and set up with other people with complete transparency It’s the only way you are going to make money I’m sorry to say

[@evijade1]

I disagree. In my industry we are all Much more productive when we have flexibility and alone time at home (or wherever) to work on select days. Thats when I do 90% of my meaningful work. That’s normal in my industry. It’s not entitlement, it’s like any other business concept. You will lose employees if you don’t meet industry expectations. Think about shift work (4 ten hour shifts) or another plan.

[@WanderCampesino]

Yeah! I love calling in to corporate and hearing the person “working from home” send me to voicemail, or better yet hear them at target. As someone who can’t “work from home,” I’m very leary about productivity at home for most jobs. Mouse clickers, video backgrounds for zoom, and shopping while at work are real. If employers are paying for those times, we are all paying for it.

[@brentayers3132]

Explain the pain points. Tell them these things have to be true for me to continue to allow this. I bet we come up with a rotation where some leave early and others don’t or some start an hour later or whatever. To me it comes down to whether you can make it work well and still have great numbers. I suspect, though, you’ll find that they’re taking a lunch and leaving early.

[@luchiayoung]

Very interesting discussions especially since I just retired from one business and age 67 wanting to do another. I don’t know how I was added as audience, but thank you so much

[@talyahr3302]

Your Pic does not look 67

[@luchiayoung]

@@talyahr3302 I am a carnivore

[@markshade8398]

Part of the difference is yours of coverage. For example, if people start cutting lunch then they leave at 4 instead of 5. But then whatever that person does can't be done after 4.... That is a significant difference.

[@bobbylibertini]

I don't eat lunch- so if I worked a 9-5 job, I would really hate to have to sit around and waste an hour of my time while everyone else eats. I could be picking up the slack for the lunch-eaters while they eat, and thus serve a useful function...and then leave an hour early in return. Most people eat lunch, so not everyone would do this, so I think it would be a win-win. I HATE wasting time! Then again, that's why I've never worked for others.....

[@anthonya2349]

How about you pay for lunch then you can stagger start times, half start at 8 half at 9.

[@MichaelHasebroock]

As a nurse, we're lucky to take a leak on our shifts let alone take a lunch. Go to lunch when it works best for everyone.

[@bigog338]

You need a fixed schedule but it makes more sense to either have rotating schedule where one team comes in at 7 or 8 or have one permanent team with that schedule this sounds more like well yeah everyone can't leave before your business hours end but also extending out your hours of service while having a team that's staying until close helps fix the problem this sounds more like you need the managers to make sure people aren't just making up their own hours when ether by contract or hourly pay it needs to be a clear policy obviously it's not gonna work with people just showing up early randomly if that's when they're not needed but this sounds more like you need different teams to make there's always people to cover the needs.…..

[@stevelarson6384]

challenge the team to come up with ways to support flexibility and still cover all the needs of the role. May be different across positions as they have different deliverables and audiences...

[@luchiayoung]

Working from home was not the question the question was using up an hour or so for lunch

[@deniselittle5558]

The question was, some of my staff want to do this, I as the busines owner/boss, want this. How do I deal with that? Dave answered with a relatable situation in his own business. Can't you see how that works?

[@deniselittle5558]

Excellent answer Dave! You are bang on. 100% it is about the customer. People thinking the business revolves around their labour are wrong. The business revolves around the customer. Your labour will be pointless without the customer.

[@Abdulaziz2003]

The customer is also useless if there’s no labor to serve them 😁 It goes both ways, that’s the free market.

[@jakebrown3117]

The customer service guy call was all off. He could easily have a rotation where some people work through lunch and some don't. Thus cover the customer service. Ramsey didn't think of other options and sided with him because all he heard was "entitled young'uns want to tell the boss what to do". Just because the boss had the "right" to do something doesn't mean it's wise or good for the business. The fact that neither wanted to try and think of any kind of comprimise tells me they both may be crotchety old bosses.

[@Oddoboy]

Dave is wrong here, you can still serve the customer during lunch. They are both being old and crotchety.

[@evijade1]

And the best employees go to the employers who offer flexibility when it’s available. Just like pay, employees move to better opportunities. But I agree the employer has the right to decide this.

[@deniselittle5558]

Dave is not wrong. The customers that would be calling, emailing, texting, walking in between 4pm and 5pm would not be getting served.

[@talyahr3302]

This call made me hungry 🥪

[@luchiayoung]

I so disagree. The customer is not being served while everybody’s out to lunch. Have some people come in an hour late in the morning. You are helping the family because people are home an hour earlier or an hour later in the morning to be with their family. Aren’t you pro family? And lunch is not needed meal. It just makes people spend money that they could be saving.

[@danieljohnson4418]

That was my first thought, too. A "gap" in customer service is actually created by the employees taking a lunch break (assuming they all break at the same time). I hope all his employees leave. 🤣

[@WanderCampesino]

If you have ever worked at a job, usually lunch shifts are staggered if there is a customer service element: usually a rotation of a skeleton crew will stay at the office and take a later lunch.

[@garyzimmerman6316]

I can't find fault with his philosophy 'I own the freaking place, and my signature is on the money that you receive. I will to tell you what to do.' I am very bothered by it, though. Again, I can't seem to fault it.

[@iancockrell5920]

If I'm the employee here, expect me to start scarfing down lunch in 35 seconds and leaving 35 seconds late.

[@josedavalos7660]

That’s cool u should open a similar company with that policy and go help those people that way 👍👍👍

[@theclothingcottage]

Nine hours is a lot to be at work. But I guess everyone has to make decisions as to what works and doesn't.

[@jimmymcgill6778]

If you pay them for 8 hours. They should not work for more then 8 hours. If you want them working an extra hour, pay them an hour OT. Dave always loves to generalize people.

[@ysesq]

lol only employees working from offices these days are mediocre employees. boomer dad can hire the incompetent suckers who spend hours stuck in traffic daily.

[@dapowerlifter09]

The answer is crusty old boss. He came up with an excuse for something that had never happened to justify his position. Lots of easy solutions to true up risk the same way they probably already do over lunch.

[@DavidHaas-hj3kc]

Those inmates are the ones who's labor your living off. At so.e point once their is enough labor shortage employers will figure out there isn't any product for sale without someone to produce it. In the words of my favorite dago I can go broke sitting on my couch same as I can go broke working for a jew