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ManOfSteal · Jul 13, 2005, 10:02 PM

After working for probably at least 8 hours/day at your everyday job, and pending you have the need for e-mail at your place of business that you need to check regularly at work, do you then come home and check your work e-mail as well during obvious off-hours/family time?

If so, why? How often do you check? Do you really "need" to actively check it, or do you just want to stay on top of things (or other reasons)?

ReggieX · Jul 13, 2005, 10:14 PM

I can't. No VPN access, and it's all Outlook crap. Thank goodness!

ManOfSteal · Jul 13, 2005, 10:16 PM

Originally Posted by ReggieX

I can't. No VPN access, and it's all Outlook crap. Thank goodness!

No Outlook Web Access? If you could check it from home, would you?

ReggieX · Jul 13, 2005, 10:32 PM

No outside Web access or anything like that. Even if I did, I wouldn't check it, they don't pay me enough to worry about things off-hours.

I do occasional bits of work at home, but then just send the files to my work account as needed. Good to have a clean break!

Railroader · Jul 13, 2005, 10:35 PM

I don't have a work email address.

I do check my personal email at work though.

ManOfSteal · Jul 13, 2005, 10:36 PM

Originally Posted by ReggieX

Even if I did, I wouldn't check it, they don't pay me enough to worry about things off-hours.

Amen. I knew I should have negotiated for "over-time" paid hours to check work e-mail during off-hours!

turtle777 · Jul 14, 2005, 04:21 AM

Guess I get paid enough for having to check it sometimes from home. Not sure though...

-t

dlefebvre · Jul 14, 2005, 07:50 AM

I mostly check my outlook web acces to verify my calendar, I haven't missed a morning meeting since. It was a common problem of mine to show 30 minute late to a meeting.

Zimphire · Jul 14, 2005, 08:30 AM

Our company has a web portal to do such a thing.

But I never use it.

RAILhead · Jul 14, 2005, 08:32 AM

never do

mitchell_pgh · Jul 14, 2005, 08:49 AM

I do... but don't respond unless it's to my advantage. They should call me if it is a real emergency.

My company also gives me comp time, so I don't mind.

turtle777 · Jul 14, 2005, 09:00 AM

Well, when climbing the corporate ladder, it's just expected at a certain level. If you don't play the game (at least every once in a while when important stuff is going on), your career will probably end.

-t

dreilly1 · Jul 14, 2005, 09:11 AM

I only check work E-mail at home when not waiting until the next morning will actually make an impact on how quickly things get done. We've also recently started working with some people in the Bay Area, so if I send an E-mail at 7PM ET someone's actually around to read it.

For that matter, there are times when my work (like right now) essentially entails running all sorts of Design Automation tools on plain-text files and processing the results like a human Perl script. And I make sure that all that stuff is able to be done on a command line, so sometimes I even do real productive work at home! (There are other times when there's room in my schedule for a long lunch or two during work hours, so I'm not complaining.

)

It helps that I recently got a Dell laptop from my employer with all the relevant software pre-installed and with Wi-Fi built in. I use that to work from home. And when it breaks, someone else fixes it!

ghporter · Jul 14, 2005, 09:23 AM

I stopped doing that a while before I retired. While I had great access at home, it got to be a problem; I had regular office hours, and some people expected me to react to THEIR obsessive work habits during my off time. It had to stop, so I simply stopped checking it.

Interestingly enough, you'll all note that the world did NOT end because a file (on my work computer) didn't get updated and sent in the middle of the night to someone who was by that time already asleep. My habit of coming in early was very useful for handling this, as I got a whole lot done before other people began dragging it in to start the day. (And I missed a whole lot of traffic-I'm not going to even pretend that I was going in early for any other reason.)

jcadam · Jul 14, 2005, 10:57 AM

I can use Outlook Web Access to read work email. Let me tell you, as a staff officer (army) I get some straight-up ridiculous, asinine, and/or retarded bull$hit requests in the email box that somebody wants a response to NOW (chances are that person sent said request to his subordinates at the end of the day right before going home himself). I no longer check my email at home. I just don't. When I'm inebriated I have a tendency to tell people how I really feel.

That reminds me, I need to work on my resume tonight.

wdlove · Jul 14, 2005, 11:02 AM

I receive my communications from my supervisor at home.

ghporter · Jul 14, 2005, 11:37 AM

Originally Posted by jcadam

Let me tell you, as a staff officer (army) I get some straight-up ridiculous, asinine, and/or retarded bull$hit requests in the email box that somebody wants a response to NOW (chances are that person sent said request to his subordinates at the end of the day right before going home himself).

I retired in January as a 20+ year Air Force Senior NCO...I hear and understand every word you said!

What's worse than getting a request from a brand spanking new second lieutenant through email after duty hours? Getting an order from one after duty hours. I had the good luck to have prior service 2LTs in my organization for the most part, so this situation occurred very infrequently, but we DID have a few real fresh "butterbars" that needed breaking in. And they'd never ever heard of the rule "ask your Senior NCOs before you embarrass yourself." Imagine that!

Parky · Jul 14, 2005, 11:37 AM

I only check mine when I am working from home.

We have a Citrix published set of applications including Lotus Notes.

I have to say it's very strange to use Safari to log into the office and then be presented by a Windows Login screen and Lotus Notes running in Windows (and all the other apps), especially as I don't have virtual PC on my Mac.

That's the wonder of Citrix :-)

Ian

andi*pandi · Jul 14, 2005, 11:39 AM

sometimes. thru exchange. usually if I take a day off, I check it the night before I'm due to return, so I'm not "surprised" by anything. :/

oh, and fsck citrix.

dreilly1 · Jul 14, 2005, 12:01 PM

Originally Posted by ghporter

My habit of coming in early was very useful for handling this, as I got a whole lot done before other people began dragging it in to start the day. (And I missed a whole lot of traffic-I'm not going to even pretend that I was going in early for any other reason.)

I like coming in early for exactly the same reason. I used to have an hour to an hour and a half to think about an issue and give a response before other people read their E-mail. Alas, not hat there's an eight-month-old in the house, it's tough to get in early when you get woken up once or twice a night!

DarwinX · Jul 14, 2005, 04:18 PM

I do check work e-mail at home. Simply to know if I'll be walking into a hailstorm the next day. I only reply if it's absolutely necessary, otherwise I just like the heads up.

Randman · Jul 14, 2005, 04:45 PM

I'm working at home right now so yes.