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7/2/11 11:45 PM

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Tuesday November 22, 2005

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Cell phones keep employees on call for work 24/7 By Loree Cruz-Mante, Contributor

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IN THE EARLY days of what we may call the beginnings of the modern office, communication was carried out through mail, telephone, telex, telegraph and courier. Much later, there was fax and then e-mail. Today, face-to-face meetings continue for most workplaces, although the borgchat, instant messenger, and e-mail are slowly taking over the need to walk into the boss's office for a workrelated concern. Now at the center stage of most internal and external communicating modalities is the all-pervasive, omnipresent, and you-can't-leave-home-without-it gadget called the cell phone. As the "texting capital of the world," this country has put high-tech and high-touch into the hands of the ordinary man on the street who may never get to work a microwave or open a computer but who can press away like a technological whiz on a cell phone. Because of the cell phone, workplace decorum has radically changed since its appearance. While the cell has made connectivity as easy as a "message sent" appearing on the screen, it has also affected the workplace in very dramatic and colorful ways. Depending on whose vantage point you are looking from, the cell phone can be the best or worst thing that ever came to this planet. No office hours The cell phone has made "office hours" an obsolete term. Working hours are no longer limited to when there is someone in the office to take a call or attend to business. The cell phone has removed the dependency on physical presence in a physical office. A boss' need for information from his secretary, for example, does not have to be put on hold until the next day because the secretary is always just a text away. The fact that everyone is "just a text away" is precisely why the cell phone has also become a problem for the ordinary working individual. While it has allowed business to go on unhampered by the confines of working hours, it has also put workers on a 24/7 situation, where even vacations, leave days and holidays may no longer be respected by their employers. Workers may be "recalled" and put to task even as they are sunbathing in Boracay or hibernating in a spa. If the cell phone were not there, workers can enjoy their hard earned rest with nary a thought that they can be disturbed in the most unwanted moments. Less productive work One would have to be very courageous (or desperately wanting to be fired) to openly read comics or play computer games during office hours where the expectation is clearly that one must be working. But that is not the case with the cell phone. Texting is hardly considered a form of goofing off the way that other time wasters are classified as non-work. And yet, if one adds up the amount of time workers spend pressing away at the cell phone keys when they are supposed to be working, the figure can be predictably rather staggering! If every text message could be simply a bit of information, then perhaps the loss of productive work would not be something for employers to worry about. The truth, however, is that the time loss does not only have to do with the actual time reading the message. More time-consuming are the emotional upheavals, roller coasters and passion flights triggered by messages received. One can get bouts of nostalgia for an absent spouse, blush pink at an "I love you" or run amok with devastating news about the children. One can even get officemates to congregate and jointly drool over a thrilling private message from a sweetheart. The passions stirred by simple text messages
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are unimaginable. There is reason for employers to be alarmed. On the other hand, texting has also served as a valuable tool for heightening productivity by providing spaces for inspiration, balm for anxiety, instant answers to worrisome concerns, or simply moments for catching one's breath amidst tons of work stresses. Acceptable decorum The cell phone has triggered changes in acceptable norms at work. Take for example, a staff meeting where everyone is expected to listen and participate meaningfully in the discussion. Because there are seldom any specific "rules" that indicate that texting or receiving calls is prohibited, it is often acceptable to have attendees texting away, a behavior that is justified by one's multi-tasking skills, in this case the ability to listen to the speaker and compose or read a text message at the same time. Leaving the room to answer a call on the cell phone is even regarded as an act of courtesy for which the rest of the group should be grateful because the person was kind enough not to disturb the ongoing discussion. Many workplaces have yet to come up with their own set of guidelines to govern the use of cell phones during work hours. This exercise may not be as simple as writing up rules for the use of the telephone or the copier because it is almost next to impossible to determine allowable calls. One would literally have to wiretap to sift personal from work-related calls. Status symbol There was a time when one's worth in an organization was measured by the size of the room or desk, the kind of inbox tray, the upholstered chair. In many ways, those symbolic indicators still exist today. The cell phone, however, has added itself to the list of status symbols for which many a worker would spend a good part of hard-earned take-home pay. To many, the kind of cell phone determines a person's place in the scheme of things. One must be seen to have the latest model to be counted worthy. The interesting thing, though, is that the cell phone is also a great equalizer, where the distinction between boss and subordinate can disappear when they share the same or equally expensive cell phone model. Certainly, it makes the taxi driver and his passenger, the hairdresser and her client, and the kasambahay and her employer equal partakers of the bounty of technology. It doesn't matter where and how the cell phone was acquired. Here to stay The cell phone revolution has slowly inched its way into workplaces, quietly and surreptitiously entrenching itself in the lives of the working populace until the cell phone has become the norm rather than the deviation. Although texting has radically influenced the world of work as we know it in both desirable and not-so-desirable ways, it still remains a phenomenon that both employers and employees must learn to use for their mutual benefit. Why has the cell phone mania escalated to such proportions? Because as long as Filipino workers continue to value connectivity and are driven to pursue it at all costs, the cell phone will be here for a long, long time-until someone comes up with a bright new idea to replace it. (Ms Loree Cruz-Mante is a human resources and organization development practitioner, published writer, and consultant with leading transitions management firm DBM.)

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