Friday night she didn’t have any issues chatting with Marcus and Cassie or telling me off.She was a complex puzzle I wanted to figure out.
“Back to this contract.How do you enforce it?”
“The managers and directors know their employees, and the employees know the rules.If someone logs in after hours or remotely on a weekend, it’s flagged and sent to the employee’s boss.”
“I told you about my working yesterday.If I hadn’t told you, you wouldn’t have known.”
“True, but that’s only because you don’t have remote access and didn’t come into the office where the keycard logs would have shown when you came in, and the keystroke logs would have revealed what you had done while on the network.”I could almost see the wheels turning as everything fell into place.“It’s why I wanted you to read your employment contract.We encourage our employees to take time off, and while you might think it’s not enforceable, it is.”
“The way you describe it sounds like a form of micromanagement.There’s no way for you to know when I log onto my laptop at home.”She sat back in her chair, looking pleased, no, almost smug.
“You’re right.”She was, because her laptop belonged to Tri-O-Tech.“And no one is preventing you from working on whatever you like…as long as it is not in connected any way to Fantasies, Inc.I’m trusting you to abide by the terms of the contract as agreed.”
Emma rolled her eyes.“Unfair.”
I rubbed my upper lip so she wouldn’t see my grin.I had a feeling she was a by-the-book type of employee once she was made aware of the rules.“Very fair.Keep reading.”
“All right.”She flipped the page and continued to read.The rest of the contract was pretty boiler plate, but this way, I could be sure she’d read it.When she finished reading it, she tapped a fingernail on the desk then looked at me.“Can I get HR to change the contract?”
“You can talk with Miles, but I doubt he’ll change it.”
She sighed.“Fine.No working on weekends unless I feel it’s necessary.”
“And in accordance with the contract specifications?”
Emma nodded, then seemed to have a second thought and spoke aloud.“Yes, Asher, in accordance with the contract specifications.”
Success.I relished this small win.Now to figure out a way I could fill her weekends.“I’m glad we’ve got that out of the way.”I glanced at my watch.“Since you got here early, why don’t we go to the café and celebrate with a real breakfast.The danish was fine, but I need more than that.You might too.”
John had made it clear that it didn’t matter to him if employees never used their cards for food or they did it all day long.The food policy and insistence on the work-life balance made for a great environment.Turnover in the company was less than five percent.
For IT, turnover was almost unheard of.I worked with my employees to ensure flexibility in a hybrid environment and encouraged use of all the perks the company offered.
“How did it get to be nine already?”
“It’s funny how fast time goes.”I stood up and cleaned up the table.
Chapter Twelve
Emma
I couldn’t believe what I read in the employment contract.Yes, I read it before I signed it in HR last week.I didn’t read every word and, apparently, had missed the section about the working hours.
They don’t trust people to find their own balance, so they mandate it in a damned contract?
Going forward, I was going to have to deal with the distraction of keeping track of the total number of hours I worked and stop at some arbitrary limit.I understood people needed a work and home life balance, but I was different.I had no good friends; my family was in another state, and I spent most weekends reading, walking, gaming, developing personal apps, and yes, working my job.That wasmywork-life balance.
I appreciated Asher’s misguided concern about my eating habits, but coffee and food kept me awake and focused on the job.His critique at the restaurant, the contract, and his observations about my eating habits, it was like living with my family all over again.
When Asher headed for the café, I stopped him.“I’d rather do Daily Perks.”I’d texted Cassie and told her we’d have to skip meeting up this morning since I came in so early.
He frowned at me.“You need more than a snack.”
He thinks he’s looking out for me.Pick your battles, girl.
“She has breakfast sandwiches; I can get one of those.”I really didn’t want a sit-down meal.It seemed like a waste of time to me.“Please.”
Asher nodded, and I followed him into Daily Perks.There was a line out the door.Not unusual, the place was always busy.The café’s coffee was too strong and bitter for me, and I preferred the crafted coffees at Daily Perks.
