How tf do people who work 8-5 M-F get any life done?

Submitted ⁨⁨23⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago⁩ by ⁨Tower@lemmy.zip⁩ to ⁨[deleted]⁩

I’ve worked 2nd (afternoon), swing (evening), and 3rd (overnight) shifts for the majority of my life. I recently moved into a training position where I’m Monday through Friday, 8am to ~5:30pm (I get OT while I’m cleaning up and writing reports).

As much as the 2nd/swing/3rd shifts screw with your life in other ways, the difficulty in scheduling any kind of life services outside of working hours is maddening. Doctor’s appointment? Nope. DMV? Maybe Saturday, if you’re lucky. Chaperone your kids field trip? Hahahhah no.

I don’t want to burn sick time for a doctor’s appointment (I need to save those for when my kid is actually sick), and I sure as hell don’t want to use up a “vacation” day for it. How tf are you supposed to get anything done?

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socsa@piefed.social ⁨22⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
I don’t have kids so I just work like 6-2 and the occasional weekend in order to keep afternoons open. It also helps that I’m basically unsupervised and nobody really keeps track of what I’m doing. Maybe once every six weeks I intentionally work like 4 hours on a Saturday and make a big fucking deal about it to give the perception that I am both busy and productive.

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- Tower@lemmy.zip ⁨16⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
  Yeah, I’ve done early morning shifts like that before. I loved being done so early in the afternoon, but I’m a night owl and always had trouble going to sleep / waking up on time. I can do it for about 2 weeks before I crash out lol
  
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Photonic@lemmy.world ⁨22⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
I’ve had both sides as well, I’ve had jobs where some weeks I worked 7 insanely busy night shifts in a row from 10.30pm to 9.30am. Those weeks you don’t get anything done because you’re just sleeping all day and too tired to do anything after. Not to mention having a commute that was 50 minutes to two hours. That is where I learned I did not want to do that.

And then I also worked 5 days a week working only day shifts 8-6, which bored the shit out of me.

And then I had a much calmer job where officially I worked 8-5, five days a week, but I had to had to figure out how to keep myself busy and I could basically do what I want because my supervisor was fine with whatever because he only cared about the results and I kept those coming. But that was too little structure too.

And I worked part time shift work because that is what was offered at the time and shifts were much more doable. Then I had a little too much time on my hands.

So now I have something in between, where I do work some weekends, evenings and nights, and I’m compensated during week days, but most of my job is 8-5:30.

And lastly, I want to mention how crazy it is that there is a cap on your sick days. If you get sick, you get sick, right? It’s not really a plannable event, but maybe I’m too European and weak-willed for that.

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- SparroHawc@piefed.world ⁨21⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
  For some reason, companies in the USA are deathly afraid of someone using sick time when they aren’t actually sick, so they restrict it as tightly as possible. Never mind that this means people are either coming in to work sick, or taking unpaid time off.
  
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  - farmgineer@nord.pub ⁨20⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
    Not exclusive to the US. Here in Japan (and I’m sure plenty of places) as well.
    
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theuniqueone@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨21⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
You don’t you have to be constantly exhausted and have no time for everything because you have no choice in capitalism.

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HobbitFoot@thelemmy.club ⁨21⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
Most appointments get handled with sick time or talking to the manager to see if they will let you adjust your schedule to accommodate your appointment.

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- Adulated_Aspersion@lemmy.world ⁨13⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
  If the work is hourly, sure.
  
  If it’s salary… they get a notice that i am stepping away and that I plan to return at xxx.
  
  Salary buys flexibility, not unlimited hours.
  
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fuckwit_mcbumcrumble@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨22⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
I just tell them I’m gonna be late one day. No PTO necessary.

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Fredthefishlord@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨13⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
Late shift— no social life but I’ll be damned if it doesn’t make appointments a breeze

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RBWells@lemmy.world ⁨21⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
I work 9-6, go to yoga, eat supper, hang out with my husband awhile, sleep 11-7, have a leisurely morning because my commute is a short bike ride, have 4 weeks of PTO at this point and I USE it. Weekends I have free most weeks.

But honestly it works best when one or the other of us are working from home, to take care of some of the household stuff & pets, and we have someone come really clean the house fortnightly, so we don’t have to spend weekends doing that. And I like gardening so that’s not such a chore.

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- Sir_Kevin@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨20⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
  I’m guessing you’re not in the US?
  
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  - RBWells@lemmy.world ⁨19⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
    I am, and in a 'right to work" (labor unfriendly) state as well. But have been at the same place for 13 years, and am flexible with them because they are flexible with me. Will stay late if needed, (I leave Wednesdays for overflow and tell my boss that is the day I can work late) but take time for appointments when I need. And I don’t answer emails after I go home, am not reachable. I’m not sure why, but they seem to think I am a top performer. As far as I can tell it’s not objectively true, but I’m not the one evaluating it.
    
    People at my job also take long lunches to work out if they want. It’s a participation sports company.
    
    I don’t believe in doing too much, that does no favors for your coworkers or the people who come after. I say good things about my coworkers to their bosses, too. Anytime I can possibly give someone else credit I do.
    
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kersploosh@sh.itjust.works ⁨21⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
IDK how hourly workers do it.

In theory it should be no problem for salaried workers, though. The point of salary is that you are supposedly being paid for your work output rather than your time. I know that isn’t always the case, though.

I have been lucky. At every place I worked for the last 20-ish years the salaried employees come and go as they please. It’s normal to leave for a mid-day appointment and then come back to the office. All that matters is shit gets done in a timely manner and we’re available when people need us. I wish everyone had that level of flexibility.

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pineapplelover@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨15⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
Yeah fr, I don’t have a “real job” yet, currently in an internship doing 30hr a week and I’m kind of sick of it. More so, I might be sick of the work and environment itself but during my free time, I just barely have enough time to do all the chores and stuff I want to do (I do a lot of stuff). I feel like if I were to work 40 hrs a week, I would need to time out every minute of my week out.

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kandoh@reddthat.com ⁨15⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
You earn the ability to take take time off that you need for personal stuff after you’ve proved yourself to the employer. When you’re young they expect you to forgo that doctor stuff

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Gonzako@lemmy.world ⁨20⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
I say “X day I come in late” and that’s it

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- otp@sh.itjust.works ⁨13⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
  X = “to”?
  
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devfuuu@lemmy.world ⁨22⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
There’s no other life other than work, sleep and stress.

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ScoffingLizard@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨22⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
After decades of it I’m exhausted, tired, used up, and with no energy to enjoy anything. It’s time to get my affairs in order and check out.

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josephc@lemmy.ml ⁨22⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
I used to ask if I could work extra and leave a little early or take a long lunch. My current employer is far more chill about it and will let me do so if there’s nothing pressing. Still had to burn a half day of sick time to bring doggo to the vet.

But like others are saying, “you don’t.” Life is a Sisyphean nightmare of falling behind on laundry, cleaning, legal obligations, etc. Live in quiet desperation and perpetual exhaustion. “Truly the best of all possible worlds.”

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TheLastOfHisName@piefed.social ⁨21⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
I work swing/2nd shift: 2:00 pm - 10:30 pm. My days off are always Tuesday and Wednesday. It’s not so bad, as I can get stuff done on my days off (doctor’s appointments, banking/government office-related errands, etc.). If I’m up earlier than my 10:00 am alarm, then I try to be productive around the flat.

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- RBWells@lemmy.world ⁨19⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
  Oh I did love swing shift when I was younger. But it was 4 - midnight. Could walk home, and stop for a drink on the way, too. Go home and sleep 8 hours and still not get up too late.
  
  Unfortunately back then I had to have more than one job to survive, but I do like that late-but-not-overnight shift.
  
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