Originally published June 30 2005
Overtime losing its appeal to many workers
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Many workers, after weighing the cost and benefit of overtime responsibilities, opt out of the extra cash.
Working overtime --- and getting paid for it or being able to take comp time --- is a good opportunity for some workers who say they need the extra cash or the earned leisure.
But many workers don't like additional hours for any reason at all because, they say, overtime wears them out, causes stress and reduces their time off for their personal lives.
Chris Ortiz is a quality engineering supervisor for a manufacturing company in Winston-Salem, N.C. Ortiz designs business and manufacturing processes "to achieve greater productivity" --- and thereby to reduce the need for overtime work.
Since 1999, he has focused on workplace problems; his specialty is redesigning the eight-hour workday.
Ortiz, author of "40\+: Overtime under poor leadership" (AuthorHouse, $24.95), stresses that "bad, inefficient management" usually is the reason overtime is needed in the first place.
The industrial engineer, who has a staff of 25 people, points out that a closer look at the need for overtime reveals that the emperor --- in this case, the manager --- is indeed naked.
"There are instances where you do need overtime, for instance to expedite a huge, unexpected order, but in most cases, with good time management and balancing workloads, overtime can be avoided," said Ortiz, who also gives lectures on the subject.
Many employees, he notes, automatically say yes to overtime.
On those "very small, brief moments" when he needs someone to work overtime," Ortiz makes sure time off with pay is offered at the same time as the request --- not an order --- to work.
His advice for employees who are asked to work extra hours: "Recognize what you're giving up and decide if that overtime is going to hurt the things that really are important to you in life."
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