Does your shop force you to take breaks?

My point is that if all you care about is a paycheck, then you should get a job where your actual work can't be evaluated on newsstands every day, week or month. There's nothing wrong with working at a Burger King or a hotel or driving a taxi.

Journalism is supposed to be about more than that. Or, at least I like to think it is.

We're in an industry full of people who are great at what they do and really care ... and can't find work so, I'm sorry, but I get a little bit steamed when I see people with jobs in this industry doing the bare minimum (or less) to get by.

And, again, it's not about taking breaks. It's about the logic behind being forced to take a break at a given time REGARDLESS of the real-world situation I'm in at that moment.

If you trust someone's judgment enough to allow them to be responsible for the production of what is supposed to be a newspaper, you know, one of the basic tenets of a local community, then you could trust their judgment enough to know that they can handle the small, unimportant things (like when to have a sandwich).

 

You can care about doing a good job and want to work only 40 hours per week, or as little as possible. How do we know that you're not just wasting all of those hours? Does your company or readers see the difference in the work you do compared to the editors at the other papers in your chain? The other editors you think are terrible must love you.

It's not about judgement. It's about policy, which is there to avoid lawsuits and fines. They can't just take your word that you'll be a good boy and not complain.

Maybe this is a test of your judgement to shut your trap and find a way to skirt the rules.

 

Believe it or not, my intent with this thread was not to piss and moan "Woah is me" because my boss wants my company to play by the rules. I was merely curious about how this is handled in other newspaper companies since, you know, this is suppose to be a good place to connect with other journalists.

And, yes, I'm sure the other editors do hate me. I'd expect nothing less. I'm sure Brett Carolan wasn't a big fan of Jerry Rice when both were playing for the 49ers either.

 

You do sound very humble comparing yourself to Jerry Rice... but then again, you pretty much have zero competition when it comes to your fellow editors at your chain, since outside of one younger writer, I honestly don't know if anyone gives a shit on the news side.

 

There are plenty of nights when, if I would take a 20-minute break, we would miss deadline by that 20 minutes. Are we OK with that?

 

My reaction would be, "Your shop is run that badly?" I don't think any news operation should be so indebted to one person, although I realize that it probably happens.

 

And if the answer is yes, his shop is run that badly, then is his lack of a break understandable, or is it just a grandstand move guaranteed to piss off the masses?

 

This is exactly my point. You can't always just decide "Well, it's time for me to have a Pop Tart and play Angry Birds".

Let's be honest, most times it's easy to walk away for 20 minutes and go get something to eat/take a dump/whack off/what have you but, really, if it's not affecting anyone else but yourself, why shouldn't you be able to decide when you want to take your own break?

 

Question for those who have to punch an electronic time card:
How does that work? 3/4 of my time working is outside the office, out of town, out of state. If I'm covering a football game on Saturday afternoon in another state or on a 2-3 day road trip covering a tournament, how am I supposed to punch a physical clock?

 

Well, you might not, which is why an editor also may be more of a stickler for a timely, accurate accounting of what you do, and when, on a time card or daily ledger.

But, then again, we are able to do almost everything else electronically these days...Why not logging in, and, yes, physically punching a time clock that way, too? It probably is done that way somewhere already. If not, I'd be a little surprised.

 

Apropos of nothing, this is how I log in for my volunteer shifts at the Humane Society. You walk in, you log in to the computer, you clock in. You leave, you clock out. You can also register for shifts from home.

 

I guess that would work, but in essence you aren't doing anything more than a 2011 version of filling out a paper time sheet. You could just as easily be sitting at the bar clocking in and out via iPhone as not.

I'm not dismissing anyone claims on what they have to do. I'm just asking how it's done.