I ran across a thread tonight talking about using an Ipod while on the job. Personally I find it very unprofessional. My employee just started using an IPod and I told him (Today actually) that I didn’t want him listening to it while doing storefront or at peoples residence. He looked at me like I was from Mars 
Am I off base here? I am wrong from time to time so I figured getting a general census would be helpful.
Maybe you could include a third option - use it w/ only one ear bud in. I would say if the volume was low enough for them to hear someone talk to them and they only had one bud in then I’d be OK w/ it.
I don’t see it as any different than listening to the office radio at your cubicle. So long as you can hear whats happening around you and its not a safety issue then I personally see no problem in this.
Nate
You’re not worried about the customer seeing it. I guess maybe I’m just too much of a stickler. The baggie pants / boxers showing, must of rattled me
I will add the option just for you Tony, If I can figure out how. Obv not done thru “edit” or perhaps I didn’t see it.
I really don’t know the true answer. I just know personally if I had music on even one ear and a chance of the customer hearing it, I just wouldn’t feel good about it. Obviously it isn’t ok if you can’t hear anything.
Please make sure you vote. My employee listening to music on the job site depends on it. I’ve already made up my mind and stand by what I believe but it doesn’t mean I’m wrong. I could possibly change my mind if the outcome is overwhelming. If I’m wrong here, I better start a poll on the baggie pants/boxers showing
Please vote, thanks!!
I adjusted the poll for you. If that isn’t what you had in mind I can change it back.
Perfect, thank you. How did you do it? Are you a moderator Tony?
Yes.
I do a lot of homes through a realty/prop. managment company for vacation homes, where they will set up the cleaning of the home a couple of days before the owner or vacation renter comes in; I will listen to stuff then because the owner is not there, but on homes that I am doing while the owner is there, I don’t do it.
Oh and the boxer showing/ baggie pants poll it’s unprofessional looking also. In my mind the image of the two kind of go hand in hand.
I would be okay with an employee listening to the ipod if he were still able to do a competent job, left one bud out so he could hear if someone spoke to him, and only while cleaning outside windows, not on the inside of the customers home. I think some people simply work better listening to it, while others slack off if given this opportunity. So I would offer the deal and set the boundaries, if it were me.
I think on residential its “more ok” with one earbud in. Mostly because your outside with no one really around. Commercial is different because there is usually a lot of people around you need to interact with.
I don’t listen to music on the job site. I do listen to books (3,000+ titles available for free at the library web site). My policy is usually listen on the outside only. Once in the home, if the customer is home, they come off. I do it out of respect for them. They’re my boss while I’m there and I want to be able to hear them. If they do ever want to “dink” me for having a headset on, hey, I am listening to a nonfiction history book etc I definitely think that having a good book to sink my brain into makes me tire less easily while working.
Like my pastor says - USE YOUR HEAD
That is something I don’t believe you can trust an employee to do. Set some boundaries for them. Outside only, inside only if the customer is not at home. Even then, whenever the customer approaches you or is nearby take them off.
On commercial my guys usually don’t have time for ipods because of all the in and out of the trucks and putting belts on and off etc… I have never seen it as unprofessional though, so we don’t have a set policy. What is unprofessional about it? On the plus side, it keeps a customer from talking the ear off an employee while he is trying to work.
We will leave the music for doing the outside of the house. While inside we want to be available for the home owner to talk to and we want to be approachable. Once we start on the outside of the home we throw on the Ipod’s and get it done.
I think it depends on the job. As far as it being unprofessional, I don’t think so. Being safe on the other hand, I think is much more relevant.
For instance, if they are in a boom. NO IPODS. They should be listening to see if the spotter is trying to tell them something on the walkie talkie.
If they are in a swing stage- no way, no how.
If they are doing wfp work on a commercial building, no problem. Go for it, it may motivate them to stay focused and keep rockin’.
On residential, if they are outside, go for it. Inside, depends I guess. Like Steve, I don’t have a policy on it- not for residential. But I will have to update it, I think I will state only one earbud so they can hear if the homeowner is trying to talk to them or not.
I do however have a policy for the other stuff I mentioned.
I actually do have it written into my conduct policies. NO HEADPHONES.
I don’t believe it is “unprofessional” I do however believe it is a distraction so things can be forgotten and it puts other people on the crew at risk for an unnecessary accident because the headphone guy couldn’t hear someone asking for help. NO HEADPHONES NOT NOW, NOT EVER.
This is also coming from someone who sent a guy home yesterday for wearing clothes that smelled like a wet dog.
I hear ya on that one! I have sent people home for wearing dirty clothes too. What I don’t like even more is when it is my embroidered shirt that looks 3 days old! DUDE!
LOL - I hear ya -
I almost lost my mind with this.
Ok, ok, it wasn’t quite that bad. More like this
Still drove me nuts.
Don’t they know they’re viewed like this:
I guess I’m too old to understand. Back when I was a teen nothing looked better on a girl than a tight pair of levis. Man, things have changed.
Yeah I hear ya on that one! I recall that the girls would put their jeans on wet then let them dry while wearing them so they would be really tight. lol
Amazing how gang culture migrates to mainstream. I wonder if one day snoop dogg will just wear regular clothes. When he does, I bet the youngsters will start dressing right.
If I did that when I had a boss, I would first get cussed out and then sent home.
