The perfect work schedule...

[Apple]

Rule 1: You have to put in 80 hours a pay period (every two weeks).
Rule 2: Cannot exceed 12 hours of work in a 24 hour period.
Rule 3: Telework is only an option if your job can truly be done remotely (sadly, mine cannot).

Assume same job you have now (but at 80 hours/two weeks if you work part time or are salaried). 

What is your ideal schedule?  Are they flex hours you can work whenever you want?  Are they set hours?  Days? Nights? Weekends?

My ideal schedule:

All nights.

Week 1: Work Sunday through Friday nights, 7 pm to 7 am.  Work Saturday night 6 pm to 2 am.
Week 2: Don't have to put any hours because I got my 80 hours in last week.
Week 3: Don't have to put any hours in because I will work my 80 hours next week.
Week 4: Work same schedule as week 1

Repeat.

For times I have things planned, I'd like to be able to flex my schedule some.

Basically, I'd work 14 days on, get 14 days off.  If I wanted 16 days off, I'd only have to take my 8 hour days off, moving the 8 hour day on week four to Sunday instead of Saturday.

I like to get all my work done in one chunk.  Nights are "better" than days in my situation (single, son in college, minimal crew at work and no management.)  I don't get bored on my time off, so love the huge chunks of time, and no having to use my vacation time.  Also, big chunks of time off = lots of time available for travel!

My real schedule has a group of four weeks really similar to the above every ten weeks.  The only difference is that the 8 hour day is moved to a day during the middle weeks, then week four is pushed to M-Sat.  I just wish all my weeks lined up that way!

ETA: changed time from 6-6 to 7-7.  Grocery store I use opens at 7, so I could hit that on the way home before anyone else is out shopping.  Grocery Outlet, which I also use a ton, opens later, but they usually aren't near as crowded.

[Rob Base 2.0]

The words "perfect" and "work" should NEVER be used in the same sentence.......joost' sayin'

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

See...rule one totally ruins it for me. I want to work part time but make full time money. 

[NastyWoman]

I wish they would allow us to go on a 4/40 schedule. I would work the same number of hours Mo-Th as I currently do, but I would have every Friday off. Fat chance of that happening though...

[hoops902]

I think everyone's answer is "flexible hours" right? Nobody wants a rigid schedule...if you did you'd just set your own after you said you wanted it flexible.

So assuming the same job I have now...the big things to consider are that being off for a week at a time would be chaos. A lot of my job is troubleshooting people's problems that come up, as well as working on projects with others (so some coordination of multiple people is required).

My schedule right now is pretty close to what I want (I'd like to be able to do more via email on off-hours rather than attend meetings during the day). I have flexible hours, if I get up early with the baby I start work, if I have free time at night I work some more. It's basically M-F with a few hours on the weekend to play catch-up on things that don't need to be done on office time. If I want to take a few hours mid-day and go play some golf, I can.

If I work 12 hours one day, I work 4-ish the next.  It keeps me from being too bored sitting around and waiting for fires to put out which is nice. 

[NoNamePerson]

I loved working 4/10's . There were two of us in office so we staggered our schedule. Always had a Friday or Monday off. Down the road I changed jobs and went to 9 to 5. Hated it

But I always said if I did shift work it would be 11pm to 7 am I am a night owl and an early morning person, not worth dog doo in the afternoon so could easily sleep. Could get off early still get stuff done and then crash around 3.  Should say I have never had a job where I worked weekends so I think that would suck!

But retirement works best of all.

[Apple]

Apr 2, 2017 16:51:28 GMT -5 NoNamePerson said:

I loved working 4/10's . There were two of us in office so we staggered our schedule. Always had a Friday or Monday off. Down the road I changed jobs and went to 9 to 5. Hated it

But I always said if I did shift work it would be 11pm to 7 am I am a night owl and an early morning person, not worth dog doo in the afternoon so could easily sleep. Could get off early still get stuff done and then crash around 3.  Should say I have never had a job where I worked weekends so I think that would suck!

But retirement works best of all.

I sleep best when I am working nights.  When I work days, I stay up late and only get a few hours of sleep.  When I work nights, I can come home, tinker around for a few hours, go to bed at 9, and sleep 8 hours easy.

January 25, 2036 and I'll start the best schedule of all too 

[empress of self-improvement]

I like my schedule I have right now, for the most part. Currently, I work from 8PM to 4:30AM Monday through Friday. That will change soon enough but for now, I will keep it. I prefer to work at night as DH is usually sleeping and less apt to injure himself except when he falls asleep watching tv and falls off the couch. Dumbass.

I would love a work at home job so I could be here to keep an eye on him but no clue how to really look for one and unless I become a virtual assistant, or maybe freelance copyeditor, not likely to happen. Unfortunately.

[buystoys]

I had a really nice schedule at one hospital.  I worked 8a-8p Sat and Sun then 12a-8a Mon and Tue.  The only problem was that I also worked 3p-11p Mon-Thu at another job during the same time period. 

I've also worked a complicated sliding night shift schedule that gave me every other weekend off.  It was complex because there were two people on duty every night, three night shift techs, and one person who did every other weekend.  We had seven days on at one point in the schedule, but it was OK with all of us because we actually got a three day weekend every other week and our week days off grouped together.  Before that we had every third weekend off and never had our other days off set together.

Four tens was nice also.  Three twelves was good, but I was working that second job then so I really didn't miss any pay.

[Cookies Galore]

Rule #1 is bullshit. My employer has a 35-hour work week, so having to work 40 hours again would be THE WORST. Right now, I work 8-4 (with one hour for lunch). I like it, but I would totally work 7-3 if I was capable of getting out of bed by 5:15 each day in order to catch the 6:03 train.
I also work from home on Tuesdays. I love that day because we get a bunch of Monday holidays.

ETA: I worked from home from 2/16 - 3/16 following my hip surgery. Glad I had the opportunity to work from home while I recovered, but I definitely could not do it all the time like that!

[MJ2.0]

I'd love to work 10 hour shifts Sunday-Wednesday from 7am-4pm. Those are the days I wouldn't have to worry about getting DS ready and off to school (Wednesday I pick him up), so he'd only need 1 day of aftercare a week. And while he's at school Thursday and Friday, I'd run errands because places are much less crowded on weekdays.

[tallguy]

Should I ask how you get ten hours out of that?   

[swamp]

Mon: Off

Tues: 10-2

Wed: 9-4

Thurs: 10-2

Fri: Off.

[hoops902]

Apr 2, 2017 22:33:48 GMT -5 tallguy said:

Should I ask how you get ten hours out of that?   

Probably working part of their day in 1 timezone then moving west across a timezone for the 2nd half of the day.

[giramomma]

Apr 2, 2017 17:37:46 GMT -5 Cookies Galore said:

Rule #1 is bullshit.

The last time I worked a butt-in seat- job is when I was still in college making 4.something an hour and was excited over a dime raise.

One of the reasons I say where I am is that I would die if I had to go back to that sort of environment...I'd likely get much less productive, too, having to "fill up" time when it's slow.

[Phoenix84]

Apr 2, 2017 21:24:49 GMT -5 MJ2.0 said:

I'd love to work 10 hour shifts Sunday-Wednesday from 7am-4pm. Those are the days I wouldn't have to worry about getting DS ready and off to school (Wednesday I pick him up), so he'd only need 1 day of aftercare a week. And while he's at school Thursday and Friday, I'd run errands because places are much less crowded on weekdays.

7am-4pm is 9 hours.

[MJ2.0]

okay then, 7-5. JFC, you know what I meant!

[sesfw]

I liked 4/10s ........ go in at 6am off at 4:30 ....... Mon thru Thur

I was calibration tech and my lead person did the (very few) expedited calibrations on Fridays  Worked great for all concerned.

[engineerdoe]

A lot of the consulting engineering companies when I first started working would close at noon on Fridays.  I technically have flexible hours at work just need to get my 40 in for the week.  I need to start implementing 4-nines and a 4 to get my half day Fridays again.  We always had core hours where we were required to be in the office.  M-Th core hours were 9-4 and Fri core hours were 9-12.

[wvugurl26]

I already get one day off every two weeks. I do 4 9s and an 8 one week and 4 9s and a day off my second week. I wouldn't be happy to give up my day off.

[busymom]

A flexible schedule would be PERFECT, but that's not going to happen.  So, since I'm a serious night owl, 2nd shift would be ideal (if I wasn't a parent).     I'm most alert after getting a sluggish feeling around 3 pm, then I'm wide awake until Midnight.


What's interesting for me, is, when I was in college, as much as I hated waking up early, I'd opt for the earliest classes I could get, so the rest of the day would be MINE.  (But then, I'd usually spend the rest of the day studying.  I didn't party much in college, as I was too busy cramming for tests, & completing projects.)

[souldoubt]

I'd gladly take a 9/80 schedule getting Friday off every other week.  4/40 sounds great but then I think about all the days my brain and eyes are done after 8-9 hours of starting at a computer screen and don't think it would be good to commit to 10 hour days.  

[shanendoah]

I have a flexible schedule as it is - I am professional staff member, and the definition of professional staff is that I am paid to do a job, not for the hours I work. I am also the "boss" in my area. (Yes, I have a boss, but as long as I get work done, he doesn't notice when I'm here and when I'm not.) My current schedule is M-F, 7a-4p w/ a 1 hour lunch (that I almost always take at my desk -so I really work about 45hrs each week). I can take up to 4 hours in a day without taking any time off for appointments. 
Last summer, we were talking about me doing a 4 10s schedule - I would have Wednesday off, if I did that, so that I never worked more than two days in a row. We don't do a whole lot of traveling (C is a homebody), so having a weekday to do fun things (when crowds are slightly less than on Friday or Monday) seems like a good plan.

I can work from home, and often do, at least once/month. But it is important that  faculty, students, and staff see my face on a regular basis, so I do need to be in the office, and I need to be in the office at hours that other people are here. (So no overnight shifts.)

On some level, my "ideal" schedule doesn't give me any days off. (I earn a good amount of vacation time and feel no need to try and hoard it.)

Sunday: 8a-10a (2hrs - at home)
Monday: 8:30a-4p (7hrs w/ 30min lunch - in office)
Tuesday: 7a-5:30p (10hrs w/ 30min lunch - in office)
Wednesday: 8a-10a (2hrs - at home)
Thursday: 7a-5:30p (10hrs w/ 30min lunch - in office)
Friday: 7a-2:30p (7hrs w/ 30min lunch - in office)
Saturday: 8a-10a (2hrs - at home)

Here's the thing - I am a schedule person, so I wake up early on weekend mornings one way or another. But no one else in my house is up before 10am. So, I could sleep until 7:30a (which is sleeping in for me), roll out of bed, grab some breakfast and work for 2 hours while no one else is up on Sun, Wed, and Sat, without it disturbing weekend plans. This schedule then lets me start work "late" on Mondays (because getting up on Monday is harder than any other day), and leave work "early" on Friday (home by the time school is out). And it gives me a weekday on which I could plan any appointments, so I'd actually miss less work in general.

[shanendoah]

I will say that back in the late 80s/early 90s, my mom worked for the VA and had the M-Th - 9hrs, Fri 8/hrsm with the following Friday off schedule and really liked it. I could see doing something like that, too. But it wouldn't be my ideal.

[ktunes]

the company i work for has always allowed us a flexible schedule as long as we got the job done...job done means on time, within budget and no negative feedback about how it was handled...

and because of some office consolidation our group has been released to work remotely...so even though i have a company vehicle my commute time will be reduced significantly...i guess that helps make up for the crap raises they gave out earlier this year...

[yogiii]

Apr 3, 2017 10:13:44 GMT -5 alwaysbeoptimizing said:

Apr 2, 2017 16:34:56 GMT -5 NastyWoman said:

I wish they would allow us to go on a 4/40 schedule. I would work the same number of hours Mo-Th as I currently do, but I would have every Friday off. Fat chance of that happening though...

a lot of my job is meeting with others. I agree. 4/40 or even Boeing's schedule. they do 5 9hr days the first week, and 4 9 hour days the second week, then get a three day weekend.

they hardly notice the one hour extra.

I'd like the Friday to be flex.  ie, one week I want to work 4x9hours and then do a 1/2 day Friday.  but if I go 5x9 hours one week, i can do 4x9 the next week and then get Friday off.

overall, I've never been a fan of hours though.  I"d rather look at what needs to be done.  sometime, that means 55 hour weeks, sometimes that means 35, but it responds to both the business needs and the employee needs (kids, doctor's, etc)

Most engineering places do the 9/80. The problem is when they want you to work your off friday

[jeffreymo]

At this point in time DW still has a 5 day commitment to her business and has early days on Wednesday and Friday. Right now we share duties(unevenly split) dropping off and picking up the kids at daycare. I think we could make this work with little affect on our family and work.

(Includes 1hr lunch breaks M-Th)
M - 7a-5p - pick up kids
T - 7a-5p - golf league (summer)
W - 7a-5p - DD1 dance - one of us goes
Th - 7a-5p - pick up kids
F - 7a-11a - buy groceries/run errands/golf in summer and home by 3p when the rest of the family ends their day.

[movingforward]

Apr 2, 2017 16:30:52 GMT -5 Knee Deep in Water Chloe said:

See...rule one totally ruins it for me. I want to work part time but make full time money. 

I generally work 36-37 hrs a week now so yeah, rule 1 doesn't do it for me.

[tallguy]

I do less than that in a pay period, so it REALLY doesn't work for me!  Of course it is only part-time money though....  Oh well.      

Given the constraints of the question, I would have preferred a 9/80 rather than straight eight-hour days.  Four tens would have been better, but didn't fit the company schedule.