Going to do interviews, how do i ask about work load/work hours without sounding lazy?

[Phokus]

I'm working to almost 8 PM each night and i'm getting nothing in terms of gratitude, increased pay, etc.

Ever since i joined my current company, they have kept adding more and more work to everyone's desk... lots of people have left already. I would say my workload has quadrupled or even quintupled. Also, i think they're going to outsource the work anyway, so maybe this is their way of getting rid of us.

Anyway, i'm going to go to some interviews and i want to find out about how much i'll be working. But if i ask, 'how many hours do you guys work', would that seem like i'm lazy? Is there a better way to ask?

There's no way i want to encounter this bullsh*t again.

 

[darkswordsman17]

Just tell them what happened at your current job and let them know that is the reason you're looking for a new job.

 

[ultimatebob]

Hmm... tough question to ask without sounding lazy. You might want to ask one of the employees (NOT a HR manager!) a question like "What are the overtime requirements of this position?" outside of the formal interview process, but I wouldn't push the topic any more than that.

 

[TipsyMcStagger]

work/life balance is the buzzword. Ask what the company does to promote a work/life balance for their employees.

 

[DaveSimmons]

> Just tell them what happened at your current job and let them know that is the reason you're looking for a new job.

Agreed. I'd explain about your current job and say something like you understand that sometimes you need to work extra hours for a company emergency / a good reason but that doing it every week isn't the kind of job you're looking for.

 

[ultimatebob]

Originally posted by: DaveSimmons
> Just tell them what happened at your current job and let them know that is the reason you're looking for a new job.

Agreed. I'd explain about your current job and say something like you understand that sometimes you need to work extra hours for a company emergency / a good reason but that doing it every week isn't the kind of job you're looking for.

I thought that complaining about your existing job was an interview no-no, tough...

 

[AgaBoogaBoo]

Originally posted by: ultimatebob

Originally posted by: DaveSimmons
> Just tell them what happened at your current job and let them know that is the reason you're looking for a new job.

Agreed. I'd explain about your current job and say something like you understand that sometimes you need to work extra hours for a company emergency / a good reason but that doing it every week isn't the kind of job you're looking for.

I thought that complaining about your existing job was an interview no-no, tough...

Tell them that your current job takes your hard work for granted and shows no respect for it. Tell them that you have no issue putting in extra hours to help the team or get something completed on time, but when it becomes a daily task, and is assumed by everyone, you don't care about it anymore.

I don't think it's too much of an issue if you explain yourself.

 

[FrustratedUser]

Originally posted by: Phokus
I'm working to almost 8 PM each night and i'm getting nothing in terms of gratitude, increased pay, etc.

Ever since i joined my current company, they have kept adding more and more work to everyone's desk... lots of people have left already. I would say my workload has quadrupled or even quintupled. Also, i think they're going to outsource the work anyway, so maybe this is their way of getting rid of us.

Anyway, i'm going to go to some interviews and i want to find out about how much i'll be working. But if i ask, 'how many hours do you guys work', would that seem like i'm lazy? Is there a better way to ask?

There's no way i want to encounter this bullsh*t again.

"....... I usually only do maybe 15min of real work in a week. How much do you require?"

 

[Phokus]

Hmmm, i'm not sure about how viable these answers are... i can't talk bad about my employer (even though i've heard managers at my company talking bad about the employer, sheesh).

 

[aceO07]

Ask what their typical day\week is like.

 

[KeithTalent]

Originally posted by: TipsyMcStagger
work/life balance is the buzzword. Ask what the company does to promote a work/life balance for their employees.

THIS IS THE ANSWER!

I have hired 4 new people this year, and I think any of them asking a question like this would be fine. All decent companies these days are all about promoting the work/life balance; it's become a mantra of sorts.

KT

 

[Capt Caveman]

Do not talk about any negatives about your last work place.

Ask about the work environment.

 

[Phokus]

Originally posted by: aceO07
Ask what their typical day\week is like.

Yeah, i thought of this one as well, i might not get the 'hours' part though...

 

[KeithTalent]

Originally posted by: KeithTalent

Originally posted by: TipsyMcStagger
work/life balance is the buzzword. Ask what the company does to promote a work/life balance for their employees.

THIS IS THE ANSWER!

I have hired 4 new people this year, and I think any of them asking a question like this would be fine. All decent companies these days are all about promoting the work/life balance; it's become a mantra of sorts.

KT

Edit: Never, ever, ever badmouth your previous employer. Also, asking anything about what a typical workday involves would be fine as well.

Edit2: wtf, I meant to edit, not quote.

 

[Phokus]

Originally posted by: KeithTalent

Originally posted by: TipsyMcStagger
work/life balance is the buzzword. Ask what the company does to promote a work/life balance for their employees.

THIS IS THE ANSWER!

I have hired 4 new people this year, and I think any of them asking a question like this would be fine. All decent companies these days are all about promoting the work/life balance; it's become a mantra of sorts.

KT

I'm not even sure what work/life balance even means anymore... our company 'promotes' work/life balance too (some people can telecommute oh wow!)... that doesn't mean jack sh*t when you're working 3 people's jobs :\

 

[Dirigible]

Yeah, don't badmouth your current employer at interviews.

I usually do it as a two-stage process.

Stage 1: Getting the job offer is the goal. Don't mention you're tired of working long hours or have a problem with it. You should still work on getting a feel for the daily lives of the people that work there and are interviewing you. Being personable helps interviewers open up about all sorts of stuff, including things that their HR and management may not want them saying, in addition to making them think you'd be a good team member to work with. Hopefully you'll be able to get the info you seek, but don't be obvious and it's not your main goal.

Stage 2: Once the job offer is in hand, you can follow up and dig a little harder if necessary to find out all the dirt you couldn't find out during stage 1. Frequently stage 2 takes the form of me saying, "I'm interested, but would like to find out more. Could I schedule a follow-up lunch with interviewer X?" Interviewer X being someone who seemed like an ok person who would open up even further if taken out of the formal interview process. Once you're officially in with an offer, the guard gets let down a bit more.

 

[KeithTalent]

Originally posted by: Phokus

Originally posted by: KeithTalent

Originally posted by: TipsyMcStagger
work/life balance is the buzzword. Ask what the company does to promote a work/life balance for their employees.

THIS IS THE ANSWER!

I have hired 4 new people this year, and I think any of them asking a question like this would be fine. All decent companies these days are all about promoting the work/life balance; it's become a mantra of sorts.

KT

I'm not even sure what work/life balance even means anymore... our company 'promotes' work/life balance too (some people can telecommute oh wow!)... that doesn't mean jack sh*t when you're working 3 people's jobs :\

Well I guess it all depends on what the hiring person is all about as well. In interviews I always talk about the positive things my company offers and give honest, concrete examples of what we can offer you in terms of flexibility.

When my (soon to be ex) wife was hired at her job they talked about the work/life balance and later on when they started to ask her to work overtime, she said sure, but I need this, this, and this in order to fit the work/life balance. It worked very well for her.

At some point you have to stick up for yourself too and make sure the employer is holding up their end of the bargain, otherwise you will get walked all over.

KT

 

[Phokus]

alright, thanks guys, i'll try your strategies out

 

[KeithTalent]

Originally posted by: Phokus
alright, thanks guys, i'll try your strategies out

Good luck man! :thumbsup:

KT

 

[ultimatebob]

Originally posted by: KeithTalent

Originally posted by: TipsyMcStagger
work/life balance is the buzzword. Ask what the company does to promote a work/life balance for their employees.

THIS IS THE ANSWER!

I have hired 4 new people this year, and I think any of them asking a question like this would be fine. All decent companies these days are all about promoting the work/life balance; it's become a mantra of sorts.

KT

Good tactic, but I still wouldn't ask the HR manager this question. They'll have a BS answer prepared for it, just like the HR manager for your existing company probably would. You'll get more honest answers from the worker bees.

 

[eakers]

ask them "what would a typical day be like in this position?"

 

[Savij]

Just wait till you talk to the manager and/or coworkers and ask them. Be straight forward about it. Ask it along with your "What's an average day/week in the position like?" question.