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Published: March 6, 2017

Updated: May 10, 2022

What To Practise When an Employee Spends Too Much Time on Their Cell Phone

Cell phones are driving many of us to distraction—and taking a toll on productivity in the workplace. Nineteen per centum of employers recall their workers are productive for less than 5 hours a twenty-four hours, and more half believe that jail cell phones are to blame.

Indeed, every beep, buzz and glow emanating from our personal devices are designed to lure united states in while hijacking our time and disrupting our concentration. A curt call or text message here or there may non harm productivity in a noticeable way, but excessive use can go a big trouble. And so, how can you stop employees from using cell phones at work? Do yous demand a cell phone policy at piece of work? Keep reading for tips on creating a visitor cell phone policy and treatment usage across your workplace.

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How to Bargain With Overuse of Personal Cell Phones in the Workplace

As a pocket-size business organization owner, it's normal to wonder how to deal with employee prison cell phone apply. Due to the addiction-forming, ubiquitous nature of prison cell phones, it's of import to accost their inevitable presence and intervene when your employees are loath to put their devices bated — just every bit you must accept action with the employee who e'er calls in sick. Below are a few tactics to help yous exert some measure of control over cell phones in your workplace.

Face the Reality

Cell phones are here to stay. This means creating a "no texting while working" policy isn't ideal. Ninety-five percent of Americans now ain a cell phone of some kind, and family-friendly employers know that even though work comes first and foremost, personal devices are vital for employees who need to check in with their children and attend to important personal matters during the day.

Unless there are safety concerns, creating a "no cell phone employ at work" policy can be perceived as punitive. In fact, posting a "mobile phones not allowed in workplace" notice will probable lead to morale problems. And although blocking cellular signals within your workplace may be a tempting solution, it's not applied. Disabling Wi-Fi can impede your ain business organisation communications, and a cell telephone jammer, which can effectively close down signals throughout your business area, is non only unsafe, it is also illegal in the U.S.

It's meliorate to take prison cell phones as a part of modern-day work life and institute policies for their utilise. Equally long as you enforce your "jail cell phone utilise at work" policies, y'all should run into usage settle at levels that are reasonable for your business.

Set Limits

Chances are that yous're going to run into an employee on their cellphone here and there. That'due south why you'll want to prepare limits or mobile phone restrictions at work depending on:

• The nature of your business
• Each employee's job
• The types of issues y'all've experienced

For example, jail cell phone use is typically prohibited nether the following circumstances:

• During meetings, training sessions and conferences
• When employees are interacting with customers
• In production areas and kitchens or while operating heavy equipment as a prison cell phone can present a condom chance
• While driving, except when a Bluetooth connection is bachelor or when the commuter is pulled over to the side of the road. (This is a requirement enforced by OSHA, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Assistants, for which you are legally responsible every bit an employer.)

Your cell phone policy could besides ascertain:

• When prison cell telephone use during work hours is adequate, such every bit during breaks and lunchtime
• The frequency and length of calls permitted during working hours
• If headsets are permitted
• Where to store personal devices. Keeping phones out of sight, such every bit in a desk drawer, is an effective way to keep distractions to a minimum.
• Appropriate use during business hours. For instance, business calls and brief conversations or texts with family members may be okay, but playing games or downloading music is not.

Simply make sure that the limits for your smartphone policy for employees are fair and flexible. While establishing a zilch-tolerance cell phone policy isn't the all-time route, you lot can always tighten upward your policies if necessary.

Define Etiquette for Personal Cell Phones in the Workplace

Non only do cell phones distract their owners, but calls tin be especially annoying to the employees sitting close to the talker. These guidelines tin minimize disruptions and help keep the peace, fifty-fifty when employees are on their phones:

• Set jail cell phones to vibrate and ringtones to silent
• Speak quietly
• Keep calls short
• Accept personal calls in private
• Avoid offensive language
• Use texting as a quick and placidity alternative to talking on the phone
• Do non use cell telephone cameras (to protect everyone's privacy)

Put Your Jail cell Phone Policy in Writing

To ensure that your cell phone policy at work is understood and followed, put it in writing. Yous can search for a jail cell phone policy template online or you can create ane yourself. Whichever option y'all choose make sure you spell out your terms in clear, unambiguous linguistic communication. Exist sure to include the rationale for each term you outline, such as ensuring rubber or maintaining productivity.

Include the disciplinary actions that will follow if policy terms are violated. This could include multiple stages (verbal alert, written warning and last warning) and may include a cell phone ban if usage interferes with concern operations and the possibility of termination if use causes an accident or violates the visitor'due south confidentiality policy.

Require all employees to review and sign the policy, indicating that they empathise the policy terms and the consequences of violations.

Lead by Example

If you want your employees to adopt new prison cell phone habits, you must be impeccable in modeling the behavior you wish to cultivate. If you're taking personal calls or texting during meetings, your employees won't take your cell phone policy very seriously. Be a stellar role model, and your employees will exist more likely to follow arrange.

Enforce Your Policy

Enforce your policy consistently and uniformly. Merely walking around the workplace can be an effective mode of curbing cell phone use, but beware of overdoing it. Hovering can be perceived as micromanagement, breeding resentment amid employees and ultimately backfiring.

Yous may demand to issue daily reminders at get-go. If problems persist after a provisional flow of time and crusade workplace disruptions or a decline in productivity, it may be fourth dimension for a more serious conversation with those employees whose cell phone habits are more entrenched.

Take Disciplinary Action

When taking disciplinary activeness, follow the standard progression of issuing a verbal alert, written warning and final warning before terminating an employee. Certificate your discussions thoroughly and exist as fair as possible in order to reduce the hazard of legal repercussions. The Hartford's Small Business organisation Owner's Playbook shares some professional HR best practices you might consider if termination becomes necessary.

Next Steps: Are you interested in learning boosted ways to manage your employees more effectively but don't have fourth dimension to continue upwards with the latest research and trends in talent management? We've got you covered with the weekly Pocket-size Biz Ahead Newsletter. Sign up today and start receiving tools, insights and resource to help you run a successful business.

Source: https://sba.thehartford.com/managing-employees/employee-too-much-cell-phone-time/

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