January 3, 2013 - J

[6:45 ; I arrive]
[7:00 ; I begin Job 1, a v-cut test]
[7:45 ; I begin Job 2, a fabric job, 120 small pcs]
7:53 ; J arrives
[8:00 ; I begin Job 3, a v-cut job - 72 pcs]
8:00-8:20 ; gratuitous cleaning
8:30-8:47 ; phone
[8:47-8:48 ; management in area - MW]
8:53ish -9:00 ; See NOTE 1
[8:54-8:56 ; management in area - HP]
9:00 ; "starts" on first and only job - see NOTE 2
9:08-9:17 ; phone
[9:20-9:21 ; management in area - HK]
9:31- ? ; phone
9:38-9:42 ; phone
[9:46-10:06 ; break, I am not in area to observe]
? - 10:21 ; wandering
10:28-10:34 ; Note 3 @ 67%
10:44-10:50 ; phone
[10:45 ; I begin Job 4 - large fabric, 1 pc]
[11:15 ; I begin Job 5 - large fabric, 160 pcs - see NOTE 4]
11:38-11:41 ; wandering
11:41- ? ; phone
[11:44-12:08 ; lunch, I am not in the area to observe]
12:08-12:19 ; wandering
12:26- ? ; sitting
[12:27-12:42 ; bathroom, I am not in the area to observe]
? -12:52 ; sitting/phone
[12:53-12:54 ; management in area - MW]
1:00-1:10 ; sitting
1:12-1:19 ; management in area - HK, MW]
[1:23-1:24 ; management in area - MW]
1:23-2:01 ; wandering - NOTE 5
2:05-2:15 ; phone
2:22-2:24 ; phone
2:34-2:40 ; sitting
2:44-2:51 ; sitting/phone
2:51-3:52 ; wandering - NOTE 6
3:52-3:55 ; sitting
[3:56 ; I leave the building]


If the terms used seem confusing, you might read this.

NOTE 1: A bit before this, J is doing something involving an already finished job, looking it over, re-packaging it, something, I dont really know.

NOTE 2: So here's how the one job J did all day went down:
9:00 ; got table with uncut boards
9:20 ; first board on table
9:24 ; first board actually cut!
9:28 ; second board cut
9:37 ; fourth board cut
10:00 ; seven boards cut
12:08 ; 26 boards have been cut
1:30 ; 34 boards have been cut
3:00 ; 37 boards have been cut
Several things should be noted here: A) it took about 50 seconds to process a board, and no more than that to empty the table and reload, so say it should take about 2 minutes per board. S, who is no great worker himself, also worked on an identical job. He started at around 11:00 and stopped around 3:00 with 41 boards done.

NOTE 3: Sometimes, J doesnt work more, but goofs off smarter. He alternates between working and not, so that it becomes difficult to track him unless you watch him at all times. He's not goofing off non-stop, but he's not really working, either. I've struggled with how to document this, and I think I came up with a decent system: during a given time period, I look over at J at random and ask this question when I do - Is he working, yes or no? I am allowed to note this no more than once a minute, and at the end of a time period, I calculate the percentage of times I've seen him goofing off versus the whole number of observations within that time, which gives me a goof-off "rate". This eliminates (or at least lessens) the subjectivity of my estimates of the level of his malingering.
I dont actually use this much this day.

NOTE 4: This is the same job J was doing the entire day before (staying until after 8:00 pm), on the same machine, with a helper to catch the pieces. He did no more than I did, probably less, though it's hard to tell since he didnt log his work. He might have been more productive had he not been staring at his phone nearly every time looked over at him. I rather pitied his poor helper.

NOTE 5: where ever J went, he went there in his car, and returned with food, which he spent the next 15 minutes or so eating in the department.

NOTE 6: I saw J leave the building through the side door, and re-enter that way an hour later, looking rather stunned or groggy. His car didnt seem to move, so I wonder if he was outside sleeping in it?

August 22, 2012 - J and S

[7:16 ; I arrive at work] J already here and working! S here also.

7:55-8:10 ; wandering S

8:14-8:16+ ; wandering S

8:25 ; starts first job S

8:43-8:46 ; phone

8:56-9:00 ; internet S

8:59-9:01 ; wandering

9:00-9:05 ; wandering S

(9:04-9:10 ; MW)
9:08-9:15 ; wandering
9:15-9:17 ; sitting
9:20-9:46 ; sitting - NOTE 1
(9:49-9:56 ; HP in department next door)
9:57-10:03 ; sitting, phone

10:01-10:30 ; wandering S

10:03-10:24 ; wandering
(10:17-10:18 ; HK)
10:24-10:48 ; sitting, phone - NOTE 1

10:32-10:34 ; phone S

10:40-10:44 ; wandering S

11:10-11:28 ; yakking, phone - NOTE 1

11:20-11:25 ; phone S

11:28-11:35 ; wandering
11:38-11:50 ; wandering, yakking, phone grab-bag

11:53-12:20 ; wandering S

11:54-12:20 ; wandering, sitting, phone grab-bag
[12:28-12:46 ; lunch, I am not in the department to observe]

? -1:09 ; wandering (lunch) S

1:22-1:32 ; wandering S

(1:31-1:32 ; MW)
? -1:32 ; wandering (lunch)
1:36-1:50 ; sitting, phone - NOTE 1

1:45ish - end of day ; S works on job that makes it difficult to observe him

(1:45 ; HK)
(1:48-1:51 ; MW)
2:00-2:07 ; sitting
2:07- ? ; wandering
[2:11-2:18 ; bathroom, I am not in the department to observe]
2:18-2:42 ; phone - NOTE 1
2:42-2:44 ; internet
(2:44-2:47 ; HK)
2:54-3:02 ; phone
(3:02-3:17 ; HK)
3:19-3:24 ; wandering
[3:48 ; I leave work]



J "worked" on a single job all day today. He should have easily finished it by the end of the shift, but was only halfway through it when I left. By all appearances, he intended to stay for several hours more, a plan made easier by the absence of one of the second shift people. More overtime for J, doing work he should have handily finished in his regular time.

NOTE 1: J is sort of running a job, but mostly he's sitting in his chair, messing with his phone and, apparently, writing rap lyrics. The machine does run from time to time, too frequently to make a note for every stop and start, but not often enough to say that he's really doing anything. Repeatedly, he would reach out and pause the machine so as not to interrupt whatever non-work activity he was doing. Put it this way: management would not be happy.


For a better explanation of the terms used, you might read this.

May 25, 2012 - J (and S?)

Honestly, I cant make heads or tails of this set of notes. I think it may be another J and S record, but I'm not sure. I'll act as if it is, though.

[7:08 ; I arrive, observation begins]
(? -7:47 ; wandering)
(7:48-7:57 ; sitting)
(8:18-8:26 ; wandering)
8:33-8:40 ; wandering
8:59-10:25ish ; R_x, whatever that means
(8:50-8:56 ; sitting)
(9:02-9:09 ; phone)
[9:45-10:05 ; break, I am not in the department to observe]
(10:25 ; wandering)
(10:36-10:39 ; wandering)
(10:51-10:57 ; wandering)
10:52-10:53 ; phone
11:12-11:15 ; sitting with phone
11:33-11:35 ; phone
[11:46-12:46 ; lunch, I am not in the department to observe]
(? -1:00 ; wandering)
1:01-1:18 ; phone
(? -2:00 ; wandering)
2:12- ? ; wandering
(3ish - ? ; wandering)
[3:35 ; I go home, observation ends]


Dont ask me which person is in parenthesis, because I'm not sure. The bracketed entries are me.



If the terms used seem confusing, you might read this.

May 24, 2012 - J (and S)

(+7:15-7:30 ; wandering)
(7:37 ; wandering)
(7:45 ; wandering)
9:40-10:53 ; phone
(9:52-10:25 ; wandering)
9:58-10:05 ; wandering
10:06-10:08 ; phone
(10:57 ; wandering)
(11:20 ; wandering)
[11:21-12:04 ; my lunch, I am not in the department to observe]
12:17-12:28 ; phone
2:58-3:03 ; phone


S's times are in parenthesis, J's are not. Bracketed entries are me.


If the terms used seem confusing, you might read this.

an explanation of the j-lists

J is a coworker. I use the term "worker" loosely here, because he doesnt actually do a lot of work. He's capable of it, but has chosen to augment his pay through attrition of his productivity. Of course, he doesnt actually make more money this way, but I'm sure he goes home far less tired than I do. Over the months of his employment, I, and most of my co-workers, have gotten tired of watching him goof off, so I decided to document it. Not in order to hand it over to management, since that kind of thing tends to backfire, but rather just to satisfy my curiosity. And who knows, maybe if management asks nicely, I might share. A little. Maybe*.

These lists are not very detailed, and it should be understood that I myself was working while making them. All day long, I would look over at J to see what he was doing. If I looked over and he was on the phone, I'd make a note of the time, then make another when I looked over and he was no longer on the phone. I could only do this when I myself was actually in the department, so if I was gone there is no record of what he was doing. I also make no claim as to whether he was on legitimate company business or not; it is possible that his many forays away from his station were to consult someone on company-related business. Possible. Not probable, though.

Here are the terms used, and they are necessarily broad so as to facilitate brevity of the recording notes and time spent doing them (since I am, after all, at work and doing a job). Generally:

• "internet": means what it sounds like. Surfing on the workstation computer.
• "wandering": not in the department's area. Could be pursuing some answer, or on break, or he could be at lunch. Could be yakking outside while smoking. Definitely not manning his post.
• "phone": could be on his cell, texting, surfing or talking (frequently seems to be watching videos, judging by the intensity with which he stares at the thing). Could be on the work phone, legitimately or otherwise. Not manning his station, though.
• "sitting": not at his post, but still in the department, sitting in a chair. Might possibly be doing company-related paper work, but there isnt a lot of that (although strangely, for the person in the department who does the least amount of work, he does appear to spend the most amount of time doing paperwork). Often writing something, or possibly on the phone, or sometimes just staring at nothing.
• "yakking": in the department, but talking rather than working. Possibly at his post, possibly not.
• "gratuitous cleaning": cleaning the work area in unnecessary ways, apparently to avoid work. Should mention that J may be a germaphobe, and the plant VP is former electronics engineer who likes sterility and square corners. I usually only cite this if J is using a spray cleaner outside his general area or has gotten out the air hose (yes, I said air hose).
• "rapping": just what it sounds like. seriously.
• "working": occasionally,  J will buckle down and actually work. Sometimes, I am so amazed that I actually make note of this fact (this is why "working" will often be accompanied by an exclamation point, thusly: "working!").
• "MW", "HK", "HP", "RS": Bosses. Except for MW and RS on weekends, their presence is fairly rare. Note the change in J's behavior when they do show up, though. Sometimes.
• "Training": J does actually know his stuff, so occasionally he's in charge of training new people to run the machine he runs. It's not like he's all that productive, anyway, so he might as well be training. When training, J gets a break from my note-taking, because there's a lot of time spent standing around and personal productivity isnt really an issue.
• "Jr": occasional volunteer note-taker from after my shift. J tends to ride the clock, Jr sometimes makes notes.

I should point out here that while I record all these things when I see them, I only record them if the machine he is supposed to be operating is not running. If the machine is running, I dont really care what he's doing. Talking, texting, surfing, whatever. The Bosses might, but that's their problem*. Granted, his activities when the machine isnt running arent mine at that time either, but at those times he just really bugs the hell out of me, so I write it down.



* Management gets paid big bucks for two things: 1) facilitation of the production, i.e., giving workers the resources and direction they need to complete their jobs, and 2) being the cop on the beat and keeping workers in line. I'm not paid enough to do their job for them.