Do people just not think before they send e-mails?

HisGirlFriday13 · April 2014

So, I was on my honeymoon last week. I had an 'out of office' message on my e-mail that said, 'I'll be out of the office until 8.30 a.m. Monday, April 21, with no access to e-mail. If you need immediate assistance, contact [person] at [email address].'

One of the reporters I deal with sent me an e-mail April 15, asking me if I was going to issue a press release.

Then followed up, EVERY.SINGLE,DAY for the rest of the week, 'HisGirl, I know you're out of the office, but are you going to do this? Are you? ARE YOU? When? Soon? I need it by tomorrow. OK, I need it by today. OK, I needed it yesterday.'

DUDE -- if I have an 'out of office' on my e-mail that says 'I'm not checking e-mail' DON'T FREAKING SEND ME E-MAILS ASKING FOR IMMEDIATE REPLIES.

What the heck??

AprilH81 · April 2014

I honestly don't think people pay attention to out of office emails and if they do they still assume that most people remain connected 24/7. I think this is very true of if you are in a fast paced career field.

You did everything you could since you provided an alternate contact... Some people just don't get it.

climbingsingle · April 2014

It seriously amazes me sometimes how dumb people can be.

lmcooper86 · April 2014

This happens to me every time I go away. I always provide contact info for whoever is covering for me, but still have people send me multiple messages freaking the hell out because I didn't respond right away.

I actually had a client go so far as to complain to one of my co-workers that I wasn't helping him at all and he didn't understand why. I was on vacation, and clearly stated I didn't have access to my email and wouldn't respond until I got back to work. Asshat.

sarahufl · April 2014

My boss does stuff like that. I was away for my bridal shower last weekend, he knew it, I had an out of office. I already had a 2:30 meeting scheduled with him that day and I was prepping all the materials. He came in my office at 9:01am the day I got back asking me all these questions about what happened over the weekend.

It kind of pissed me off. He is ALWAYS on his email (nights, weekends, vacations, etc) and doesn't understand that the rest of us enjoy taking time off. If I need to work over the weekend or check in on vacations, I know it and I will. But this was a weekend that did NOT require me to do that.

It is important to add that I work in college admissions, I am not a brain surgeon. Nobody is going to die if I don't check my emails on vacation.

[Deleted User] · April 2014

I'm already dreading this for when I take off for wedding and honeymoon. I'll be out a full two weeks and even though there's 3 other people AND a group email address that they can email, I know I'm going to come back to at least 5 people p.o.'ed that I haven't replied. I manage the wireless lines for my company so having a sales guy without a phone is an issue, but like @sarahufl said no one will die...particularly if there's people who CAN help if you take a second to read my dang out of office.

lyndausvi · April 2014

The auto-reply that I posted that my co-worker sent out for months proves clearly people do not.

ETA - trying to work and knot at the same time

beharrington · April 2014

I had an issue come up on Friday (which was a paid vacation day). My boss sent an e-mail and then 20 minutes later called on my personal line to ask why I had not yet replied. Granted - it was a fairly important issue but not really anything that couldn't have waited 20 more minutes. I eventually explained that I had been in the bathroom (truth) and would have checked my work phone when I was done.

I was so frustrated. I then had to stop my shower mid-shampoo to talk to a guy in India and apologize for taking 30 minutes to reply to him (regarding the e-mail my boss had called about earlier).

I HATE having a work cell phone.

Emmy1493 · April 2014

Gah, that dude is just.....dumb. Then again, if he said he read that you will not have access to emails, you would think he would get it.

larrygaga · April 2014

People are dumb. Take comfort in the fact that you got to stress a dumbass out.

HisGirlFriday13 · April 2014

scribe95 said:

I am a reporter and my experience is that even when people are out they often still answer their email. Also, I think people only get the out of office memo once. Subsequent emails don't get that message.

I used to be a reporter, AND I used to work with this guy, which is why my tolerance is pretty low.

I mean, hell, saying, 'I know you're out of the office, but...'. Yeah, no. Also, if it says 'no access to e-mail,' you should assume they mean that.

mysticl · April 2014

HisGirlFriday13 said:

scribe95 said:

I am a reporter and my experience is that even when people are out they often still answer their email. Also, I think people only get the out of office memo once. Subsequent emails don't get that message.

I used to be a reporter, AND I used to work with this guy, which is why my tolerance is pretty low.

I mean, hell, saying, 'I know you're out of the office, but...'. Yeah, no. Also, if it says 'no access to e-mail,' you should assume they mean that.

He probably can't wrap his head around the idea that you wouldn't have access to e-mail or that you said that meaning you wouldn't have constant access like you do sitting at your desk. Didn't you have your laptop, smartphone, and tablet with you so you could stay plugged in 24/7?

DH and I just booked a hotel for a vacation. When reading the reviews on the place the biggest complaint was that the wifi sucks. There were people saying that was a deal breaker and no matter how nice the place was they wouldn't be back unless they upgraded the system. I get if you are there for business it could be an issue but this is a resort in Orlando that doesn't have conference facilities. I'm looking forward to being somewhat unplugged and focusing on taking LO to see the mouse for the first time and getting his first haircut in the Magic Kingdom.

lyndausvi · April 2014

It was so awesome traveling overseas for our honeymoon. The cost of using the phone/data was so much we had 2+ weeks of no food emergencies for DH to deal with. Seriously, you would think DH was saving lives with all the after-hour calls he gets. He's chef for goodness sake!

FutureMrsN3312 · April 2014

I have to say that my new office is good about that kind of stuff. FI's on the other hand is not. He's an IT guy. But he's not the only one in the company.

Last year I was being prepped for gallbladder surgery. This guy kept emailing him...and emailing him...and then calling...then followed up with another email. FI politely told him numerous times he was out of the office. I finally said tell him you're with your fiance who is undergoing surgery and he needs to contact someone else and CC your boss and his. That was finally the last time we heard from him.

Following the gallbladder surgery my boss was constantly calling, emailing, and texting me to see when I was coming back. I warned him I could be out a few days or up to 3 weeks depending on how it went. I was polite and professional the first few days. By day 4 I finally said "I will be back when I can go to the bathroom without any assistance" that shut him up until I got back.

mrscaty · April 2014

At my last job a coworker went out on maternity leave. My boss (a woman with 2 kids herself) emailed my coworker every. single. day. asking when she was coming back. Seriously?!?!?! I think that is SO disrespectful.

lc07 · April 2014

I am convinced that people like him think you are still checking email but screening them and only responding to urgent ones while you're gone and that you'll get back to everything else when you're back. That's really annoying that he was harassing you like that.

HisGirlFriday13 · April 2014

lc07 said:
I am convinced that people like him think you are still checking email but screening them and only responding to urgent ones while you're gone and that you'll get back to everything else when you're back. That's really annoying that he was harassing you like that.

Joke's on him. I both wasn't reading my emails (hello, honeymoon!!) and he sufficiently annoyed me that I decided to delay issuing the press release until after his deadline.

Since the press release is something my company provides AS A COURTESY to the local news media, it gets out out when I have time. If you annoy me, I will find other things to do than send out this courtesy press release.

lc07 · April 2014

HisGirlFriday13 said:

I am convinced that people like him think you are still checking email but screening them and only responding to urgent ones while you're gone and that you'll get back to everything else when you're back. That's really annoying that he was harassing you like that.
Joke's on him. I both wasn't reading my emails (hello, honeymoon!!) and he sufficiently annoyed me that I decided to delay issuing the press release until after his deadline. Since the press release is something my company provides AS A COURTESY to the local news media, it gets out out when I have time. If you annoy me, I will find other things to do than send out this courtesy press release.

I am one of those who checks/screens while gone. I own two companies and I have a really hard time disconnecting. However, I NEVER expect anyone else to actually be checking email when they say they aren't. Giant eye-roll to this guy.

Anyway, can we talk about your honeymoon? (The PG parts that is.) Where did you go? I hope you had a fabulous time!

HisGirlFriday13 · April 2014

lc07 said:

HisGirlFriday13 said:

I am convinced that people like him think you are still checking email but screening them and only responding to urgent ones while you're gone and that you'll get back to everything else when you're back. That's really annoying that he was harassing you like that.
Joke's on him. I both wasn't reading my emails (hello, honeymoon!!) and he sufficiently annoyed me that I decided to delay issuing the press release until after his deadline. Since the press release is something my company provides AS A COURTESY to the local news media, it gets out out when I have time. If you annoy me, I will find other things to do than send out this courtesy press release.

I am one of those who checks/screens while gone. I own two companies and I have a really hard time disconnecting. However, I NEVER expect anyone else to actually be checking email when they say they aren't. Giant eye-roll to this guy.

Anyway, can we talk about your honeymoon? (The PG parts that is.) Where did you go? I hope you had a fabulous time!

Absolutely!! We went to Charleston (neither of us had ever been), Jekyll Island (DH had been but I had not), and Savannah (we both have previously been).

It was awesome! DH doesn't like flying, so we drove, which was actually fun, because we could stop along the way at things that we saw. Driving from Jekyll to Savannah, we saw signs for 'Fort King George Historical Site,' which neither of us had ever heard of, so we stopped and did the little tour -- it was really fascinating! The South so frequently focuses on its Civil War heritage that its equally amazing Colonial Era heritage is often overlooked.

In Charleston, we saw the Battery (which I have always wanted to see), and mostly walked around. On our way from Charleston to Jekyll, we went to Magnolia Plantation, which I've wanted to see for ages. It was really, really fabulous. Even though it was overcast and kind of rainy, it was still just absolutely gorgeous.

On Jekyll, we just walked along the beach and around the Island, mostly. One day it rained, so we went to the sea turtle rescue facility that's there, and that was pretty great (aside from the fifty-eleven bazillion small children, whose parents had all had the same idea that we had had; namely, this is something to do indoors as it's pouring down rain outside.)

Savannah was by far my favourite. We did house tours (meh; we had one terrible guide at a so-so interesting house; a great guide at a boring house; and a terrible guide at the most interesting house of all), walked around, went to a bookshop we've been to before, ate a TON of food, and enjoyed Savannah's open-container law that allows you to walk around River Street with a cocktail in your hand.

So, overall, pretty great!

lc07 · April 2014

Yay! It sounds really fun! I live on the west coast now so I don't get out that way very much. I have been to Savannah as a teenager and LOVED it. I absolutely want to go back again. I really enjoy touring historical homes. That is up my alley.

Glad you had such a great time.

lkristenj · April 2014

That's annoying.

My boss is a workaholic. He frequently goes on tirades about how we should all check our email more often when we're out of the office and that if we don't have that capability set up on our phones to sync with our outlook, then we should.

I don't have a data plan. I don't plan on paying for a data plan. The ONLY way I'm checking email via my phone is if he gives me a company phone and pays for it. He's too cheap to do that, so it's no email for me! If something is really that urgent, he can call my cell phone number on the company's internal registry.

I work in an entry-level type of position. I hold hours from 8:30 to 5:30 ish. I do not work weekends. I do not stay overly late. (Except under extreme deadline pressure/circumstances, which is a rarity).

Do people just not think before they send e-mails?

Re: Do people just not think before they send e-mails?

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