Always on call

DEFINING WORK: The good news is that computers, e-mail, and smart phones allow people to work almost everywhere, at any time. The bad news is the same.

Being able to work at home, on the bus, or even on the beach has its advantages. But the disadvantage is that, with all these possibilities for staying in contact, many workers find it hard to get away from their jobs.

For some employees, it is simply a question of work-life balance. Hourly workers, however, see things differently, and some of them are now asking the courts to settle the issue. In July, three employees of T-Mobile USA Inc.sued the company because they said they were required to answer work messages after work without pay. The employees had been issued with company-owned smart phones.

In another case, a former maintenance worker with the real estate company CB Richard Ellis Group Inc. is trying to get back wages after having received and answered messages after regular working hours. Again, the employee was using company-issued technology.

As a result of the recession, companies are trying to get the work done with fewer people.

“This is about ‘What is employment?’” employment lawyer Dan McCoy told The Wall Street Journal. According to Greg Rasin of Proskauer Rose LLP in New York, such cases are likely to become more frequent as the recession causes companies to attempt to get the same amount of work done by fewer people.

The fact that more and more workers have access to new technology is another factor. “It used to be only the partner in the law firm or the executives at the companies that had access,” says Brent Pelton of Pelton & Associates PC, the law firm representing the T-Mobile workers.

Dan McCoy believes that managers need to be more aware of the potential problems and that they should control the use of smart phones outside the office. Employees should only be contacted when absolutely necessary, and they should be paid in these cases, McCoy says. “There is a practical approach to this,” he comments.