Engage: Almost half of care workers made to follow ridiculous rules at work

Some say rules are made to be broken and according to research from the UK’s leading independent job board, CV-Library, almost half (45.5%) of care workers have worked for a company that implemented strange or ridiculous rules. What’s more, the majority (70%) confessed that they weren’t happy about having to abide by these. 

The survey of 1,200 professionals looked into the most ridiculous rules that UK bosses were enforcing on their staff and how employees felt about these. Care workers were asked to share the craziest rules that their boss had in place, these included:

1. Getting a doctor’s note for any kind of illness – 40%
2. Pay docked for being a few minutes late – 31%
3. No food or drink at your desk – 29%
4. No pictures, plants or anything personal on your desk – 21%
5. No talking to colleagues unless in the break room – 20%
6. Not allowed to wear perfume – 19.1%
7. Time limits when using the bathroom – 10%
8. Leaving all personal belongings at the door – 9.8%
9. No smoking in your own car on the way to work – 9%
10. No drinking tea while working – 2%

Lee Biggins, founder and managing director of CV-Library commented on the findings: “Every employer knows that the workplace needs some rules and regulations. That said, you don’t want to make employees feel uncomfortable or untrusted by enforcing outrageous and unnecessary rules upon them. This could result in them leaving to find a more welcoming work culture elsewhere. So it’s important that you get the balance right.”

“Make sure you lead by example and always follow the rules yourself. Alongside this, remember to treat staff as you’d wish to be treated. This means that if there are any rules that you personally wouldn’t want to abide by, it might be time to revaluate these.”

The survey also asked employees how they felt about these rules. It was revealed that the majority (78.3%) of care workers believe that bosses don’t have the right to enforce ridiculous and strange rules on their staff.

Biggins (pictured) continues: “It’s concerning to see that employers are enforcing ridiculous rules despite many believing that they don’t have the right to do so. To avoid any conflicts you need to ensure that your company rules aren’t discriminatory or disrespectful towards employees in any way.”

“You should think about running the rules by your HR department for a second opinion – this may flag up anything you missed. Then talk them through with your employees too so they feel included in the process. After all, the workplace should be a friendly, welcoming and fair environment.”