Am I being unreasonable?

Question

I'm about to start work at a local theme park doing caricatures there and they have a no cell phone policy for their employees. I would be a contracted employee, but would still have to obied by their policy. Often times I will be alone at the stand, with no cell phone, or land line that I could freely use if anything went wrong, ie: Money, air compressor exploding, me getting hurt some how, anything could go wrong, and has in recent seasons. I can think of multiple times when a phone call was NEEDED, mostly because of money reasons. My manager says that He will be allowed to have his cell phone, and if I needed someone to call me or to call someone, I could use his, but its unreasonable to think that he would be able to be there all the time. My question, is it unreasonable to demand use of my cell phone in the park, or at the very least the installation of a land line at the stand, and if neither is possible, quit working there, or am I overreacting?

My manager is not on site at all time, last season he spent two weeks in Germany and was not available. I'm not demanding the use of my cell phone, just a phone at the stand, in the back room. The theme park is grossly unorganized and doubt i would be able to find security or someone with a phone in under 15 minutes. Any other opinions or is it still unreasonable?

Cell phones are NOT allowed inside the park, and as of now, no walkie talkies are in use.

Answer 1

If you want the gig, you need to abide by their rules. However, you could hedge your bets somewhat, by making sure the air compressor is in good shape, you have a safe and effective means of dealing with cash, and you're in good with the security people at the park.

I seriously doubt that they will place a land line there at your personal request, but your manager should be able to discuss it with park officials. Will you have some kind of point-of-sale debit or credit card machine??? If so, you'll need a land-line kind of setup for that, won't you? Maybe that will be an ace in the hole for getting a phone put in, seeing as how they'll have to run the line for the pos machine anyway??? I'd approach it from that angle.

Also, is there some kind of device handy for contacting park security??? Maybe even a walkie-talkie setup would work.

Do you have to leave the cell in your car or can you carry it but leave it turned off? If you can carry it in your pocket, you could conceivably have it there for emergency use only, in the absence of your manager. Also, would your manager consent to your keeping the cell when he isn't there? Sounds like a reasonable request to me, if it's a business phone.

The more you can keep the arrangement between you and your manager, the better things will work out. Park officials like to monkey with contracts and keep problem companies out, so the less you rock the boat, the better it will go for you.

Answer 2

I think they are correct not to allow you to have a cell phone. While you say you would be responsible, only use it for emergencies or when no one is around, there is too much opportunity for abuse. You are there on their time, if they let you have the phone, the temptation would be there for you to use it when you shouldn't.

However, not giving you an easy means to communicate with your boss is a problem. What happens if someone gets sick in your booth and you have to get medical attention? Or, if you get attacked? You should ask for either a phone (land or cell, but only for company usage) or a walkie-talkie. Too much can go wrong for you not to have easy access to help or authority.

I think you should stick to your guns. If they won't bend, work there only long enough to find a different job.

Answer 3

I think that if you want to work in a theme park then you have to abide by their rules.

If things go wrong then you can find the manager and use their phone. Your manager knows the situation and will have to bear the loss of income whilst you make best efforts to contact him. Take his number - there are lots of public phones around.

In an emergency, I am sure that there wll be numerous people and park security near by. These places are extremely well run and policed.

Yes you are being unreasonable and probably panicing more than is necessary.

Answer 4

Your employer has no obligation to provide you with a cell phone, because your job, under the proper classification, does not REQUIRE it.

You may feel differently, but as long as the policy is clear, you have no recourse. And, the type of work you are doing most certainly would not regard a cellphone as an ESEENTIAL part of conducting business.

Your final option, of course, is to reject the job and go look for another.

Just use your own phone, and accept the situation. You are definitely overreacting, and not being reasonable.

Answer 5

You're overreacting. People managed without cell phones for years...even whole lifetimes. if you got hurt, the park has emergency personnel who would respond or contact 911. If you needed a land line to make an urgent call, I'm sure that somewhere in the park they have one that you could use.

There are enough people in this world already yakking on the phone about inconsequential items for everyone else to hear. People who pay top $$ to go to a theme park don't pay it to hear employees (to them that is how you will appear) talk on their cell phones.

Answer 6

Obviously, they have the no cell phone rule for a reason. But, if you are a contracted employee, I would just demand that your contract be altered to include the availablity of a phone at all times for safety reasons. If your concerns about safety are so high as to need a phone at all times, and they don't allow it, I would certainly not consider you as overreacting to quit working there.

Answer 7

its understanable to be concerned about something happening where you would need a phone, just always carry it with you with it either on silent or off, and if the manager is nowhere to be found then use it in case of emergency, its not unreasonable for them to have a no cell phone policy either so, i would advice to follow the rules but always have a back up plan for when you might need the phone.

Answer 8

What would you do if there were no cell phones??? It really does not seem like that big of a deal if you ask me and if you can't handle it then don't work there. You are there to entertain not talk on th phone. Use your bosses phone if you have an emergency or need something.

Answer 9

Since you are a contracted employee I dont understand why you cant have your cell phone or a land line. I dont think you are being unreasonable at all.

I am a mother of 2 kids. I always have my cell phone with me in case they need me, or in case of some other emergency. Cell phones are in my opinion the greatest invention ever.

Answer 10

You are not overreacting. You should be entitled to the use of your own cellphone, and should be able to use it at your sole discretion. Otherwise, I really do think that it would constitute a gross infringement of your right to possess and communicate via a cellphone. You never know when an emergency might pop up.