OT - Broom holding people (just a fun little rant)

You guys know the type, they need to sweep a 10 x 12 floor.
They have three hours to get the job done.

So they grab the broom with every intention of getting the job done.
But everything is Uber complicated for these people, so they spend
the next couple of hours talking about what would be the best way
to utilize the broom they are holding to accomplish the job.

Even though this is just a rectangular floor with no obstacles, there
may be one method of attack that would be better than another.
If I sweep crosswise, it may leave streaks.
If I sweep lengthwise, I may stir up too much dust.

At the end of the three hour allotted time, they have decided the best
thing to do is to hold a meeting with all of the floor sweepers to
determine the best way to get the floor clean.

So a one hour meeting is scheduled for early next week, then has
to be rescheduled because the lead sweeper had a scheduling
conflict and couldn't make that meeting.

So late next week, the meeting runs over time and takes 3 hours
instead of one an at the end of that three hours, absolutely
NOTHING has been accomplished except a lot of yakking.

I can't be the only one that would rather just sweep the dam floor am I?

I've been on both ends of that broom. The one sweeping and the one having someone sweep. I heard all the things you mentioned,leaving trails, stirring up too much dust, taking too long. And the sad part is I have said them to sweepers at one time or another. I solved a couple of the problems by buying sweeping compound. But then they used too much each time. OH WELL, what are ya going to do. Just go sweep the floor lol have a good day gobble

Yeah, but, see, if you just go ahead and sweep the darned floor, someone will find fault with either your sweeping style or your efficiency, because THEY attended the meeting!
BTW,are there any instructional videos on how to sweep a floor? LOL

Just ask your wife she'll instruct you. Mine says I attack it with too much muscle. lol gobble

You just described my mother and brother-
in-law! I'm like you. Even if it wasn't
the best/neatest/most efficient, its DONE!
I laughed the whole time I read your post
just thinking of the people I know like
that.

Forget the broom, too much manual labor. Just grab
the garden hose and hose it out. All nice and clean
& you don't stir up a bunch of dust. LOL!

Sounds like a state job. And yes, the state does have training classes on how to sweep and mop floors

I compromised and bought an electric leaf blower for such things.

Here ya go! This explains how its done! Ain't the internet great. HEHE
sweep

Well my ex wasn't much using it as you described but she could ride one with the best of them(LOL)
BTW when all I have to worry about is how someone sweeps a floor I'm going to consider myself having it made.

I think the whole post is not about sweeping, it is about endless talking and not getting thing done! Three weeks ago I was to be in a training meeting at 8:00am,(a training not required by anybody and I have had that training already) and at an insurance meeting at 12:00pm.
I was also expected to deliver 22 stops and drive 200 miles doing it. Oh yea, get it all done by 5:00pm no over time!

It is said that my church was having a committee meeting concerning the color of the sanctuary-1 member was missing! As the meeting was over, they noticed said missing member had the room 3/4 done in a white!

504 you are 100% correct. Sweeping was just an example.
These are smart folks, I think they get that too.
OmahaGreg provides another great example!

That sounds like the engineers I worked with. Most of the time, the project was done by the ones that did not attend all the meetings. They were actually doing the work they were paid to do.

This was a goverment job?

I would say something about the need for an instructional video and someone that wears a towel but it would get poofed.

I worked at a place that would hold MANDITORY
meetings every day - one for day, another for
night crew. These meetings lasted 2+ hours, and
were filled with useless drivel like stock
reports, sales trends, and product reports. After
about the 5th or 6th one of these I suffered
through, I couldn't stand it anymore. The boss
asked for opinions on increasing production during
one of these sleeper meetings. I said "Stop having
stupid meetings every day, and let us get to
work..."

He WASN'T amused.....

For eight months in a row I recieved the "mechanic of the Month" Award at the dealership. (New program to provide incentive)
I went to the boss and explained it was OK but I was having trouble finding room under the couch for the wooden plaques. I said it would be better to award the most improved mechanic, and that I was not in the eligable pool. He said Thanks. Jim

And while these meetings were going on the Chief Operating Officer stopped by my office and sat down to have a chat. He mentioned the problems his managers were having getting the area cleaned effectively and couldn't understand all the problems. Did I have any ideas? I said well I know my boss and some others are working on the project and the proper way to clean the dirty floor. I know it might not be the best way to clean the floor but the electric leaf blower from storage could blow the large stuff out the door until they solved the floor cleaning issue for good. That's a great idea he says. He says he'd be glad to blow it out himself as he is opening up each morning. So I go get the blower and an extension cord and give it to him. 2 hours later my boss finds out and I'm being dragged into the personnel office and officially threatened with being fired by because I didn't get his approval to do a job for his boss. According to him my conversation with his boss was not a direct order thus I shouldn't have done anything. Gee--I didn't think I needed a direct order to be helpful--never had before. True story--just not about sweeping a floor--but not to far off either.

You didn't mention doing the required paper work/work order Chris,
but I assume you did it, otherwise they WOULD have fired you! LOL

Where does the health and safety issues fit in with all this talk about
sweeping?
Surely there is a need for breathing protection, elbow guards for
getting close to the wall etc etc etc?
Should we emply a health and safety officer for the well-being
of the sweeping crew?
Sam

I have friends on the local fire department. After hurricane Katrina they volunteered to go to New Orleans to help. They got down there and signed in with whoever was in charge (FEMA?). This particular group was going to be there for four days. They were told to report to a training session. They figured it was going to be a meeting about what they were going to be assisting with. Nope. It was a general training meeting about emergency relief that most all fire departments have taken anyway. During the lunch break one of my friends asked the instructor how long the training session would last. His reply was three days! The group from my area as well as others packed up and headed back home.

It is something that most "ex's" shop at the same place for their mode of transportation, but didn't know how to operate it for which it was intended

Definitely government or union, both have there features, the union tactic is to stretch it out
to get as much time out of it as possible and hopefully be able to get overtime out of it. The
immense details are to assure you can't be held accountable for anything if it goes wrong, or
even if it doesn't get done. Many of the problems in government, especially local governments
are caused by the taxpayers themselves as well as the people they elect to council or county
board. The two prime examples I have from my time in hell, excuse me "working for the county"
was with our motor pool, many of our taxpayers and most newly elected county supervisors want to
eliminate the county motor pool because it's "wasteful", not realizing the motor pool operated
without levy (meaning the only revenue it had was from fees they charged for the use of the
vehicles, no direct tax dollars were used) and the fees charged were less than the current IRS
mileage reimbursement rate. Taxpayers would state they wanted us to discontinue some of the
social programs, not understanding if we discontinued a program the cost the county say $150,000
a year the resulting loss of state and federal money could very well be over $250,000, we were
bribed to keep some of these programs, cutting back a senior citizen's program could effect the
amount of say highway funds we got. The example of the kind of people we elect....one of the
counties to the south of us, similar in size ran into some fiscal problems and laid off 35
highway department workers, our county board was salivating, they wanted to lay off 35 worker so
they could keep up with the neighbors. I took us almost 3 hours to get them to understand if you
have 28 employees you can't lay off 35. Over the years, and during that period of warming
temperatures that is now over, they reduced the size of the county highway department. They did
things like selling the county's asphalt plant, eliminating paving and plowing for cities and
townships and some of it was we weren't having as much snow as they usually got. Some of this
was because of union demands on wages, benefits and work rules left the county highway
department at a disadvantage when bidding city and township work. The state passed laws that
pretty much eliminated any possibility of the highway department doing any state construction
work (guess the campaign contributions by the big construction companies was money well spent).
Of course taxpayers are bitching because there were no lay-offs, the union was mad because they
were losing jobs and the Feds and the state continue to pass more mandates that the county must
fund.

Or they play 150 rounds of golf, while "thinking" about the
problem, and never get started sweeping!
Remember, if you like your broom, you can keep your broom, period!

JD john, you is gonna get in trouble, postin pitchers of half nekkid moose-limbed women!

A brilliant machinist/businessman I knew, made some glass paperweights to give out, not long before he passed away at 90+ years.
Under the glass it said "When Everything is Said and Done... Lots is Said and Little Done"

Very True...

Yep, you made him look bad(actually he made himself look bad next to you). I used to work with a guy like that. Kind of funny now that I don't have to see him anymore.

Do the sweepings contain " hazzardous"contaminents? Is there a disposal system in place?

Or you could buy one of those robot sweepers.

Reminds me of a no-account boyfriend of a tenant in a rental house we used to own.

He hadn't held a job in years. He just sponged off of a long succession of girlfriends.

He was hanging around my shop one day while I was doing body work on a pickup, getting it ready to paint. He asked me how long it would take me to finish it. I told him maybe a week or ten days.

He replied, "Gosh, I'd think it would be more like several months".

A week later, I was done with it.

Now you need a plan and a permit to deal with waste water that may contain Haz Mat stuff.

Royse,

For a bit of humor, my mother-in-law had well practiced licensure to ride that broom anyways she saw fit.

D.

I had a couple of yardmen at my lumberyard that I referred to as my "square wheel" workers. As long as you pushed and prodded them they would move. Once you stopped -they flat stopped - just like a square wheel. I caught one of them stretched out on a lift of plywood, smoking a Marlboro just taking in the bird crap artwork on the trusses above him. Asked what he was doing and the answer was "just resting". He got to pull culls from the lumber stacks and cut them into grade stakes the balance of the week.

Dennis, please don't tell Joan that they sell such a license!

TO hose out my garage? . . . Anyone that doesn't like it can come and talk to my partners, Mr. Smith & Mr. Wesson. LOL

Neighbor says problem with people today is "too much talkin' about doin', and not enough doin' about doin'.