[sbyers77]

I've tried doing searches for this subject and have come up with nothing. I am currently a college student serving a six month internship with UPS. Several days during the week I am in an office environment doing boring computer work most of the day (reconciling and auditing time studies). To keep my sanity during these long office days I recently bought a Creative Vision:M to listen to tunes through the always excellent Koss KSC-75. I listen at a low enough volume so that anyone can get my attention speaking at normal level and so far no one has said anything about me wearing cans at work. I have seen coworkers with small radios or CD players but no one else wearing headphones.

I am wondering if there are companies with anti-headphone policies as I can imagine most people would consider it rude to be separating yourself from the world. So tell me about your experiences with wearing headphones at work and the etiquette you use to keep your privileges, specifically

1) Size and/or Name of Company you work for
2) Nature of work
3) The setup you listen to (Open, closed, IEM)
4) Any agreements or special requests you had to make

 

[euclid]

i work in a small office/lab with about 5 people spread over 3 rooms. we manufacture dental crown and bridge. i set up a portable rig about 6 months ago to use while at work, ipod with small amp and IEMS so no sound leakage.

while i didnt have any complaints from other people about being inattentive or unproductive or anything, i found myself to be very anti-social. small-talk died and it started to become rude.

so i sold the setup about 2 months ago and its been better, i dont miss the music and in-fact it makes listening at home much more pleasurable/relaxing.

i recommend that unlesss you are literally in a cubicle, with little to no contact with anyone, dont use headphones at work. another guy at the lab always uses his IEMs, he is a ******** and doesnt get along with anyone. sort of unrelated but maybe not.

 

[StevieDvd]

A few here use headphones of varying varieties from basic cheapie earbuds to basic Sony cans.

Yes it does insulate people from socialising with workmates and depending on the person that can be a good thing.

On the down side when I put my IEMs in the isolation was too much and I get a gazillion questions aimed at me a day so it's not acceptable for me to listen to music.

However, the health & safety implications need to be considered - can you hear fire alarms etc.

If you are using IEMS you may get complaints but can't hear them

 

[Sparky191]

I usually ask a manager if its ok. But I make a point of keeping the vol low, no leakage etc, and using buds so I can monitor the enviroment. Depends entirely on the enviroment. In our office its generally quiet, but friendly so quiet chats are frequent.

 

[japa]

I use HD-650 at office. They hardly isolate any sound, and I use low level, so I can have normal conversation with my headphones and music on. Though normally I remove them is the conversation is longer than couple of centences.

 

[lmilhan]

I am a computer programmer. The company I work for is a contractor for the Government (FAA).

There is no policy against the use of headphones that I am aware of.

My portable rig consists of BeyerDynamic DT250-80s which are closed (I really need closed cans at work, the computers are so damn loud). I use an iPOD 60g, and a Xin Supermini III amp.

Although my headphones are closed, I listen at a low volume, so I can hear if my phone rings (plus my phone has a light that flashes when it rings, so if I am rocking out I still don't miss a call). My office is situated such that I can see when someone is at the door. When someone approaches my office, I instantly take the headphones off. If it is a short question or discussion, I leave the iPOD playing and the Amp on. If it is a long question or discussion, I turn the iPOD and amp off.

It seems that as long as I get my work done on time, the Boss could care less that I use Headphones. Thank God for that, because I think I would go crazy if I couldn't listen to my headphones at work.

EDIT: Forgot to mention, I would prefer IEMs at work, but taking them out and putting them back in every time someone comes to talk to me was a nightmare. That Shure PTH module does look appealing, hmmmm.....

*wallet runs for its life*

 

[dan1son]

I work in a development environment as a Software Engineer. We have a team of about 10 people, but also have a few hardware engineers and about 8 testers within our area.

Most people use headphones during times when we're working independently in our cubes. Most people use cheaper Sony, Aiwa, or random other phones found at Best Buy. But there are actually a number of us that use some decent headphones. I tend to use my MS-1s a lot at work, also I'll throw in my er-6s when I don't want to be bothered. Another guy has a pair of HD595s and UE super.fi 5 phones (I got him into high end headphones). Another guy just came in with some new PX-200s this morning.

I tend to listen at a very low volume, and will really only turn it up louder if I'm really diggin the music, and if everyone right around me has their own phones on.

As long as you're not bothering anybody and as long as people can still talk to you if they need to, I don't see a problem with wearing headphones at all. It helps keep sanity.

 

[damballah]

I work at an organization with an anti-headphone policy. We're about 115 people. Fortunately, they created a loop-hole in this policy for me. I use a USB DAC plugged into my PC, with a pair of iM716's which I can get music as well as my phone calls through. I'm in charge of all the IT security, so it was decided that if I wanted to listen to some headphones it wasn't a big deal, as the policy was designed for people who were in "customer service" type positions. I'd say I probably only have the headphones in about 6- 10 hours per workweek so it really hasn't proven to be that big of a deal.

FWIW - I did two years of internships during college, and wore headphones the entire time during both of them

 

[SprySpectre]

Summer internship at American Family Insurance in the I/S division, and I wear headphones about 75% of the time. I generally bring my ipod for portability and use my DT880's (open) at a low volume so I can hear co-workers as well as the phone. However, I also don't have much other human contact unless I need to ask questions of my manager on what I'm doing, so I rarely have to take them off. Listening to some Floyd right now as a matter of fact...

 

[spinali]

This is a very interesting topic, and equally relevant to a "Miss Manners" approach. There's considerably less concensus about headphones than, say, cell phone use when it first surfaced. (I can recall people picking up in movie theaters!)

However, you might think it rude when:

1. You're talking to someone, and they don't bother to take off their headphones. Even with the great E500 condenser mike, there's the appearance that you can't be bothered if you talk with your device in.

2. The noise level is so loud to disturb people around you

3. At work, when you're likely to have interactions with fellow employees. As with #1, it implies your music is more important than the possible interactions with anyone around you.

On the other hand, if it's part of the corporate culture, why not?

 

[StevieDvd]

and

4. When you sing along with the music - very badly and out of key

 

[sbyers77]

Thanks for the info guys. I am not worried about being fired for listening to music, in fact my supervisor has been asking a lot questions about the Zen Vision:M as well as the Best Skins Ever (he seems very interested in getting one for his wife). Mostly I am just curious how headphone use is viewed in the corporate world particularly at older more traditional companies. I am sure there are a lot of fresh college graduates now that are used to listening to an iPod all day it may come to a shock to them if they can no longer use it.

We work in a small office with about 6 computers in separated desk space (large desk against the wall separated by panels between each computer like a library). There are long periods during the day were we are all busy doing computer work and conversation is minimal, but when conversation does start or someone has a question I always take my phones off out of courtesy even if I can hear them just fine. Any other thoughts?

 

[Asr]

I work at a software company. I'd imagine any software company has a general quiet background due to the nature of the business.

Almost everyone on my team has headphones.

I'm the only one with a good one though, and listening from a PCDP (everyone else uses their computer).

 

[elrod-tom]

I work in software development as an analyst. Where I work, pretty much everyone on our development team listens to music with headphones...though few folks have a dedicated headphone rig like me.

I think you need to check with your supervisor (or at least someone who has been there for a while) to see how they feel about it. You might find that, even if your firm has no firm rules about no headphones, you might be unfairly viewed as being less serious about your work because of it. It's always best to find out how the boss feels about stuff like this before it can potentially become an issue.

 

[lmilhan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sbyers77 but when conversation does start or someone has a question I always take my phones off out of courtesy even if I can hear them just fine. Any other thoughts?

And IMHO that is one of the most important things you need to do given that situation. As long as it isn't against company policy to listen to headphones at work, I would say you are on the right track by being polite enough to remove them completely when someone is talking to you - IMO it would be incredibly rude not to. For some strange reason I do the same thing with my Sunglasses - I remove them when talking with someone, I feel it is incredibly rude to keep sunglasses on (especially those that hide your eyes) while trying to converse with someone.

Of corse it is all relative - I have a neighbor who likes to make small talk with me when I am trying to do yardwork (and oh my, how I despise small talk). So now when I do yardwork, I wear both my headphones AND my sunglasses in hopes that he will get the hint that I don't want to be bothered. This works for me 90% of the time!

When I have my phones on and my sunglasses on, I am in my own world, and I do not want to be bothered under any circumstances (well maybe for emergencies)!