Suggestion Helpers and the Phone.

For the life of me I just can not understand why people we hire can not understand the very simple instruction of "Do not use your Phone in working Hours" When interviewed, it is made clear that they are here for Us and not Us for them ( Yes Sir I/we Understand yet as soon as they get their feet under the table (So to speak) they neglect duties and sit and talk on the Phone.
Just what are we to do? They have a nice room plenty to eat, TV at night and use of the WiFi, the work is not that hard,
They get regular wages, paid Home leave, fares paid and sit and tell you Yes we Understand.
I sit and wonder what part of "No Phones in our Time" do they not understand Their work is Good Quality but question the Quantity at times. YES! We can send them Home but it takes so long to Find Replacements. Short of supplying Pocketless Clothes as Mr Lee & Others insist on so phones can't be carried about.Is there a solution?
Reason I am asking this is because it is Mine and Trish's (Daughter) Birthday Weekend and would like to go away as we did last year BUT We came back to big problems that I really do not want again
Mini rant over but one that seems will escalate if I/we don't nip in the Bud

 

If things don't change this is a Strategy I may have to adopt

 

Until they hand you a broken phone and when you give it back they accuse you of breaking it and insist you pay to fix it. (That was what happened to my ex gf when she used to take phones as security for loans she would make to people she knew. She stopped making those loans right after that.)

 

Keeping in mind that every solution will have its own set of problems ... Handyman sells small lockboxes. You could get a box for each helper, lock up their phones during working hours, and control the key. It would be a hassle to open the box at regular intervals to let them check for "important" messages.
Mark

 

Sorry, no suggestions, but I thought this was interesting. Story is from Singapore but specifically mentions at least one Filipina domestic helper:
More employers unhappy over maids' mobile phone usage

 

In all the Years I have Known my Wife, I have never heard her as angry as last night, A well known fact that our loved ones do not like confrontations at all, But these 2 I have here got Both Barrels.
Most of it I did not really understand but let's say, Their cards are well and truly marked,
Seems she did the old Hospital matron thing with White Gloves (So to speak) and showed them Both the Missed work (Dust etc) She took few excuses and she will not take prisoners now she has got this deeply involved ,
Problem Solved? we will see.

 

Getting people to do what you want can be a challenge.
I had a couple of guys working on my house and they were sanding some joints on the walls. I gave them a sanding block and showed them how to use it. Ten minutes later no sanding block. I told them "this is the second time I will tell you to use the sanding block, there will not be a next time" problem solved.
When they were done they looked at the wall and said "Ahh sir now we understand".
They get one instruction, one warning and that's all.

 

I use a small piece of wood as a sanding block but I really miss the rubber ones from back home. Where did you get yours?

OOPS, sorry that is off topic. Please send reply via pm or add in something about helpers and the phone when replying