[nobody9999]

>What is a late slip?

I imagine (I don't live in the Chicagoland area, so guessing here, perhaps someone from the 'burbs there can chime in) it's a note from the CTA saying the train was delayed so you can limit your negative exposure when you boss wants to know why you're two hours late.

Which is actually much more than NYC does. Although that has its advantages as well. The linked fortune[0] (actually an excerpt from a NYT 'Metropolitan Diary'[1] piece ca. 1980) details this:

   I for one cannot protest the recent M.T.A. fare hike and the accompanying
   promises that this would in no way improve service.  For the transit system,
   as it now operates, has hidden advantages that can't be measured in monetary 
   terms.

   Personally, I feel that it is well worth 75 cents or even $1 to have that 
   unimpeachable excuse whenever I am late to anything: "I came by subway."
   Those four words have such magic in them that if Godot should someday show up    
   and mumble them, any audience would instantly understand his long delay.

[0] https://motd.ambians.com/quotes.php/name/freebsd_fortunes/to...

[1] https://www.nytimes.com/column/metropolitan-diary

[alwa]

To be fair, NYC’s MTA writes tardy slips too: https://delayverification.mta.info/

I shudder to imagine the working relationship where that’s relevant.

But I very much appreciate the advantages you point out. I felt a little sense of loss when, on work in that city, I noticed that some degree of cellular service had reached the stations…

[nobody9999]

>To be fair, NYC’s MTA writes tardy slips too: https://delayverification.mta.info/

Wow. TIL. I'm a life-long NYer and never knew that.

Thanks!

>But I very much appreciate the advantages you point out. I felt a little sense of loss when, on work in that city, I noticed that some degree of cellular service had reached the stations…

If it makes you feel any better, such signal isn't very common, although the MTA is looking to change that[0]

[0] https://www.mta.info/press-release/mta-announces-5g-wireless...

Edit: Added quote that I replied to.

[Kon-Peki]

CTA never did that; I don’t think they could if the wanted to.

Metra did it, I’m 99.9% sure they stopped years ago. But yeah, there would be a person at the platform when the train arrived downtown with a piece of paper saying that the train was delayed. A late slip.

Nowadays, you have real-time location tracking of the train. If it’s late, you can tell your employer what train you’re on and they could verify it. At least to a better degree than with the late slips. Still not perfect. But if you’ve got an employer that would want to verify such things, you’ve got worse problems.

[nobody9999]

>CTA never did that; I don’t think they could if the wanted to.

>Metra did it, I’m 99.9% sure they stopped years ago. But yeah, there would be a person at the platform when the train arrived downtown with a piece of paper saying that the train was delayed. A late slip.

Thanks for the clarification. I wasn't 100% sure about who the relevant agency was (as I mentioned, I don't live there -- although I do have family that does).

>Nowadays, you have real-time location tracking of the train. If it’s late, you can tell your employer what train you’re on and they could verify it. At least to a better degree than with the late slips. Still not perfect. But if you’ve got an employer that would want to verify such things, you’ve got worse problems.

A fair point, but there are some circumstances where both employee and employer may need to justify/document such circumstances -- but on the whole, you're spot on.

[Ray20]

>A fair point, but there are some circumstances where both employee and employer may need to justify/document such circumstances -- but on the whole, you're spot on.

I think we should also make it common practice to share grocery lists with your employer, as well as the date and time of sexual acts. This is even more justifiable than the status of the train that takes you to work.

I mean, trains are late not often enough to make any significant difference. Whereas unhealthy diet, or say, sleepless nights of lovemaking, can dramatically affect a worker's productivity almost permanently.

[nobody9999]

>I think we should also make it common practice to share grocery lists with your employer, as well as the date and time of sexual acts. This is even more justifiable than the status of the train that takes you to work.

>I mean, trains are late not often enough to make any significant difference. Whereas unhealthy diet, or say, sleepless nights of lovemaking, can dramatically affect a worker's productivity almost permanently.

You misunderstand me completely -- is that on purpose, are you only focused on your situation and assume no other situation could possible exist?

Or are you just dumb?

Contracts that an organization may have with their customers may require that personnel be onsite at particular times, with the caveat that penalties in the contract may be lessened or eliminated if the lapse was an event outside the contractor's control.

In such situations, it can be important (assuming you want to get paid) to be able to document such events.

[seabass-labrax]

Parent's comment was the sarcastic observation that if employers ought to be able to verify workers' commutes, they could justifiably also want to monitor other aspects of workers' lives outside of work that have a significant impact on productivity.

The argument is valid whilst being entirely dystopian. There is a level of trust, or at least tolerance, between employer and employee that must be accommodated in society; otherwise there is no choice but brutally invasive surveillance of all workers.

[nobody9999]

>Parent's comment was the sarcastic observation that if employers ought to be able to verify workers' commutes, they could justifiably also want to monitor other aspects of workers' lives outside of work that have a significant impact on productivity.

Was it? Where did you get that idea?

Based on their posting history (and I did check before replying just to make sure I wasn't misunderstanding), that they were absolutely serious is most likely.

>The argument is valid whilst being entirely dystopian. There is a level of trust, or at least tolerance, between employer and employee that must be accommodated in society; otherwise there is no choice but brutally invasive surveillance of all workers.

Absolutely, and I never said anything different. In fact, the bit GP quoted and replied to was:

   >A fair point, but there are some circumstances where both employee and 
   employer may need to justify/document such circumstances -- but on the whole, 
   you're spot on.

Their response was orthogonal to my point. Which made me wonder why. And so I asked.

Keep an eye on my userid. If you don't like what I have to say, I strongly suggest you don't read my comments.

Have a great day!

Edit: Removed poorly supported assertions.

[Spare_account]

Somewhere else in the thread, it was suggested that these 'late slips' might be useful for proving to one's employer why they were late to work.

Is this the only use for them?

I am reminded, once again, how lucky I am to have been employed by people who trust me.

[tmtvl]

The only use for a late slip is to prove to someone (doesn't necessarily have to be an employer) that you were late due to no fault of your own.