Mfcttrf

I develop websites and run the online magazine for my company (just got hired three months ago), so I run not only development software and tech apps, but also Adobe software and other design apps all the time, usually multiple high-performance apps simultaneously. That means I need a very high-performance computer to work.

My company promised me a work computer, but it's been three months and they still haven't approved me for one. I get it, a PC with 32G of RAM is not cheap. But in the meantime, they're making me use my personal ASUS gaming laptop for work. I bought this baby for $1300 a couple years ago and I really need it to last me for a while.

I sit at a long desk next to several other people, and I've seen many drinks spilled and things dropped already. That, and my company has already had one case of Ransomware try to take over our system and that would've been very expensive to get rid of.

Is it reasonable to ask my employer for written confirmation that they'll pay for any damages to my personal laptop while using it for work? How should I go about asking? And what should I do if they say no?

Is it reasonable to ask my employer for written confirmation that
they'll pay for any damages to my personal laptop while using it for
work?

Yes this is a reasonable request. However, this doesn't address the real issue that your company is not providing you equipment for you to do your job. What would they do if your laptop "broke"?

How should I go about asking?

Send an email to your manager, asking them to either guarantee to replace or fix your laptop if its damaged at work.

And what should I do if they say no?

This is the tricky part. You could say if they don't agree to cover it that you will stop using it for work, but are your really prepared to make good on that threat? Are you prepared to search for another gig?

If they say no, you definitely should ask : "What is the contingency plan should my laptop break, as I cannot afford to buy another one?"

Learn a good lesson from this and don't bring in your own equipment into work in the future unless you employer guarantees to cover it while working.

Is it reasonable to ask my employer for written confirmation that they'll pay for any damages to my personal laptop while using it for work? How should I go about asking? And what should I do if they say no?

To directly answer your question no that wouldn't be unreasonable, however I think that it's burying the lede somewhat - they should be addressing the actual issue i.e. buying you a machine to work on. A half decent PC might seem expensive as a consumer because for the most part they're luxury items but for a business.. it's just not.

You aren't talking about a high-end CAD workstation or dedicated gaming rig here. At the end of the day any modern office desktop with a decent amount of RAM would be more than adequate and what's more it's a fundamental, essential resource for you to do your job. 3 months to "approve" the resource that your role fundamentally requires is, to put it mildy bollocks.

You're using your kit at the moment and that means they don't have to buy anything yet so they're freeloading as long as they can. If they're supposed to be getting you a machine I assume that they aren't running BYOD as an actual policy or anything so providing a computer for someone doing web development is just the cost of doing business.

Honestly in your place I'd be going in tomorrow without your laptop and explaining that it's developed a fault and is unavailable for work and then see how long it takes them to "approve" your work computer.

Yeah involves a bit of lying which isn't exactly the most ethical thing ever - but there's an argument that they started it.

Doing what you suggest is perhaps the more ethical approach.. and to a certain amount might force their hand, but only if it actually ends up costing them money. There's a good chance that they are going to keep spinning that roulette wheel and hoping it never lands.

You should be able to simply sit down with your manager and explain that you were happy to use your machine as a temporary measure while a proper solution was sorted but that you aren't prepared to do so indefinitely and establish a clear deadline by which they need to have a work machine sorted for you in the near future. If they are reasonable they will agree a timeframe and you can take it from there - and stick to your guns. If they aren't then you're going to have to take the call of whether this is a hill you want to die on. I wouldn't blame you if you started polishing the CV up and looking elsewhere. This is the approach I'd take personally - if they choose to be unreasonable over something like this then it's good that you can start looking for a suitable escape hatch sooner rather than later.

Your employer sell what you do for a profit and must provide you the tools to do your job.

I read in comments that company exists that allow BYOD, but my opinion is that often this happens because of cheapness and lack of basic IT safety/security awareness; I'm not talking about external consultants but employees obviously

BYOD is a huge liability for the company because:

• the software licenses owned by the company are put on an item that is not company-owned




• the access to company systems is made using an object (your personal laptop) that is not under company control and cannot be tested for compliance to the basic security measures, but must rely on you being careful, caring, etc etc




• company data is on an uncontrolled device used for personal matter; should a game played during the weekend trash your disk/memory/whatever all the company assets on that pc are lost (your item, your fault)




• same as previous bullet should the pc be stolen during a trip: your item, your fault

Also note that bullet 3 and 4 outline huge liabilities for you too...

IMO there are very few corner cases where a BYOD policy for employees makes sense and these cases must have policies and rules clearly defined in advance.

To answer your question: missing clear rules for BYOD, in my opinion the reasonable thing to do is leave your personal laptop at home and ask for a company supplied one. Put a reasonable deadline, say something 'from day X my personal pc will not be available anymore' and stick to it. Then do your work with the tools provided: if they give you a cheap tool they will also live with the consequences (delayed delivery & co).

They provide no laptop and push to use yours? If at all possible brush up your CV and move on...

More and more companies are practicing "Bring Your Own Device". If you are required to use your own device to do your job, you should ask for some assurance, in writing, that anything which happens at work to your device is covered.

The reasons for BYOD are varied -- a lot of developers prefer what they use at home to whatever their employer would purchase. If that's the case where you work, you may be stuck. But if they are just exploiting your "kindness", you need to put your foot down and ask for a work computer.

I'd start by asking the employer to buy you a device. It may not be as nice as your gaming laptop, but it would end this problem.

For various reasons, there is a rule of thumb that many companies prohibit the use of personal devices at work - even to forbidding the physical presence of the objects on the premises: laptops, memory devices, photo-audio-video recording devices etc. The main reason: protection of the intellectual property, safety etc.

Exceptions exist, of course, and the most common exception is the smartphone.

However, this makes it obvious that the company should not allow you to use your personal stuff for work. Why? Because you can claim that the work you do on your laptop belongs to you. And a court might even rule in your favor.

If you are not ready to change the company, then try to find a middle-ground. Some ideas:

• ask them to pay rent;


• ask them to reimburse the cost of the laptop in case that it breaks - even if it breaks when you are at home; the extended use ages the components faster;


• as another colleague here suggested: "break it". Make a backup at home, and then clean reinstall the OS. Claim that you lost all the work done in the past XY days - since you last committed. The more, the better. You should do this unexpectedly. If you start other discussions first, and then you "break" the laptop, they will see it as a dis-honest game from your side.

All promises MUST be recorded in a WRITTEN form, possibly a supplement to the contract - for this, your local laws and regulations apply.

If the software on the laptop is yours, you might actually be breaking the license agreement of those pieces of software, and since it is your property, it is your fault.