Personal Phone for Work

Baa on 23/10/2019 - 01:14

My wife has started a new job, she is in a fairly senior position in a smaller company and in her contract it mentions that the employer will reimburse her phone usage.

Now upon starting she has not been provided with a physical landline or another communication method outside of Skype for business with her long time personal number appearing in her email signature as her contact.

However my wife does not want her personal number tied to work and I am trying to find an option that does not involve me buying another phone / contract / etc (although I have told her to follow this through further with her employer).

Her current personal plan would well and truly cover any work phone expenses and I personally would be happy to use my personal phone for the sake of having a free personal phone (and not carry around two phones as I currently have to).

My wife has an iPhone Xs Max on a Telstra contract and so far the options seem to be:

esim - seems like a good idea but need to still pay for an additional plan and you have to actively switch between sims so that you cannot receive calls or texts from the other Sim when switched

Call forwarding - have another Sim set to call forward to personal number and then call back in private mode

New phone + contract or pre paid - not my preferred solution especially with a contract as if whatever reason job does not work out we are left with a phone under contract. Plus would need to be an iPhone and we have donated older iPhones to my in laws so no spares around.

Does anybody have any other options to help me avoid buying a new phone and/or contract? Ideally allowing for a fairly seamless use of two different numbers from one handset.

Before you ask Android is not an option (I have been trying for years) and not committed to Telstra if other better options.

Mobile Mobile Phone

Comments

  • p1 ama on 23/10/2019 - 01:37
    +1

    However my wife does not want her personal number tied to work and I am trying to find an option that does not involve me buying another phone / contract / etc (although I have told her to follow this through further with her employer).

    Why does your wife's work involve you (not even her) buying another phone?

    I'd leave the decision up to your wife - if she's in a fairly senior position then she can work it out with her employer.

    New phone + contract or pre paid - not my preferred solution especially with a contract as if whatever reason job does not work out we are left with a phone under contract. Plus would need to be an iPhone and we have donated older iPhones to my in laws so no spares around.

    Do you really need an iPhone just to receive work calls? Just get a $99 prepaid phone.

    Does anybody have any other options to help me avoid buying a new phone and/or contract? Ideally allowing for a fairly seamless use of two different numbers from one handset.

    Dual-sim phone?

    Before you ask Android is not an option (I have been trying for years) and not committed to Telstra if other better options.

    What does your wife think?

  • crentist on 23/10/2019 - 04:13
    +3

    seriously? either get a dualsim android or pick up literally any other phone that can make/receive calls and she can carry two phones

    talking about contracts and preferred platforms for a phone that doesnt need to be used at all is pointless

    id be lamenting that the 2g network is no longer active which rules out a whole bunch of $20 chinese phones that are smaller than a box of tictacs and probably dont need to be charged for weeks, and looking for the closest 4g alternative

  • whooah1979 on 23/10/2019 - 05:13
    -1

    This and a $2 sim.
    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/search/node/pixel%204

  • Marcsie on 23/10/2019 - 06:28
    +8

    Can’t believe that you need help for an issue like this :)

  • Hithere on 23/10/2019 - 07:33

    First world problem?

    • idonotknowwhy on 23/10/2019 - 12:54

      In a first world country? No way!

  • try2bhelpful on 23/10/2019 - 07:44

    I can understand why she doesn’t want the business using her personal number, it allows her to control when the company, clients, contact her. Especially, if she is dealing with people around the world with varying time zones.

    There are plans like this, if her data usage is low.
    https://www.amaysim.com.au/plans/mobile-plans/unlimited-xsma…

    Also, if she must have another iPhone, and refurb puts her off, then Officeworks is doing the iPhone 7 32 gig for $499 at the moment. She can, probably, claim all this back on tax.

  • brad1-8tsi on 23/10/2019 - 07:46
    +2

    reimburse her phone usage
    How do they track that and what % of the handset will they be paying for.

    If the handset gets damaged while at work then who pays?

    We had similar at my work and the upside was for the employer.

  • modsec802 on 23/10/2019 - 08:06
    +2

    esim - seems like a good idea but need to still pay for an additional plan and you have to actively switch between sims so that you cannot receive calls or texts from the other Sim when switched

    Yes you can - that’s the whole point of it

    See https://support.apple.com/en-au/HT209044

    • ESEMCE on 23/10/2019 - 08:12
      +1

      OP probably read this bit

      Your iPhone can use one cellular data network at a time.

      (emphasis added)

      as "Your iPhone can use one cellular data network at a time."

      • Baa on 23/10/2019 - 13:59

        That is certainly how I read it, apple link was much more helpful than Telstra site. Thanks!

  • Davo1111 on 23/10/2019 - 08:15
    +1

    consider adding a number through skype.

    Plus would need to be an iPhone

    lol.

  • kolorijo on 23/10/2019 - 09:16
    +1

    Get whatever phone and leave it on her desk, treat it as a fixed line work phone.

  • GG57 on 23/10/2019 - 09:24
    +1

    The obvious solution is an Android with dual sim. If OP's wife can't handle that, she needs to put up with the inconvenience of having two phones.

    I am continually amazed at how employees permit their employer to utilise the employees personal phone for work purposes. It has to be one of the biggest scams of all time (along with having to handle hazardous / flammable fuel at petrol stations).

    • Presence on 23/10/2019 - 13:15

      Handling petrol lol. You sound like a valuable employee.

    • p1 ama on 23/10/2019 - 14:59

      It has to be one of the biggest scams of all time (along with having to handle hazardous / flammable fuel at petrol stations).

      With this attitude, you wonder why some people are serially unemployed. I wouldn't hire someone who can't fill up a car either.

  • Bad Company on 23/10/2019 - 09:31
    +1

    Before you ask Android is not an option (I have been trying for years) and not committed to Telstra if other better options.

    A bunch of dual SIM Android phones out there that can receive text/calls from both sims. You've just ruled out the best option.

    The next best would be to get a dual SIM iPhone.

  • Hessian Sack on 23/10/2019 - 12:15
    +1

    Can you get Telstra to move her existing plan to the eSIM, and then use the SIM card slot for any old plan?

    • i37 on 23/10/2019 - 12:45
      +1

      That is a great recommendation. Have work pay for the iPhone Telstra plan. Use a $10/mo amaysim or belong plan in the sim tray

  • Baa on 23/10/2019 - 13:58

    Thanks all for the helpful comments.

    I misread some of esim info - the apple link itself was much more useful in terms of explaining how it works with the two sims work together. While I had had dual sim android phones myself in the past I have never used the functionality due to always being provided a work phone.

    And yes my intention is to try and have work pay for her personal plan as they are making her use her phone this would at least provide a financial benefit to her without having to purchase a new handset (which I am sure they would not pay for) or go on a contract for an additional phone and plan.

    I just received a notification they upgrading my work phone from iphone 7 to 11 and I can buy our existing handsets for a decent price so this has provided me another option.

    My wife has had the same number for 20+ years and does not want to have to potentially bin it at some point in the future.

    • p1 ama on 23/10/2019 - 15:03
      -1

      And yes my intention is to try and have work pay for her personal plan

      Why do you keep harping on about what your intention is? What right do you have to make her work pay for anything? To them, you're literally just some random guy. Is it her job or is it yours?

      Not trying to be unhelpful, but I think this is a pretty menial issue that someone who has gotten to a senior position (like your wife) can easily deal with. I just feel like you're making the entire situation more difficult putting your own personal demands on a situation that literally has nothing to do with you and imposing your preferences on somebody else.

      • Baa on 23/10/2019 - 16:45
        +1

        Or maybe my wife came to me and asked me to look it because it is menial and she doesn't want to spend time figuring it out? I will go back to her with some ideas, she will decide what she wants to do and amazingly she in turn will organise herself / with her employer once she decides the best course of action.

        Next time the wife asks some work related questions:
        "Sorry dear I am just some random guy, go figure it out yourself you are a big girl"

        Or wants to spend time at the end of the day telling me what happened in her day.
        "Why are you telling me this, this isn't my job"

        Or (when it is her turn to cook!) we are having xyz for dinner tonight:
        "How dare you decide what I am going to eat tonight"

        • try2bhelpful on 23/10/2019 - 17:12
          +2

          Congratulations, you have hit another bunch of judgemental people who provide you with no help at all; best to ignore them and sift through the other postings to try to find something useful. It is annoying but you rinse and repeat this mantra, often, on this site. Best of luck with helping your wife.

        • p1 ama on 23/10/2019 - 18:52

          Or maybe my wife came to me and asked me to look it because it is menial and she doesn't want to spend time figuring it out?

          I don't see how there is any other solution than:

          1) Go to her work and ask them to provide her with a work phone/SIM/number for business purposes.

          2) Get her own phone/SIM and tell work that it's for business purposes and get them to reimburse.

          Either she buys the phone or they buy the phone. What other solutions are you and your wife after?

          • Baa on 23/10/2019 - 19:34
            +1

            @p1 ama: As per one of my earlier comments I misunderstood how esims work, that this seems to be a suitable solution and allows her to retain one phone with two numbers.

            You can obviously leave this thread as the bigger person knowing that you helped somebody out.

            P.s. from the wife (from her box under the stairs) just so you know she gave the tick of approval - "OK perfect, let’s look at this tonight."

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