How many hours do Forum Moderators spend moderating?

Amethyst

Amethyst

Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Joined
Dec 21, 2008
Messages
12,668
Just wondering how much w*rk it is to be a moderator for the FIRE Forums! It seems like the moderators must be a very dedicated crew.

It looks as if at least one "mod," usually several, responds to every thread I've read, and I've read a lot of 'em. Then, there's all the hidden work the mods do, deleting naughty posts and so on.

So...how many hours a week does it take, anyway? Inquiring minds, and all that.

Amethyst
 
Thanks for bringing this up...I've wondered about it as well.............
 
Their dedicated for a reason. Full health ins benefits, access to the country club of their choice, bonus senior citizen discounts, and they go on an on.........:whistle:
 
But if you multiply the (hours worked) X (hourly rate) to give earnings, the result does not require a calculator, for all but the most numerically challenged. THANKS!
 
I'm only in it for the groupies.
 
Awww...you all sound just like a bunch of superheroes..."Never mind, ma'am, don't even ask, nothing to it, we save the world because it's the Right Thing To Do!" :angel:

OK, so I shall be neither impressed nor grateful, and shall take your efforts entirely for granted. :whistle:
 
kumquat said:
But if you multiply the (hours worked) X (hourly rate) to give earnings, the result does not require a calculator, for all but the most numerically challenged. THANKS!
Click to expand...
Actually, they tripled my pay yesterday. And it didn't cost them a cent.

And you're welcome. :)
 
I suppose Amethyst was expecting a serious answer....

The time spent actually moderating isn't really significant and is spread around among many willing [-]masochists[/-] volunteers. I'm sure it varies considerably by individual moderator as some of us still w*rk while others are retired and can spend more time on the forum.

I've never attempted to measure it but I'd guesstimate I spend an average of 4-6 hours per week doing real mod work. That can vary significantly depending upon the movement of the stock market (declining markets make people grouchy and less tolerant of those who gloat), the election cycle and the phase of the moon. Some weeks the spammers go on vacation, the trolls nap and everyone behaves themselves while other weeks the inmates attempt a coup.
 
REWahoo said:
The time spent actually moderating isn't really significant and is spread around among many willing [-]masochists[/-] volunteers. I'm sure it varies considerably by individual moderator as some of us still w*rk while others are retired and can spend more time on the forum.
Click to expand...
In reality, I almost never log on strictly to perform a moderating duty (unless I get notification of something that needs some moderator discussion). I just participate like I always do, but now with the added vigilance and occasional responsibility of dealing with spam and flames and other crud. It usually takes me an extra few minutes here and there, and there is more of a responsibility to follow some threads which might not otherwise interest me, but for the most part it just adds a small amount of overhead to the time I'd spend here anyway.
 
I spent more than 6 hours a week, but it was highly fragmented -- a few minutes here, a few there, then all of a sudden a major issue and 45 minutes were spent. Some of this was during the soapbox / elections era. Often most or all of the mods would address a single issue to allow discussion. And on top of that the administrators spend some additional time on various issue which are not part of the moderator duties.

I enjoyed it but it was time-consuming. Almost every login would involve some moderator issues, some more than others. But there were fewer of us then than there are now.

Overall, it was enjoyable time well spent and amounted to perhaps 8 hours a week for me, on average.
 
REWahoo said:
Let me check my time cards and I'll get back to you...
Click to expand...

Do I need to send in my TPS forms to receive my benefits?

It's a labor of love, and doesn't really take much extra time.
(especially for us already retired folks)
 
I think that Rich has it about right for the average time it takes, keeping in mind the ebb and flow of things. The first thing I do when I check the forum is to see whats up on moderator tasks and there always is some issue we are addressing. In some ways it is more difficult than it was several years ago because more people are on the forum and you can't know everyone and what they are like.

And of course, we have to discuss what avatars we plan to wear this week. ;)
 
I think we each spend as much time as we can, but no more than that. No sign-in sheets in the mod sections. :)

Most of us were fairly active members before becoming mods. We still participate in the ER Forum as members, and reading most threads is not really what I would consider work. :rolleyes:

I suppose that most of our mod work is "behind the scenes", where we discuss and arrive at a consensus on the issues that arise and may require our attention.
 
Khan and I, besides the TPS reports the admins require, also had to go through training as two of the newer moderators. Here's a video of yesterday's session (Khan is the one with the curly hair; Martha is the dark-haired supervisor):

watch
 
Good grief, I just came home from the store, made a cup of tea, logged in, and now I have nose-spit tea all over my monitor.

Anyway, I guess the serious answer is "4-8 hours a week," but the real answer is "we don't notice how much time it takes, because we're on the ER Forum so much anyway..."

If only HOA board members had the same sense of humor...

Amethyst
 
Well done moderators. For all the hard work, fair play, dedication and good will, I propose: from here on you can name your salary.

When I was usefully employed, used to call my salary: Josephine. As in Josephine Baker , the dancer.;)
 
I bill for my time that I spend reading the forums. After all, looking through all the wise, witty and intelligent posts for spam is part of the job.
 
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