I know someone who asked to go from salaried to hourly for this reason - he didn't want to sit there and ride the clock if he wasn't actually able to be product

I know someone who asked to go from salaried to hourly for this reason - he didn't want to sit there and ride the clock if he wasn't actually able to be productive during that time. The (engineering) company operated based on billable hours, so they loved it, initially. Eventually, though, you stop fitting in to the organization when you're a part-timer.