Would you do this so others could get vacation...

Nurses General Nursing

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We have a large unit, over 80 nurses. Our unit want us to all pick up 8 hours a month so that the very low seniour people can get vacation. My beef is I have worked there for 18 years and why should I work extra so others can get vacation? Last year we did this and we not only worked the extra, but we were taken off of our 12's! Now, if I wanted to work 4 days a week, I would work 4 days a week. What a PITA to find a sitter! I was under the impression that you could not be prescheduled ET unless there is a staffing issue, which there isn't, only people who want more vacationt time. does this sound right to you?

If you were a higher seniour person, would you be pleased to do this or unhappy?

We have done a voluntary working of extra hours so everyone can have up to 2 weeks of vacation time over the summer. We grant vacations by seniority and if the amount of vacation time requested for a week is more than an amount we can grant and maintain adequate coverage the lowest seniority vacations are granted pending extra hours coverage.

If you have a vacation that needs to be covered you must participate and the rest are voluntary. The most we have had to work is an extra 8 hours spread out over the summer (memorial day to labor day)

We started this when our staffing was bad so that everyone had the chance to take summer vacations. In surveys of staff this was very important to them. We get 98% participation, including nurses who have been with the hospital 25 years. We all feel it is worth it to keep everyone happy and decrease turnover. Because it has worked so well our staffing is great and last year we were able to grant all vacations without any extra hours!!!

I have been there 23 years and I am happy to volunteer. It creates great unity and decreases those feelings of old timers versus newbies. :balloons: :) :)

I guess I am just too rigid, but I work my assigned hours, plus overtime almost daily because of the workload verses staff ratio, and when I take my EARNED vacation, I don't really want to have to come back expecting to have to work even more hours to 'pay' for my vacation. Hospitals have been in this for a very many years, and should have already figured out, you have to have prn staff, some way, some how! Be it part-timers, prns, in-house agency, outside agency, ... SOMETHING! I have worked extra in urgent situations, paybacks to co-workers for helping me out & vice versa, etc., but I don't want it 'built in' to my schedule. I'm with Renee. Every employee should have their earned vacation, regardless of how long they have been there. I couldn't work somewhere where this isn't so.

if you work overtime you should be paid overtime, regardless of the situation. PERIOD.

I would not work extra for someone to be off unless it was my personal choice. I did donate PTO hours to a coworker who was off a lot with seriously ill child. It was my choice, however, and did not require me to be at work.

Specializes in Critical Care.

Everyone deserves a vacation not just the senoir staff. I agree that it would be nice to have enough staff that covering vacations isn't a problem, BUT I've never worked anywhere that there is enough.

Are there alot of you upset about being switched to from 12's to 8's? If so maybe you can go to management as a group.

Noney

Specializes in Rehab, Step-down,Tele,Hospice.

Ok.. I'm new, not even graduated yet but to be honest I never expected my future employee to give me a weeks vacation, let alone 2 weeks until my first WHOLE year was up.

I am a firm believer in senority, you paid your dues,you should be rewarded, when I pay mine I expect the same. I also think this should apply to the holidays, last to be hired works them and that's that.

Yes I have worked in a hospital before and yea I know it sucks to work Thanksgiving and Christmas especially if you have kids, but like I said fair is fair, this is why all the old timer's hate new nurses. JMO

RNKITTY04, making all the newest people work holidays is unsafe. It has nothing to do with paying your dues, it has to do with patient safety. There should be a reasonable mix of experience levels on each shift. Any nurse manager who says otherwise is scary. As far as seniority being the end all and be all.... I understand why people feel that way, I just don't think it is very practical. You will lose all your newer nurses and then the experienced nurses still wind up working holidays because there is no one else left.

If the experienced nurses hate new nurses because of this, I think they're just jealous. Why shouldn't new nurses try to advocate for themselves? I don't think new nurses should get everything they ask for or have all the holidays off, but I also don't think they should have to martyr themselves to please the experienced nurses.

I would definitely pick up 8 hours a month to let others have some time off. It would be good for unit morale. :)

I would not be happy about it if management told us that we HAD to do it though.:devil: If it were voluntary, no problem.

Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.

we already do this where I work....but it's not mandated, which I think makes it easier to swallow.

EVERYONE needs time off, not just OLDTIMERS. I would leave a place if I could not get a vacation for 2 or 3 years.

I know, devil's advocate. But you have to see it from THEIR point of view. I would NOT want to have to wait forever for a break cause I am low man on the totem pole.

I DO THINK IT IS HIGHLY unfair AND wrong to mandate this, especially with NO over time. I would have a real problem with that.

I dont understand why you have to work that extra 8 hr thing in order for people to get vacation. If people are on vacation and their absence needs to be covered, thats what SUPPLEMENTAL STAFFING is for --- agency nurses, per diem nurses, or offers of VOLUNTARY OT (with pay) to the regular staff.

We get 5 weeks vacation per year - 2 of them guaranteed to be in summer and in a row if we want. In the summer, at least 2 nurses can be on vacation each week. It doesnt matter if the nurse is least senior. We set up our system so that seniority is taken into account only when more than 2 nurses have asked for the same weeks off. Sometimes it doesnt matter even then because there are times when more than 2 people can be on vacation at the same time. If staffing needs to be filled while anyone is on vacation, agency or per diem nurses are brought in and/or a voluntary ot sign up sheet is posted with the schedule. Nobody can be mandated to work extra because someone is on vacation.

We also designed our contract to read that holidays are given on an "equitable basis" - not a seniority basis - so we wont have the same most senior people getting every major holiday off every year. Everybody gets a turn. Even the new nurses.

That's similar to how we do it. You request your holiday preferences 1st to last. Hopefully you'll get your top requests, but if you were off on that holiday last year, you may not get it off this year. If you worked it last year, you will more than likely get it this year- regardless of seniority. If it comes down to both of you worked it last year, and both of you want it off this year, then it falls to seniority, unless you can both compromise in some way. We never HAVE to work extra for someone else on vacation, unless it is voluntary. We have enough prn people that is isn't necessary.

Specializes in NICU, PICU, educator.

We do have PRN's, no agency. But, our PRN get to pick and choose their time, not fill in when we need them. That is a whole other thread!

With 80 nurses working an extra 8 hours a month that is 640hr/month. That is equivalent to almost 4 fulltime nurses. That is what they really need.

I was just curious are your nurses unionized?

I work 2/5 and very rarely work extra. But I am very dependable and reliable. I have never been late in 17 years. And many years had no sick days and usually 2 sick days or less per year.

Why should you have to work 12 extra days a year in order for people to get their vacations? Also at our hospital if you work a certain percentage extra then you end up paying less on insurance premiums and get more vacation.

I hope this policy changes for you.

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