Is it possible to get the holidays off?

llg, PhD, RN · Dec 4, 2015

At my hospital, the staff nurses work "every other" holiday. So half the staff works each holiday -- and they know ahead of time which holidays will be theirs to work each year. If there are more people scheduled to work than are needed, people are given the choice whether to work it or stay home based on seniority.

Editorial Team / Admin · Dec 4, 2015

Working on a holiday? What's that mean?

Seriously, though, I love working in a highly specialized surgical area. Weekends and holidays are never scheduled for me to work, although I do have to take call for the full 24 hour period. Or as is the case for me this New Years, taking call from 3pm New Years Eve through 7am Jan 4 since we're considering it part of the weekend. That's better than the staff of the main OR, who are scheduled to physically work weekends and holidays.

Does it mean I've never set foot in my workplace on a holiday? No, but if I do get called, it means that someone truly cannot wait until the next normal workday because the surgeons hate working those weekends and holidays just as much as the rest of us.

SarahJ08 · Dec 4, 2015

I'm a travel nurse. My contact end December 16th and I start a new one January 4th. I'm excited that I'll actually have a Christmas break this year!

smf0903 · Dec 4, 2015

We have a 3 year rotating schedule, which is super nice because no one gets stuck working all or most of the holidays. The schedule is very fair and schedules the day before, the holiday, and the day after. The schedule is made for New Year's, July 4, Memorial Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. I love our holiday scheduling!

NOADLS · Dec 4, 2015

I'd much rather work the holidays and get the extra money. I originally started with the 25th off, but easily got it in a trade. And I am already working on New Year, so I am rolling in the money!

springchick1, ADN, RN · Dec 4, 2015

What is your secret for getting the holidays off?

Work in the OR!

allnurses Guide · Dec 4, 2015

I'm hospice. We just take turns. There are only 3 nurses so we talk together and make a plan. I worked Thanksgiving and get Christmas off. I always offer to work NYE and NY's Day. I'm not a big fan of celebrating that.

LDAthleteNurse, BSN, RN · Dec 4, 2015

I'm a new grad. I have no children. No husband or boyfriend. Hand me the holidays you don't want to work, I'll gladly take them!

emmy27 · Dec 4, 2015

PRN status is how I get holidays off.

I still work a fair number of holidays, since we don't have kids and my husband often has to work holidays- I don't mind picking up to help cover full-time staff who want off for those. But Christmas is one of the few times a year I get to see my family, and dammit, I'm going out of town.

Everywhere I've worked full time, I've had to work either Christmas Eve or Christmas EVERY year, which isn't so bad for locals, but it's six of one, half dozen of the other when you're from out of town. One year I even offered to work Christmas day since I had to stay in town to work Christmas Eve, and nobody even took me up on it. So I worked night shift Christmas eve and then spent Christmas at home alone, not even working. That really sucked.

poppycat, ADN, BSN · Dec 5, 2015

When I worked in hospitals I always volunteered to work Christmas Eve & Christmas Day so I could have New Year's Eve & day off. My birthday is January 2nd & a lot of the places I worked used to give us our birthdays off so that gave me 3 days in a row off. Working holidays never bothered me because my family would just celebrate on a different day.

I work private duty home care now so it's my choice whether I want to work holidays. I used to work all the holidays except Christmas Eve & day but since my agency took away our night, weekend, & holiday differentials, I refuse to work any holidays.

Anna Flaxis, BSN, RN · Dec 5, 2015

Per Diem! :cool:

FurBabyMom, MSN, RN · Dec 5, 2015

I work in the OR. We're either scheduled to work 12 hours on a holiday or to take 24 hour call on a holiday. We aren't scheduled to work weekends - we have weekend folks who are scheduled. We do take call either evenings, nights or weekends - in case more staff are needed than what is scheduled.