Can I be mandated in NYS under these circumstances?

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Hi, I currently work as a CNA at a nursing home in NYS. I was mandated tonight to work 11-7 after working 3-11 when I have class in the morning from 8:30am-2:30pm. I am also scheduled to work tomorrow evening from 3pm-11pm. I was told by several people including my CNA instructor, the hiring manager at my facility, and my mother who has been an RN for 30 years that it is illegal to mandate me under such circumstances.

This issue was my number one concern when entering the field, and I made sure to make it a point to ask about such circumstances when I was hired. Apparently the law implemented in NYS only applies to RNs/LPNs.

I have a test tomorrow and anyone who has been to school for nursing knows how difficult it is. I cannot be reasonably expected to be able to work 16 hours, function in school for another 8 and THEN return to work for another 8 hours. I'm not sure if the law is with me here on this one, but if that's the case I'll have to quit being a CNA. My education is my number one priority and I am currently maintaining a 3.7 GPA, which is quite hard to do.

Thanks for all the comments in advance.

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Specializes in ccu.

I hate to say this, but I don't think your schooling matters to your employer.

I've been mandated 11p-7a after working 3-11's, and then had to be back at 3p the next day. As long as I am gone for 8 hours, they can do it. They don't really care what plans I have, or whether or not I have childcare so I can sleep for the 8 hours I am gone.

I'm in Indiana, not NY, so IDK if it is the same for you.

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Specializes in Hospital Education Coordinator.

Don't know the laws in NY but this is not legal in Texas for NURSES. Don't know about CNA's, but should not be legal either. I can see working half that shift and having the next person come in early or something like that. Just not safe for patient or for worker.

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Yeah I even offered to work the first four hours. I spoke to my nursing advisor at the college, apparently this IS legal. She thinks I should have just dealt with it, and worked something out with my professor the next day. That's usually not possible, and most professors usually don't make such exceptions. . . .

The good news is though as of right now I contacted the staffing coordinator (the Director of Nursing wasn't in yet) and she told me that the supervisor never left a note about my refusal to work the shift. She's apparently they one who gets notified of such events and she told me to just not make an issue out of it, since there was no note left.

My mom, an RN who has been in the field of nursing for 20 years feels that I should hang low for a week and then confront the Director of Nursing about the "hypothetical situation", and if any sort of agreement can't be reached, she feels I should put in my two weeks notice. I think she's assuming that I should be able to secure another position where such an arrangement could be made, but I'm not so sure. My advisor, like I said before feels that I should have just stuck it out.

I'm really stuck on this one, any advice?

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Specializes in Peri-op/Sub-Acute ANP.

If I were in your shoes I would be concerned about how often this is likely to happen. That would be the deciding factor on whether to stay or not for me. If this was a "one off" that rarely happens, why make a fuss or consider resigning from what might otherwise be a perfectly good job. Sometimes stuff happens with staff and you do get dumped on. That (unfortunately) is healthcare. It doesn't matter if you are a CNA or a nurse. Try to get a feel for whether or not this situation is the norm in this job. If it is, then you might want to think about moving on.

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Good point. I've been there for four months, (this is my first position as a CNA) and this is the first time this has happened. Of course I wasn't able to be mandated in my first 90 days of employment, and I only work part time. Depending on how you look at this, it's hard to say whether the situation is likely to happen frequently.

I'm not sure if I should be looking at my situation differently then others, where I'm part time and other staff is full time. How would you guys go about accessing the situation accurately? Honestly people can tell you whatever they want. Being that I'm new to the field I feel like it might be hard for me to accurately judge whether or not this is likely to happen frequently. Any advice? Thanks.

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Specializes in Peri-op/Sub-Acute ANP.

Trust me, if the staff is being used and abused they will likely be happy to tell you ALL about it. I wouldn't go about this like you were completing a survey. Be discrete and bring it up in casual conversation during breaks. Don't be dramatic about it, just ask how often this happens because you need to plan your school work around potential work scheduling issues. I think you will get the answers you need to make the best decision for you.

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The only reason why I bring up any concern is because some of my coworkers seem to have a fondness for embellishing on the truth and making things out to be much worse then they really are. They are, quite frankly, not the nicest of people.

During my first month of employment I was scheduled to work the weekend, and that Sunday on my way to work I ended up vomiting on my way in. I felt fine, and it was mostly a spontaneous thing, I'm sure some of you have had such a thing happen to you at some point. I expressed to my supervisor my willingness to still work out the shift, and that the only issue was cleaning up the front of my scrubs, since I had no time to pull over to the side of the road. Because of this I was forced to pick up a day on the following weekend, which happened to be my girlfriends 21st birthday. During a break I expressed my frustration to my coworkers, and they pretty much all told me, "tough ****." They felt as a new worker, it was unfair for someone to come into the situation and have things changed for them, despite whatever the circumstances where. So I dealt with it and worked the following weekend and moved on with my life.

So skip a month and a half ahead and the same "experienced" coworker who pretty much told me, "tough ****" calls in on a Sunday sick. She was scheduled to start vacation the following Friday, but due to the circumstances she would be forced to work during that weekend, which she had taken off for vacation. Well because of this she proceeded to complain the whole week about the situation and how it was unfair. All of those same coworkers who originally had no sympathy for me took her side and felt her situation was unfair.

I understand that workplace politics do exist, and their is a dynamic in the workplace between people. Being that I've only been there four months, I'm not really sure where I stand with my coworkers yet. At this point I'm getting a lot of mixed messages, it's really hit and miss most days. Some days I feel like everyone on the floor like's me and I've got no problems with anyone. The next day I feel like I can't do anything right and I'm just being a burden to the floor. This is compounded by the fact that I'm a male CNA and there are a lot of no male residents that I'm not able to care for. This forces my coworkers to pick up the slack, but I'm not in a position to do anything about it. I'm put into the position a lot where I'm asked to do something that's against the rules while no one is looking, and I have to be the bad guy and say no.

So taking all of that into context I'm not sure how accurate of an impression I'm going to be getting from my coworkers. A lot of them seem to have the, "It's not my problem" attitude when someone else has an issue. . .

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Specializes in 10.

I live in NYS, and I work for NYS. I am also a per diem CNA for this reason. CNAS can get mandated if you work full or part time, this goes for the nursing home. I also run a house for 10 clients and 10 staff. I directly supervise an LPN who CANNOT be mandated, unless it is a state of emergency, and even then we have had to pull staff, from other houses to work a double so she can go home.I understand how hard it is to work and go to school at the same time. Maybe you can meet with your supervisor, and see if there can a mutual agreement for the both of you. If such agreement is ade, be sure to get it in writing. Best of luck.

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Specializes in retired LTC.

Just a question- was this mandated overtime anyway related to Hurricane Sandy??? A declared state-of-emergency trumps all.

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