Confront or do a slow burn!

[rich5clark]

Asking for advice. I am an RN and work in a local hospital. The other day I was talking to our head nurse on the phone. A co-worker was nearby and asked if it was the head nurse and then asked for the phone after I was done. I handed it to her but stayed in my chair to finish my charting. I overheard the whole conversation. The head nurse asked a few mundane things and then asked if anyone had lay down for their break. My coworker responded yes and then added but not who you think. The head nurse asked who and my coworker responded that she was working the floor with A and that I was in the nursery with D. She emphasized the D. As you can guess, D had in fact laid down for her break.

Now, the co-worker is a staff RN and is even a union rep for our hospital. I am not a person who is comfortable with confrontation but I wished I had said something immediately. I work with this nurse quite often. I am upset because:

I wish I had said something immediately

The head nurse actually asked a staff nurse to supply information in a sneaky way

The staff nurse supplied the information

This came from a union rep

I think that I should tell the staff nurse that I overheard every word and how sad and disappointed I am. I am quite used to this staff nurse being bossy and acting superior. I just don't know if I can comfortably work with her knowing she is playing both sides of the fence, pretending she is a union rep but actually being a tell all to management. I want her to know that all of the rumors circulating about her being our embedded spy suddenly became true to me after I heard her!

[Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN]

I don't see how it's "playing both sides". If my manager asked me if I saw someone napping I would give an honest answer. Was your coworker supposed to lie to cover for someone? This is why I try to not get involved with these type of things, but when asked I will be 100% truthful.

IN a union environment...the union rep should NOT be tattling to the nurse manager.

he other day I was talking to our head nurse on the phone. A co-worker was nearby and asked if it was the head nurse and then asked for the phone after I was done.

Clearly the rep was asked to "keep an eye on things" by the manager. So IF disciplinary action is taken...who is the employee going to go to? The rep that was her watching and reporting to the manger?

My other question why is it the nurse managers concern if someone closed their eyes on their break unless they are sleeping through the break. It is the employees time to rest. Something the Union would protect.

OP I do not know what your contract says or who your main people are....I would talk to one of the higher union reps about your concern DO NOT engage your co-worker and watch your back.

[macawake, MSN]

Asking for advice. I am an RN and work in a local hospital. The other day I was talking to our head nurse on the phone. A co-worker was nearby and asked if it was the head nurse and then asked for the phone after I was done. I handed it to her but stayed in my chair to finish my charting. I overheard the whole conversation. The head nurse asked a few mundane things and then asked if anyone had lay down for their break. My coworker responded yes and then added but not who you think. The head nurse asked who and my coworker responded that she was working the floor with A and that I was in the nursery with D. She emphasized the D. As you can guess, D had in fact laid down for her break.

Now, the co-worker is a staff RN and is even a union rep for our hospital. I am not a person who is comfortable with confrontation but I wished I had said something immediately. I work with this nurse quite often. I am upset because:

I wish I had said something immediately

The head nurse actually asked a staff nurse to supply information in a sneaky way

The staff nurse supplied the information

This came from a union rep

I think that I should tell the staff nurse that I overheard every word and how sad and disappointed I am. I am quite used to this staff nurse being bossy and acting superior. I just don't know if I can comfortably work with her knowing she is playing both sides of the fence, pretending she is a union rep but actually being a tell all to management. I want her to know that all of the rumors circulating about her being our embedded spy suddenly became true to me after I heard her!

Well, this was hardly the first time the head nurse and the union representative were having a discussion on the specific subject. Sounds like the union rep has been asked to keep an eye on some nurse in particular. On this occasion it wasn’t the person that the head nurse thinks has a habit of laying down during breaks who did it. So, who is their "target"?

Coming from a country with a very strong union tradition, this behavior wouldn’t be tolerated from a union representative. Had I overheard a conversation like that I would have confronted the union rep on the spot. That’s probably poor advice to you though considering the very different climate and balance of power between employers and employees that you have in the US. I think it’s probably better to keep your head down.

I’d make a mental note of not trusting this co-worker in the future though, at least not in an employee representative capacity.

If an employer has an employee that is problematic for them it’s up to management to gather the pertinent information needed to take action against that employee.

Union representatives shouldn’t in my opinion be part of the information gathering network, that undermines the role of the union and erodes the confidence its’ members have for them.

The head nurse shouldn’t even be asking a union representative to keep an eye on the behavior of the employees in the first place. The head nurse needs to find a more honest and professional way to address her concerns, whatever they may be. What kind of professional atmosphere does she attempt to foster when she encourages people keeping eyes on each other and semi-secretly (semi since the union rep wasn’t very discreet in this particular instance) reporting back to her? To me it’s an underhanded management style.

What’s the big deal about resting or taking a nap during your unpaid (?) break anyway, is it against regulations? It shouldn’t be in my opinion, if you’re not getting paid you should be free to do it and a rested and refreshed nurse is a better nurse than a tired one.

[SionainnRN]

IN a union environment...the union rep should NOT be tattling to the nurse manager. Clearly the rep was asked to "keep an eye on things" by the manager. So IF disciplinary action is taken...who is the employee going to go to? The rep that was her watching and reporting to the manger?

My other question why is it the nurse managers concern if someone closed their eyes on their break unless they are sleeping through the break. It is the employees time to rest. Something the Union would protect.

OP I do not know what your contract says or who your main people are....I would talk to one of the higher union reps about your concern DO NOT engage your co-worker and watch your back.

So when asked a direct question the union rep was supposed to lie? I wouldn't trust a dishonest rep. And as far as what was said on the phone, the OP was only able to hear one side of the conversation so there's room for misinterpretation. I think the OP just needs to mind her own business and not get caught up in things that don't have anything to do with her.

[toomuchbaloney]

I am still trying to figure out why it is any concern of the manager what the employees do on their break. The manager is charged with supervising them when they are NOT on break...

[SionainnRN]

I am still trying to figure out why it is any concern of the manager what the employees do on their break. The manager is charged with supervising them when they are NOT on break...

Depends on hospital policy, many nurses have been fired for sleeping on breaks.

[MunoRN, RN]

Depends on hospital policy, many nurses have been fired for sleeping on breaks.

I've never heard of this, what's the rationale?

[toomuchbaloney]

I've never heard of this, what's the rationale?

I have heard of it and think it is bullcrap.

[rich5clark]

I heard both sides of the phone call. My coworker asked to speak with the nurse manager on our floor. She wheeled her chair over and talked to her with me still there. I heard the entire conversation clearly (mainly because neither one can speak quietly). This union rep is a staff nurse like me and every other nurse on the floor. The manager had, many years back, been a staff nurse on the same floor. Left to teach and work at other hospitals. So there is a relationship there between the manager and staff RN. "Not the one you think" comment was either directed at myself or the other nurse present on the floor at that time. We have both laid down for breaks in the past also. I feel that the staff RN doing the talking was either adding more fuel to an already blazing fire about either myself or the other nurse present or that she has been asked to keep an eye on everybody. Either way, if this becomes an issue, we would have to seek out our trusty rep (the staff nurse) to come with us to talk to the nurse manager. If she has been asked to keep an eye open on everybody, then she should be aboveboard and tell all of us.

[SionainnRN]

I've never heard of this, what's the rationale?

That you're not allowed to sleep on the job. Don't know of any job where it's okay to sleep while working.

[MunoRN, RN]

That you're not allowed to sleep on the job. Don't know of any job where it's okay to sleep while working.

It seemed like the OP was referring to napping while on a break, not while working.

[SionainnRN]

It seemed like the OP was referring to napping while on a break, not while working.

Well it depends what type of break. If they are still on the clock then it's probably a fireable offense. If it's off the clock but on their property (lunch room vs car) then it can be murkier. But I'm sure most hospital have a policy about sleeping on property, they seem to have a policy about everything these days.

[MunoRN, RN]

Well it depends what type of break. If they are still on the clock then it's probably a fireable offense. If it's off the clock but on their property (lunch room vs car) then it can be murkier. But I'm sure most hospital have a policy about sleeping on property, they seem to have a policy about everything these days.

I don't see why an employer would be opposed to napping on a break. This is a pretty well studied topic, and there are various recommendations that naps on a break can significantly reduce fatigue, reduce errors, reduce injuries, and improve efficiency.