Hi everyone. I joined this page to ask this specific question. I used to be a PCA, and am currently a college student. During my winter break, I was home and there was a snow storm that made visibility terrible, and the roads were not even plowed. I was scheduled to come in that night for an overnight, and had told my employer I probably wouldn't be able to get there due to the snow over 24 hours in advance. I messaged every single other person that worked as well, and everyone either did not want to or were even further away than I was. I had to end up just saying that I could not come in. I drive a very old sports car that has BALD tires. When I even hit a patch a slush doing 5 mph, I will still slide. Living in a town with all hills that was unplowed and had ice all over, I couldn't even get out of my driveway, and knew there was no way my car would make it there. My family did not allow me to take their four wheel drive vehicles, or even my brothers car which is at least a little safer. I do not live at school, so I didn't have anywhere I could stay beforehand to make it to work. I ended up being fired, and was obviously upset. I got yelled at for being "unprepared" and "irresponsible", as if I could have just snow shoed there or had any other option. This is NOT my full time job, it was simply for patient care hours. I did NOT take on this job thinking I would have to do this, nor was it ever mentioned to me. There were people on campus that just did not want to go in and cover me. Is this really my fault? I hate losing a job and a reference, but I can't control what car my family gives me, or that I have no viable option. I'm an undergrad, not a nurse knowing fully well what I have to do. Also, on overnights you get paid $20 for the whole entire night. You don't get paid hourly. I don't think totaling my car or getting hurt or killed is worth any amount, much less $20.
Well, OP, you have just seen the power of the Nursing-Work-Ethic. If you don't plan to ever be a nurse, then the cultural education you just got doesn't mean a thing to you.
However, for those wanna-be nurses out there, YOU HAVE BEEN SCHOOLED!
If you think mamma bears and riled up Navy SEALS are a formidable force, you ain't seen what a nurse will do in the name of patient care.
* 12 hour shifts with nothing to eat
* 12 hour shifts without sitting down
* 12 hour shifts with no bathroom break
* transfer 300+ pound patients with minimal or no help
* push 400 lb beds with 300 lb patients down carpeted hallways
* work full night shift, take care of kids at home all day, grab 2 hours sleep, work another full night shift, keep doing it 'til husband graduates or returns from deployment
If you are lookin' for sympathy, you are working the wrong crowd.
I guess none of you formidable nurses look at labor laws and ****. Know your rights! lol
You need to read a few more pages. Many of us were supportive of the OP. Unfortunately, as you will find out once you are working as a nurse, an employers priority is to make sure patients are being cared for and that doesn't stop when the weather is bad. If everyone calls out for weather then what happens to the patients? Which is why we aren't skewering the supervisor. Most places have policies that cover this and it isn't unusual to get fired for calling off during a weather event. That being said, I think some people may not have realized that this is essentially a kid working in a non-acute area. I don't know many 20 year olds with stellar problem solving skills especially when the actual adults in their lives aren't much help. There were a few over the top responses I'll give you that but most were well-intended including mine.
I appreciate your passion in supporting the OP but you might want to tone down the profanity. It will get you banned here as it violates the TOS and that would be unfortunate as there are a lot of smart, helpful people on this site.
Why are people such a**holes in this thread? We all have been in staffing situations that suck as nurses. I hate annually having to decide what to do during hurricane season here in Florida but it is part of the job. However, I think by the 100th post of saying the same thing over and over again, maybe the point has been made? I just don't understand how effin rude and presumptuous some posters are. From the condescending, "millennial" posts to insinuating the OP was a crap student who instructor didn't care about her, and finally that her parents can't trust her with a car? If this is how some of you act in a anonymous forum, I can only imagine what it is like to work with some of you.
The OP made a bad decision and hopefully learn her lesson. She rightfully DESERVED to be told to drive a safe car and not work in a job that has 24/7, 365 expectations. She did NOT deserve to have rude accusations about her character.
If I could love your comment! Exactly how I feel. I would not like to meet, nor be treated by any of these so called nurses on this thread! Just poor taste, in the treatment of this young lady.
FTR. Nurses are also considered essential personnel and are exempt from travel bans during weather emergencies and natural disasters. The OP, however, may have some wiggle room.
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
And you guys are nurses?!! I am truly disgusted by the lot of you! No compassion, sympathy, or empathy. @Studentworker is a 20 year old undergrad student, that was trying to do the responsible thing by letting her employer know, in advance mind you, that she wouldn't be able to make it due to the snow storm. So they could find adequate coverage!! Somehow almost all of you thought, she should walk to work, go and sit and wait for her shift 24 hours in advance, telling her how irresponsible she is for having balding tires. I am entirely confused? Are any of you good at your "nursing" job?
Not any of the comments I read, albeit it was only 3 pages so far, said anything about the employer for firing her and not considering her safety. Instead you got on her for wanting to stay alive! I can't even believe this. Paying $20 for an overnight shift that is laughable. How many hours did this person have to work for a simple measly $20? One stupid **** gonna say she could've walked. In the snow, op said 15 miles, where someone could have potentially hit her....and the stupid***** response was life isn't easy. *****!!! Are you kidding me?!
@studentworker it was not your fault. Your employer was not concerned about your well being....I am sure you see and know this based on $20 pay for an overnight shift. I have worked jobs where an employer states, their first concern is making sure the employee is safe and if they do not feel safe driving they should not come in to work. Count your blessings for being fired, you now know the type of people they are.
To the person that "drove 100 miles in a blizard" to go to bestbuy... So because you were ok with putting your life on the line op was supposed to be ok doing that too? What? You was making minimum wage, or a little more? You put your life and other drivers (who are stupid just the same) on the line to fight with people rushing around for black friday? And somehow you thought that was noble?
OP do not take anything from these people. Do not allow them to make you feel bad for considering your safety and those of others. Do not let them make you question whether you did the right thing. You DID. point. blank. I am truly disgusted with these people. Somehow they don't remember how tough things can get when you have no help or no one to turn to. They obviously did everything on their own. They've never called out before. The importance of a job should never be higher priority than your safety or your kids. I put kids because it seems like some of you would leave sick kids just to make it to work to not be unpopular with others.
I hope that if you become a nurse, you aren't forced to work 24 hours straight during a snowstorm because your relief decided not to bother trying to come to work. Because their car has bald tires, because they don't know how to drive in the snow, because it's "not worth their life" to even get up off the easy chair and try to shovel the driveway.
And I hope that your vocabulary improves, if you become a nurse.
Where I'm from we have really bad snow storms and the employers still don't expect you to walk 15 miles in the snow. Thats completely insane. What good is a nurse or nurse aide that has hypothermia or frost bite. telling someone to walk 15 miles in the snow is never good advice. To think that some of the people commenting are practicing nurses. that blows my mind.
@bellakat! I feel the exact same way!! I would not want to be treated by them at all!! I just cannot even imagine working with people like that. They cannot show empathy, or compassion and that's sad. I've met some great nurses have friends that are nurses, and they'd be the first to say, don't leave your home in bad weather.
Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.
@bellakat! I feel the exact same way!! I would not want to be treated by them at all!! I just cannot even imagine working with people like that. They cannot show empathy, or compassion and that's sad. I've met some great nurses have friends that are nurses, and they'd be the first to say, don't leave your home in bad weather.
Somehow I doubt that nurses would be the first to day not to leave your home in bad weather. All too many of us have been stranded at work for 16-24 hours because our relief didn't leave their home in bad weather.
Somehow almost all of you thought, she should walk to work, go and sit and wait for her shift 24 hours in advance, telling her how irresponsible she is for having balding tires.
Give me a break. "Almost all" thought she should walk to work? NO. Not "almost all." ONE. ONE PERSON said she should walk to work, and many of us expressed our disagreement with that.
I hope that if you become a nurse, you aren't forced to work 24 hours straight during a snowstorm because your relief decided not to bother trying to come to work. Because their car has bald tires, because they don't know how to drive in the snow, because it's "not worth their life" to even get up off the easy chair and try to shovel the driveway.
And I hope that your vocabulary improves, if you become a nurse.
Tell me what is wrong with my vocabulary? Oh is it the bad words? I know my rights and I know about labor laws. So, no, I won't be working 24 hours straight because someone didn't come to work. Oh, but they're gonna fire me was your next response? I will sue the hell out of them. I am not a pushover, nor am I a person that doesn't know how to research or read up on laws. I've studied labor law, employment law, and have many friends that are attorneys. I do not sit and watch and say nothing. Yes, driving in snow that's high, and roads that aren't shoveled is not worth my life!!! I am confused by why you think it would be worth anyone's life.
Essential personnel includes nurses, too. Or who did you think was going to take care of those hospitalized patients?
She's not a nurse though. Is she? I was responding specifically to that posters comment about if firefighters and/or police didn't show up.
And I will not be following this post any longer. It seems like you all want to argue for others to see what you said as being right, and I do not agree with that. What a lot of you responded to the OP and said was entirely rude and uncalled for. Nice to have this discussion, but I am done saying what I wanted to say and definitely do not want to go back and forth with most of you.
OP good luck with school, I hope you do well! Don't work for companies like that. Do not sacrifice yourself for anyone.
Give me a break. "Almost all" thought she should walk to work? NO. Not "almost all." ONE. ONE PERSON said she should walk to work, and many of us expressed our disagreement with that.
Tell me what is wrong with my vocabulary? Oh is it the bad words? I know my rights and I know about labor laws. So, no, I won't be working 24 hours straight because someone didn't come to work. Oh, but they're gonna fire me was your next response? I will sue the hell out of them. I am not a pushover, nor am I a person that doesn't know how to research or read up on laws. I've studied labor law, employment law, and have many friends that are attorneys. I do not sit and watch and say nothing.
It seems your studies of labor law have missed the legal ramifications of working in an "employment-at-will" state (which is the majority of the US). Upheld by the Supreme Court it means that an employer can fire you for any reason or no reason at all. You have no legal recourse. I think you are in for a rude awakening once you start working as a nurse. Yes, we have rights but so do the patients and often, in order to remain employed, the patient's rights trump ours. Refer back to the definition of employment-at-will to understand this. The nursing world is much smaller than you think. You will have to learn to pick your battles in order to stay employable.
As for your language. I am not known for having the cleanest mouth but when you signed up here you agreed to the TOS which states that you will refrain from using profanity. It is an offense that may get you banned because this is a privately owned site and the owners make the rules. An occasional well placed curse word is usually tolerated. Profanity laced diatribes and name calling are not. We like to keep this a few degrees above Jerry Springer.
Hope2banurse1
197 Posts
I guess none of you formidable nurses look at labor laws and ****. Know your rights! lol