Hired on days, manager request to switch to night

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I was hired on days as a graduate nurse, finished orientation and worked by myself for 1 month. I am a day person and do not do well at night. But right now, my unit is short of night shift nurses and my ANM has asked for me to switch to night. I am concerned that I am unable to stay awake for patient safety. Prior to this, I did 2 weeks of nights during orientation and felt really horrible at it.

My question is, was it ethical for the manager to have hired me during days and now request for me to work nights.

Specializes in Emergency, Telemetry, Transplant.
They found one after I told them I really did not fair well at night.

Fair enough. However, as I said, a lot of people (including myself) do not fare so well at night. Unfortunately someone has to do it. In this game of tag, as a newer nurse, you may be it. I know that stinks to hear...at least she started by asking, so there is a chance she won't make you. Be aware, though, that does not mean you are out of the woods.

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... How do you peeps get 90k-100k? I start at $22 here, with taxes, FSA, and health insurance, on days I take home about $1350/2weeks. It's pathetic. And how many overtime shifts do you do a week?

What's pathetic about $1350/2 weeks? There are BILLIONS of unemployed "peeps" who would love to get that and health insurance (nurses or not and of course most aren't). We all want to make more money than we do but we also need to balance it out against the cost of living where we are vs how much debt we owe vs are we smart enough to live within our means etc etc.... I don't find your paycheck in the least "pathetic". On the contrary, I'm happy for you that you HAVE a paycheck. As far as the OT goes, realize that the more $ you make, the more is taken out and possibly the more stress you have putting in that OT.

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
What's pathetic about $1350/2 weeks?
I was earning that much money every two weeks as an LVN in Texas back in 2006. I was earning that much money as a factory worker with a only high school education in southern California back in 2003.

Just reading about an RN with a degree, professional licensure and serious accountability who is earning such paltry pay is pathetic, IMHO.

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I was earning that much money every two weeks as an LVN in Texas back in 2006. I was earning that much money as a factory worker with a only high school education in southern California back in 2003.

Just reading about an RN with a degree, professional licensure and serious accountability who is earning such paltry pay is pathetic, IMHO.

"Paltry pay" is relative when compared with the cost of living/personal debt etc... as I've already said. If your paycheck allows you to pay your bills/save for your future and have some fun then your paycheck isn't "paltry" regardless if you have a degree or a GED/what year it is. Personally, I'd rather have have a "paltry" paycheck than no paycheck at all and if my paycheck was "paltry", I'd do something to change my career path/further my education. We'd all like to make more money, as I've said, buy I'll take paltry over nothing any time. And it's not just about the money. Would I rather have a higher paying job that I hate or a "paltry" paycheck from a job I love?

What's pathetic is being miserable in a job you hate. What's pathetic is not having a paycheck at all when you're willing/able to earn one. What's pathetic is not being able to make a living doing what you love/what you're qualified and good at. What's pathetic is not realizing it can always be worse and often is for the other guy.

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To the OP: If they actually advertised for night shift only positions, they probably would not get too many applicants. Most people want to work days. In most cases its the newbies that work nights. I've never really seen the attraction to working day shift myself. I've always been a "night person" and don't like the drama on days. One thing to consider. Working nights has it's advantages.

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I was earning that much money every two weeks as an LVN in Texas back in 2006. I was earning that much money as a factory worker with a only high school education in southern California back in 2003.

Just reading about an RN with a degree, professional licensure and serious accountability who is earning such paltry pay is pathetic, IMHO.

$22 per hour, for a RN, in 2014, is simply 'shocking'. But I see similar ranges in here all the time. Nurses that have been nurses for a while, or decades, must be similarly 'shocked' to see just how far backwards nursing pay has gone?

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Specializes in CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching.

Feb 17 by PinkString

I was hired on days as a graduate nurse, finished orientation and worked by myself for 1 month. I am a day person and do not do well at night. But right now, my unit is short of night shift nurses and my ANM has asked for me to switch to night. I am concerned that I am unable to stay awake for patient safety. Prior to this, I did 2 weeks of nights during orientation and felt really horrible at it.

My question is, was it ethical for the manager to have hired me during days and now request for me to work nights.

Most of us don't do well at night, have difficulty staying awake at night and have even more difficulty trying to sleep during the daytime. Most of us feel really horrible when we work nights. Yet it's a fact of life that someone has to work nights, and that someone is often the least senior person or persons who gets switched to the night shift to help meet the needs of the unit.

Yes, it is ethical for the manager to have hired you during the day shift and now request you to work nights. Very, very few job interviews are conducted at night . . . Check your offer letter -- most times they're worded such that you're hired for rotating shifts or that you're hired with the possibility that your shift will be changed. You may have been given the day shift in your first month off orientation so that the higher ups could keep an eye on you in case you ran into trouble, needed backup or more orientation and to see how you interacted with others. You've been evaluated, and now they need someone to work night shift. You have the option of trying to wriggle out of it, of course. But the smarter option is to work your night shifts, revel in the extra pay from night shift differential, and get your name on the list to move back to days as soon as possible.

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Specializes in ICU.

$1350/2 weeks is more than I make as a full time night nurse... I usually clear about $1100 if I don't work overtime, which I try to do every single week but it usually doesn't happen. Just saying. My pay is definitely paltry. I'm barely able to save at all, and if it looks like I'm able to save, I usually have some kind of expense like healthcare hit me hard because my insurance through the hospital is terrible. I live in an area with a very low cost of living, and my pay is still terrible - it should not be acceptable to anyone to spend this much time in college with this hard of a job for such little rewards. I should at least be able to pay my bills and have a lot of money left over for the fun stuff as a nurse without having to get a roommate and/or marry someone to bring in a second income.

On topic - I'm really glad I don't work days. My pay would be even worse. I would definitely switch to nights if I were the OP just for the differentials and the ability to learn and really delve into the patients' histories a little more. I often find I know more about what's going on with my patient than the day shift nurse relieving me - even though they're there with the families and doctors, they don't have time to listen and really investigate the doctors' notes in the charts. I wouldn't work days for anything in the world.

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Specializes in adult psych, LTC/SNF, child psych.
Wow thanks for your advice. I will send my ANM an email explaining how I am not a good suit for nights but will comply if really needed. She sent an email out to 4 of us newbies, and asked for 3 to switch.

How do you peeps get 90k-100k? I start at $22 here, with taxes, FSA, and health insurance, on days I take home about $1350/2weeks. It's pathetic. And how many overtime shifts do you do a week?

I make $32/hour but with taxes, FSA (max contribution), 401K and health insurance for myself and husband, it honestly doesn't come out way much more than your paycheck does, but I make do. Between my husband's salary and my paycheck, we make it work. I don't see myself needing 90-100K/year. Would it be nice - sure. Do I want to work all those extra hours to get the $$$ - no. It's simple.

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