How Are Summer Vacations Decided?

Hardknox · Mar 17, 2002

We have to put in for vacations by April 1st and they are posted by May 1st. It is done by seniority. Two weeks, (one weekend off), from June 1st through Labor Day. No one gets off during Christmas week. Since hardly anyone left our floor seniority is very high-- 20 to 25 years. Some people were denied summer vacation and this is at a Unionized facility!!!

RNforLongTime · Mar 17, 2002

In our new contract there is a clause that says that nurses are only allowed to take two weeks off between memorial day and labor day. Then, if all other nurses have been granted vacation, a nurse may be granted additional vacation time in the summer. I too work in a unionized facility

CEN35 · Mar 17, 2002

seniority

me :)

NicuGal, MSN, RN · Mar 17, 2002

May 15th to September 15th. And it goes by seniority. We only are able to take 2 weeks during the above summer months. We sign up for our time from May 15 to the week before Christmas. No vacations from Christmas to Jan 1st. From Jan 2-May 14 is first come first serve.

NurseExplorer · Mar 17, 2002

Are most facilities like this? Vacation granted only for the summer time? No time off in...February...November...January? Does senior staff always pick the same days every year? New nurses never get July 4th? No rotations?

What are we student nurses getting ourselves into? No breaks, no lunches, 12 hr shifts (but not a full time 40 hr week), extremely limited vacation availability, shoddy orientations, non-supportive mgmt., majority of unhappy co-workers, cannabalism, disrespectful doctors. Oy!

Hardknox · Mar 17, 2002

OY is right! Welcome to the club. And don't forget getting your a-s-s sued by a patient. Only you can decide if the other job satisfactions out number the negative ones.

eldernurse · Mar 17, 2002

Dear Hardknox,

Lighten up on these rookies! I don't like to sugar coat it too much but it isn't as black as nurse explorer presented it. I DO NOT work for a union. I take four weeks off, one spring, one summer, one fall, one winter. We start off with two weeks, then at 5 yrs you get three weeks and at 10 yrs service you get four weeks. Used judiciously, you won't get too burned out. I have a lot of seniority but I am also fair about Christmas and New Years.

But remember. You are entering a PROFESSION that works 24/7, even during the holidays. No matter what people say, there is satifaction in the job if you look for it.

st4304 · Mar 17, 2002

In our unit, it is whoever requests the time off first. Not based on senority at all. We have a couple of nurses who turn in their vacation requests a year ahead of time (they both have been employed here for 35 and 25 years). What makes it hard is that these same two nurses have accumulated so much PTO time that whenever any of the rest of the staff request a week off, one of these two nurses have already requested it. OR they have asked off a couple of days here and there, making if hard for the rest of us to find an entire week to request off! Our unit is allowed to have only one person off at a time. With my husband's job, I only have a couple of months notice when he can take off, so we never get the week that we want. When anyone complains, we hear "That's the way it's always been. Get over it."

What's worse is at Christmas time, we are allowed to have time off BUT this time IS based on senority, so these same two nurses always have the holidays off, too.

kaycee · Mar 18, 2002

We are only allowed to take 1 week off in prime time summer. Whoever requests first gets it. No seniority here. If there is a week left over someone can take it and have 2 weeks off but never in a row. No vacation allowed over Christmas and New Years. 2 people who work the same shift can never be on vacation at the same time.