How to cope with lack of Vacation time in the USA

[madwife2002, BSN, RN]

I would like to pose a question about the lack of vacation time we get here in the USA and how everybody manages or copes with the never ending working weeks.

I am from the UK as most know and before I left to come to the USA I had 8 weeks and 2 days vacation time allowed in a year, and 6 months sick time should I need it. I got this wheather I worked or not.

Now I have to work to earn paid time off, so every month I earn 12 hours paid time off that includes

Vacation Time

Sick days

Days the hospital calls you off because of too many staff on duty

The days you are sent home early because the census is low

Family problem days ie funerals, sick children etc

I only get 12 hours paid time off if I work 36 hours a week minimum. I work long days so I am told that because I have four days off a week well thats great LOL. So I work every sunday monday and one other day in the week.

I am tired, exhausted, fed up with working whilst I am sick with colds. In the summer well it is's great the weather means you swim all day.

In the winter well it is cold, windy, miserable and you cant sit in the sun and recouperate.

So apart from going to the gym what do others do?

I have visitors coming in march and I am desperatly saving up to have 3 days off with them so I can have a week off work.

[llg, PhD, RN]

Most experienced nurses have learned some of the following things:

1. We work hard, make sacrifices, and save up our time off for the things that matter most. It's not easy, but it can be accomplished with perserverence and a little creativity. Most of the time, we earn more paid time off as we get seniority with a specific employer. So, we learn that "job hopping" from one employer to another can hurt us as our benefits in general improve with seniority. As a new employee, you just have to find the inner strength to keep working until you can save up some time off. Sometimes, we can negotiate for some extra unpaid time off. I have done that -- and you might want to try it if you have a good relationship with your manager. She may give you an extra day or two of unpaid time off while your guests are here if you volunteer to work a couple of unpopular shifts for her in return.

2. We learn to say "No" to extra shifts -- and to switch employers who don't let us say "No" when we need to.

3. We learn to pick our employers based partly on the benefits they offer and not just the cash or the schedule or the patient population, etc. Actually, one shift a month is not all that bad for a new employee. That's 4 weeks per year -- plus any holidays that they give.

4. We learn to plan our vacations so that we use a holiday "such as Memorial Day" or "July 4th" as one of the days off. We may volunteer to work the holiday itself -- and then take the day off at a later time to give ourselves a little vacation when it is more convenient.

5. We make friends with our co-workers so that we can ask them to switch shifts with us so that we can get a few days off in a row when we need it. For example, you could work 3 days in a row at the beginning of one week ... then work 3 days in a row at the end of the second week. That would give you 8 days off in a row in between without having to use any vacation time. We get real good and manipulating the schedule to get what we want. Perhaps there are some senior people at your job who can give you some tips at how to do that within your system.

Good luck to you! I know it is an adjustment, but it can be done.

[FireStarterRN, BSN, RN]

It's one of the downsides of living in the United States. I went to per diem so I could have more control over my schedule.

[madwife2002, BSN, RN]

Unfortunatly I cannot afford to take unpaid leave. I am not a new employee. I know that people here in the usa don't expect the vacation time like we do in the UK. I kinda want to know how the UK nurses have coped.

IIg I do all the things you suggest and thanks but that still doesnt stop me from thinking all I do is work week iin and week out. Frightened in case I become too sick to work and loose a weeks pay.

[Ginger's Mom, MSN, RN]

How about working in nursing education, home health, school nursing all have more time off but you will have less pay. It is a choice.

[regularRN]

I am also an RN from the UK - the only way I have coped with the lack of paid time off here is to get called off as much as possible and not get paid. I save all my PTO for prearranged vacations and time off if I'm sick. I am lucky enough to afford unpaid call off. I have to say, the lack of paid time off in the US is an unfortunate oversight - many chronic stress related illnesses and much sick time could be avoided if employees were permitted more time to relax and rejuvenate.

[cariad]

i am also a nurse from the uk and no matter how many conversations we have with our american nurses you will all never understand what it means to have the recognition as health care workers in the uk. we are rewarded with decent vacation time away from the stressful job and if we are sick we are encouraged to stay home and be sick, and we get our pay for it. over here i am surrounded with sick nurses, a vomitting bug recently hardly kept anyone at home, they are coughing and spluttering all around us, but this is acceptable because if they stay home they either use their earned time or they take unpaid leave. like madwife i cannot afford to use my earned time, we have elderly parents and one day a call will come and we will have to use that earned time to fly home. i just hope that i can remain healthy to work each week. and yes we can negotiate all we like to manipulate the schedule to get several days off in a row, but it still doesnt get away from the fact that american nurses only get 4 weeks, earned time,,,,,,,not given to them, as part of their employment, to use either for sick time or vacation time away from what is still a very stressful job.

[regularRN]

Cariad, I totally agree with you (just didn't have the guts to say it up front!)!

[Skwidward]

Save up and just take the time off, paid or not.

[regularRN]

Where I work, if you've been an employee for long enough, you can apply for a "leave of absence" for up to six weeks (I think), for a family crisis. I think you get paid a certain amount and your job is still there for you when you return to work. Check with HR for the details.

It's not a perfect solution but it could be handy in an emergency.

[cariad]

save up and just take the time off, paid or not.

its a bit difficult for me personally to save up and take the time off, after putting a deposit down on our house, we had a car accident, and my dh hasnt been able to work since then, so with medical bills a new house and only one wage its not possible to do that right now.in fact we are still catching up from me having surgery and 3 months off with no income at all. (an open rotator cuff repair caused by the crash.)

in fact we are hoping that nothing bad happens back home as not only do we have the problem with time off and money, but dh isnt fit to fly that far right now.

this is not a gripe but just a fair comparison between the way that nurses are treated in the uk compared to the us. i accept it because this is where i choose to live and work, but it doesnt make it right that american nurses dont get decent vacation and sick time.

[Belinda-wales, RN]

Everyones experience is different - on a personal note you can not compair the vacation time between uk and usa it is what it is forme it is a pay off - I was so over worked and stressed in the uk I could not enjoy my vacation time - a a two nurse family whohave to work opposite shifts we have managed our time well in our first year - we have been very lucky with our health so I am not counting my chickens as I know things can change really quickly - what we do is plan short three and four night trips to help us relax and get famil time we have managed CA twice- tuson- mexico- Flagstaff- vegas- and sunrise white mountains in our first year and we have booked a beach house CA for spring break ad hopefully murtel beach and new york later this year - we are just trying to the best we can with the limited time.