I asked for Christmas off and they...

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Wouldn't you like to have Christmas off? Is your place of work over staffed during the holiday season? New Years? If you had a choice which day would you rather have off Christmas Day or New Years Day?

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I'm lucky because I'm PRN and am not required to work any holidays. When I did have to work holidays I preferred to work on New Years over Christmas. One of the nurses on a floor I work on quite often asked if I would work Christmas for her. I told her no and felt a little bad because she has young kids. But I have out of town guest coming in just for Christmas. It sucks to have to work holidays but that part of the job.

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The way our unit works- and as far as I know only our unit and only nightshift- on the 5 winter holidays Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas, NYE, and New Years Day we place our order of preference down to have off 1-5. We must work 2 of them. This year it was arranged so that everyone had their 1st and 2nd choices off. The only "rules" to this system is that everyone gets their first choice off and if we are in a period of low staff you may be scheduled to work 3... but if that occurs you are the first to be called off after you have worked your 2 holidays. It works out well for us.

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Specializes in ICU.

I'm completely agreeing with the poster who says to celebrate another day. Are we really so uptight as a culture that it's THE END OF THE WORLD if we don't have the actual holiday off? It's kind of ridiculous. Holidays can be whenever you want them to be. It particularly aggravates me when coworkers with children complain about not being able to spend the holidays with their children, which I heard a fair bit of when I worked with some of these people on Thanksgiving this year. They had two options to avoid this problem: a. not having children, and b. not working in a hospital. They decided to do both of those, so I don't think they have room to complain when their life choices become inconvenient for them. If they really want holidays off, they can always work outpatient!

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I don't have problem with working on a holiday; my problem is the way they handle the overtime. Our only "benefit" for working is that we get time and 1/2 from midnight to midnight on the holiday. All is well and good EXCEPT they deduct that time from your overtime calculation for your real overtime! I work Thanksgiving; Christmas Eve (which I volunteered for since my kids are adults) Christmas Day and New Years Day. But the week of New Years I am scheduled for 4 shifts and won't get my overtime : /

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Specializes in Psych.

We have every other holiday off. So this year I worked Thanksgiving, will be off Christmas ( work Christmas eve, working with someone who has to work both eve and day so I told her to request off that way she would have one of the days off, if our census is low and near holiday doc does a mass exodus) and then work new years day. Next year I will be off Thanksgiving and New Years.

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My problem is not working the holidays but the unfair rotations that some due to work schedule out of town trips when they know full well they are expected to be working. Those who did not make " last minute out of town " plans for their scheduled holiday are punished by having to those who skirt their responsibility. This just creates animosity. & resentment among coworkers.

The funny thing when I was single. & childless working in ED, I volunteered for Christmas Eve/Day and New Years Eve/ Day because I could and some of the coworkers who were parents claimed I was trying to hog overtime!!!!

Life is all about being misunderstood. Sometimes you just can't win. People are so evil- hearted sometimes. A good friend of mine says, "As you live, so you judge others". In other words, the way we look at life is a result of our own experiences - which are so often different than the experiences of others.

All you can do is just do the best you can, knowing that God knows your heart. And He sees all and judges rightly.

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I was told this year that "only people with families get Christmas off". I totally expected to be working Christmas, and I'm not upset about that but uhhh, what? Just because I don't have kids, doesn't mean I don't have a family!

That is just plain not right.

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.

I have always worked whatever holiday....I come from a long line of nurses and MD's...my family ahs always adjusted the holiday. when my kids were little I manipulated the advent calendar....when they got into school I told them that Santa gave allowances to people who were policemen, firemen, nurses and doctors because we help people....Christmas became what ever date I said it was.

I ask off for Christmas every 10 years for my birthday 10, 30, 40, 50....I was born on Christmas.

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
I was told this year that "only people with families get Christmas off". I totally expected to be working Christmas, and I'm not upset about that but uhhh, what? Just because I don't have kids, doesn't mean I don't have a family!
That is just wrong. Even people without children have families.
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Specializes in OR, Nursing Professional Development.
I was told this year that "only people with families get Christmas off". I totally expected to be working Christmas, and I'm not upset about that but uhhh, what? Just because I don't have kids, doesn't mean I don't have a family!

I would have said, "So we're closing down on Christmas? It's not just having kids that means someone has a family!"

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Specializes in ER, Addictions, Geriatrics.
I have always worked whatever holiday....I come from a long line of nurses and MD's...my family ahs always adjusted the holiday. when my kids were little I manipulated the advent calendar....when they got into school I told them that Santa gave allowances to people who were policemen firemen, nurses and doctors because we help people....Christmas became what ever date I said it was.[/quote']

My family was is the same, all nurses, medics, doctors and other shift workers. We are all used to improvising hokdsua plans!

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Specializes in PACU, presurgical testing.

As the newest hire on the call schedule, I win Christmas night this year (7p Christmas day to 7a the 26th). I'd rather be on call Christmas day night than Christmas Eve night or Christmas day 7a-7p; I sing at church, and I'd like to be home Christmas morning/day with my kids.

That said, I had to do a sell job with my 9-year-old, who isn't happy I'm on call at all. I explained that if one of us got hurt or sick and needed surgery on Christmas, we'd want someone there to take care of us! I told her it will be our family's gift to someone else's family if I have to go in. Not that I'm anyone's gift to nursing yet, but... ;)

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