It's that time again! Working Christmas?

Nurses General Nursing

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Soooo...I worked Thanksgiving and Christmas last year. I have both off this year:p Our ER has tried really hard to be fair in who works what. Usually the newest staff work Christmas. That means that whoever was last hired is automatically on for Christmas. (which is why I worked it last year)

I had never worked Christmas before and it nearly broke my heart...But, after posting something here, I waaaaay got over it:D I recieved many replies that basically said "Christmas is any day you make it" I actually enjoyed working Christmas last year. Lot's of actually sick pt's! My family had Christmas the day AFTER and it was really fun.

This year in our unit was difficult. Here is the scoop. Two nurses were hired at exactly the same time. The Christmas shift was filled by nurses who volunteered to work except for one slot. So, our poor director had to choose one nurse to work. The first new nurse has "little kids" ages 2 and 3. The second new nurse has a husband who has been in Iraq for the past two Christmases and a new grandchild to see. The first nurse (with "little kids") was scheduled for Christmas. :chair: ohmyholycow...She pitched a FIT. Crying and throwing things in the break room about how "she has little kids" It was a scene. She went down the schedule and realized that many of us have both holidays off and really went crazy.

Anyhow...What do you think was "fair" She managed to throw enough of a hissy fit that our director posted the position as "open" and another nurse actually wanted to trade for Thanksgiving... I just thought the nurse throwing a hissy was ridiculous.

Thoughts?

Specializes in ED.

I have little ones too but wouldn't start throwing a fit over working Christmas. Thankfully, this year I am working Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, and Newyears Day. The unit split it up so each person is working at least some holidays but not all.

Specializes in Government.
I am a straight evening shift and they put me on days for Christmas.

CoopergrrlRN, I always hated that and I think it is unfair. It bugged me that I was good enough to work straight nights all year and then BAM! everyone wanted to work Christmas Day night shift as their holiday. It just seems wrong to get bumped from a straight shift when it is convenient for others.

My children are grown and I always choose to work christmas so that a mom with small kiddies can have it off . I would not want to miss my kids opening the gifts on x-mass day. That being said, She should not have had hissy fit , and if there are a lot of nurses that have small children ,OH well you have to take turns. It's the only fair wayto do it.

Specializes in Education, Acute, Med/Surg, Tele, etc.

I volunteered for Thanksgiving and Christmas eve since my hubby has to work those anyway as well (oh the money will be sweet!). Then there was a switch and now hubby is working Christmas day...I said "well at least there will be one parent there with the kids at eve and day!" He is not pleased and wanted me to switch..yeah right!

What I did was take New Years eve and day off and we are going to have a party (hubby has it off too). This will be our Christmas and New Year holiday in one for family and friends!

Then, on Christmas eve Hubby will do the typical things with the kids (I have a dinner ordered and all they have to do it heat it all up), and I will be there during the day (and hubby will be home till 1000 so we can open gifts!). So it will all work out fine.

I have learned to roll with the punches on holidays, and we do whatever we can to help the kids celebrate on time (they are getting older and more understanding now thank goodness!)...but it would be tough to do it all again when my kids were little! But now a days both parents work, things are open 24/7 or 7 days a week...and it isn't a medical professional thing anymore. Most folks are struggling with this...

I am happy though, most of our surgeons are not even doing surgeries near Christmas so I won't have to deal with post ops...just ER and PCU transfers...which we are hopefull will be down this year! So maybe...just maybe...low census can be declaired and some folks can go home early :). I will stay because I have made plans, and I want that double time! LOL! But someone else may get an Christmas gift and get to go home early :)...you never know!

Specializes in Education, Acute, Med/Surg, Tele, etc.

Oh yeah..the only time I about threw a fit...but just went all quiet and down to facts (scary like) was in the summer when I had a vacation planned months in advanced and they tried to bump me for another nurse and told me I had to come in...I simply said (and like I said...just matter a factly but with a bold look) 'well...you can have my name there, but that doesn't mean I am going to fly back one day from Utah to work, and go back unless you pay for it...so it leaves us two choices...you either respect the time you gave me and let me have it off..or...you will have a no show and one less nurse on your team (no show is an instant loss of job!)."

Luckily they saw it my way..LOL! But my first gut reaction was to throddle them! LOL!!!!!!! (they had done this to me every year...and I started warning them a year in advanced that would NOT be tolerated ever again!).

A tizzy isn't professional and it shows a lack of emotional control. Heck, I was soooooo ticked off I couldn't see straight when they threw that one at me, but I took a breath and did the old soft but firm voice using logic and stating my point so well...it scared them more than any tizzy I could throw! (I am a very happy go lucky gal at work...always cheerful...so if I all the sudden go quiet and matter a factly...that is totally against character for me unless I am beyond ticked...and it scares folks!).

I will be taking a travel contract mid December, so I will be working Christmas after all. Dh and I are going to celebrate before I leave.

I will be taking a travel contract mid December, so I will be working Christmas after all. Dh and I are going to celebrate before I leave.

Where ya goin'? Anyplace exotic and exciting?

Where ya goin'? Anyplace exotic and exciting?

Going to the southwest, so at least I'll be warm this winter! I did turn down Hawaii, because the pay was really low.

Going to the southwest, so at least I'll be warm this winter! I did turn down Hawaii, because the pay was really low.

Sorry the pay was low, you would have loved it there!

Enjoy wherever you are going!!!!!!!!!

Sorry the pay was low, you would have loved it there!

Enjoy wherever you are going!!!!!!!!!

I will! A friend and I are taking a travel assignment together for the first time. I'm really looking forward to it.

This is my first Christmas post graduation and I know I will be scheduled to work. I knew and expected that I will work a lot of the holidays do to being at the bottom of the ladder. I do not mind since I do not have young children and hope that those that do can get it off because of me working. My concern is that the bottom of the ladder for both Thanksgiving and Christmas presents 2 new grads which will be the last to be called off. I am worried that since the most critical pts will remain and under ten pts will only let us have 2 RNs, will this be safe for 2 new grads to handle. I am very confident with both our ability to handle normal problems with good safty skills but we still ask questions of older nurses when abnormal problems occur. We will wait to see how the hospital handles these situations since I know they have gone through this before, hopefully accuity will be taken into consideration but it seldom does.

For all fellow nurses and medical staff working or off, have a merry and safe Holiday season.

Specializes in Neuro.

I'm off the hook for this year and next because i'm in nursing school, but last year as a CNA I worked every other holiday and every other weekend. I worked Thanksgiving, that weekend, Christmas Eve and New Year's Day. I was disappointed that I could not travel to see my parents (on the other side of the country) because I had to work so much, but working the actual holidays wasn't that bad, and the pay's always nice.

My SO is a firefighter, so if he works holidays, he works all 24 hours of them, so I *really* don't mind working holidays if he works because I hate sitting in the house alone on holidays, and we just displace our holidays by a day anyway. When we have kids we may need to work something else out, but for now, it works for the two of us.

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