More then one job?

Published

Hi everyone.

I work an weekend option program on a med/tele floor and just took a secend contingent job in a local nursing home.

I was just wondering how many fo us are working two jobs, and (if you do work two jobs) do you work the same type of job or completely different?

Noney

Nursing is certainly unique in that there is work available 24 hours/day, 7 days/week. That kind of flexibility can be great when juggling other responsibilities or when you want to pick up extra work on your days off.

I wonder about the downside, though. For some people, staying home when they COULD be working and earning money feels like money wasted. So these folks practically kill themselves running from job to job. Certainly, it's a godsend when you need the money. But for some, they become accustomed to that income level and then continue to work themselves ragged because they can't justify cutting their income so drastically. That's their choice. It's fine if they can handle it.

My gripe is about those who run themselves ragged and thus can't give 100% to each job. They leave early from one job, leaving unfinished work for the next shift, and arrive late to their next job, where someone had to cover for them til they showed up. Some of these folks are powering through their shift, focusing to get their tasks done, barely talking to anyone else, taking naps on their breaks, and not contributing to a sense of team.

I guess the bigger gripe is when the facilities allow this go on without any penalties. Again, there are times of crises when a facility ought to consider leniency. That's not what I'm talking about.

2 jobs here too.

One is full time on a surgical floor, and the other is prn at a dr's office.

So many of my co-workers work per diem at other hospitals that one of them commented that she wondered how bad the nursing shortage would be if everyone quit their second job!

I appreciate financial freedom, don't get me wrong. I work per diem/in house for the greater $$ and control it gives me, and I've got my own fledgling business that I'm really hoping goes somewhere! But I appreciate my time off even more. My work is what I do that allows me to have my life! Thank God I find it meaningful, and that it is valued -- but it isn't my life.

When I finally left Home Health and went to floor nursing, it was because the paperwork had gotten so bad and the cases had gotten so competitive that I was working for 2 or 3 agencies and driving close to 200 miles a day to keep my income steady. I loved Home Health, but it had become impossible to have a *life*, so I changed career paths.

To each their own, and I have certainly worked my rear off for periods of time to meet a specific financial goal -- but I know so many people who do this routinely that it really concerns me. I guess it's my age. In my experience, very few people on their death beds say "Gee, I wish I'd worked harder and spent less time having fun and hanging out with my friends and family!"

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