Paycheck Question

[onthemark]

I have a question about how my facility determines our pay but don't know where to put it on this site. Hopefully, one of you will see this and have an answer or suggestion for me:

During a 2-week pay period this summer, I used one week for vacation and in the other week, I worked a total of 5 hours overtime. When I got my check for this period, I saw that I was paid the 5 hours overtime but was not paid for 5 hours of my vacation. When I inquired, they said, "when a person works overtime and then takes time off, how do we know the person just didn't work overtime to make up for the time they were going to take off?" This response shocked me -- it doesn't make sense! -- but when I asked my co-workers about this, they said they'd been told the same thing and that they just accepted it!

I thought I was doing them a favor by accepting the overtime when asked, and never dreamed it would mean I'd be penalized for vacation time! Furthermore, I got permission months in advance for my vacation and I just don't see how I can be denied 5 of the hours because I helped out by working 5 hours overtime the previous week!

During a pay period in November, I see I'll have one vacation day but I was asked yesterday to work another day in that same pay period as overtime......so now I'm worried I'm not going to be paid for the vacation day!

Do any of you have this same policy in your facility? If you agree that this practice is unethical, do you have any suggestions for me? Thanks for any thought you put in to this.

[manusko]

I didn't have that problem but it isn't a new thing for a hospital to take advantage of their employees. OR nurses I worked with would be asked if they wanted to work a few hours OT on Thursday and then on Friday they would be sent home a few hours early without the OT.

When I was in the ICU, we would routinely be asked to work extra shifts. We would tell them that we would do it if we can clock-in as call back which was time-and-a-half automatically.

[morte, LPN, LVN]

Hmmm labor board? or just laugh and tell them to cut a check, NOW!

[chare]

This is not unethical, and is actually quite common; at least in my experience. If you search this forum you will find at least one recent thread discussing this.

[ChristineN, BSN, RN]

Hmm, I would be annoyed too. At my facility I can use vacation time on top of overtime in the same week if I so choose. I can even cash out vacation time a bit every week without getting any approval.

[cardiacfreak, ADN]

Over the summer I worked a day for a nurse which was during my vacation, I was told since I worked the day I forfeited my vacation day.

[KelRN215, BSN, RN]

Hmmm labor board? or just laugh and tell them to cut a check, NOW!

I doubt the labor board would have much to say about this since OP was paid for all the time she worked. Paid vacation time is not guaranteed in this country.

That's how it would have been done in my hospital job. If I took vacation one week but worked 48 hours the following week of the same pay period, my check would have been 24 hrs vacation time and 48 hrs straight time (no overtime).

[MrChicagoRN, RN]

It depends if they pay OT after 40 hours, or an 8/80 basis.

The former generates OT after 40 hours in a week, and looks at each week as a separate event even though you get paid every two weeks. The latter generates OT after 8 hours in a day, or 80 hours in a pay period.

Where I work, if your time off & your days off were in the same week it would reduce your PTO use so your hours total 40. If you were off week one, then worked >40 hours in week two, you'd use 40 hours PTO & get paid OT for any hours over 40

[amoLucia]

For most facilities, OT is paid "in excess of 40 hrs (or 80, depends) WORKED".

As I see it, you WORKED 40 hrs and were also compensated for 40 bene/vac hrs. You did have a total of 80 hrs, but all were not WORKED.

So the 5 hrs extra/OT were worked, but not over the required 80 worked that would have paid as time & half.

You got paid 40 + 40 + 5, all at straight time. And it's all legal.

Just know that for the future.

[morte, LPN, LVN]

I could see this if some one used sick time, but not for a previous scheduled vacation.

[onthemark]

Thank you all for your input. You're making me realize that my situation certainly isn't unique. I still feel these practices are unethical, though. KeIRN215 says "paid vacation time is not guaranteed in this country." However, when the contract we signed when we accepted our jobs stated the benefits, then I believe the facilities are under contractual obligation to fulfill them. We were guaranteed a set number of vacation, personal and sick days, and I believe we should be able to use them regardless of any overtime we work.

[Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN]

I could see this if some one used sick time, but not for a previous scheduled vacation.

unfortunately...it is still not considered "time worked" technically they didn't have to pay the OT unless it was over 40 hours in that one week....minus the vacation time. Like Kel said vacation time is a "benefit" not mandatory by law and is "non productive time".

While a tactic to keep cost down...not illegal.