Owlseye

How is NKU FNP program going? I'm doing their RN to BSN now, considering going for FNP but not sure if NKU is a good fit or not. Good luck with everything!

So I'm a new nurse, graduated in May 2020. I went back for my ADN at 30, and working on my BSN now, so I'm a little older than a lot of new grads. I also have a part time job tutoring A&P at my old college. I'm currently working nights on a TCU/cardiac unit, supposedly full-time at 36 hrs/week. Twice in the past month, since census is lower, I've been put on call and then they've called me off my regularly scheduled shift. So basically they told me I have to use PTO if I want to be paid for what were my regular scheduled hours. Or I can just go unpaid, other than a few bucks an hour for the time I was on call. Is this a standard practice in hospitals? I mean, I signed up for a full time job, not to waste a day sleeping for a shift I don't even get, and losing pay or having to use what should be my earned vacation time. I really don't know what to do. I've been here since September, so just over six months nursing experience in total (four if you don't count floor orientation). I have two kids and a partner, I'm the primary breadwinner, and this is not financially sustainable for us longer term. Is calling nurses off and making them use vacation time/PTO just to make ends meet a normal practice at most hospitals? I literally have no idea, as this is all quite new to me. I'm really anxious that this is going to ruin me financially, like I budget everything already to the penny and save everything I can, but if this keeps up it's gonna be a problem. It's infuriating that I'm supposed to be working full time but it's actually just whatever they deign to give me. Thanks for reading y'all, I appreciate it.