PTO granted

[heatherrn1234]

I've been at my hospital for a few years now, but have recently changed units. My new unit is wonderful except when it comes to having PTO granted. I earn 5 weeks a year, but I can't use it because requests have to be submited a year in advance. There is only 1 nurse allowed off per shift per day. There are longtime employees that take entire months off leaving the others out of luck. I've been told that you must request at midnight one year in advance to get it. The rest of the nurses scramble to have per diems cover their shifts. We are a union facility. Does this seem standard or like an unfair policy to anyone else?

[azhiker96, BSN, RN]

Requesting PTO a year in advance is ridiculous. I barely know what I'm doing next month. We can put in requests up to 6 months in advance but the deadline is two weeks prior to the next schedule.

Granted, you have a better chance of approval the earlier you enter a request. I often don't know about events such as concerts, festivals, or workshops until a month ahead of time.

[dec2007]

Unfair, but we are so short staffed ALWAYS that we have the same deal. And we have one month a year NO ONE can ask off, because we have a local yearly event that always results in LOTS of traumas. And we already have travelers!