Required to stay after night shift?

Swellz · May 20, 2017

Do you have mandatory overtime in your province/country? Does your facility have a policy on this?

This sounds like a terrible scenario.

dishes, BSN, RN · May 20, 2017

They can ask you to stay and you can refuse, some nurses are able to do overtime safely, so some employers ask employees to stay for the first part of the shift. However, if a nurse knows that they would be unsafe due to being overtired, they have not only the right to decline to stay, they have a duty to decline.

If you are worried about getting reprimanded, suggest you send an email to the manager explaining that you have been asked to stay to help with the morning med pass on such and such dates due to short staffing. Explain that you were unable to accommodate the requests as you were too fatigued to work beyond your 12 hour night shift and you do not want to jeopardize patient safety. Keep a copy of your email and the managers response for your records. Continue to decline to work, be consistent with your message that you are fatigued and you do not want to risk patient safety.

This isn't a licensing body issue, it is an issue you can discuss with your union if you have one, or the labour board if you do not. You can also email the human resources manager about the issue and explain that you are not only concerned about patient safety if you stayed but also your personal safety and the publics' safety if you drive home after working overtime, HR they will be aware of labour laws.

**canoehead, BSN, RN** · May 21, 2017

If you write a letter to your Board, you may get a more useful response than phoning.

stevemac · May 21, 2017

Personally, I would be more concerned about the ability to return to work and stand your assigned shift safely, than the safety of staying late at the end of the shift.

I have a one hour commute each way, and pull 12hr nights; I'm okay in the morning when it's time to leave, but if expected to stay late it impacts my ability to work that COMING night...when there is no replacement.

caliotter3 · May 21, 2017

No employer has ever been concerned when I indicated I was too fatigued to stay over.

Silverdragon102, BSN · May 21, 2017

Moved to the Nursing in Canada forum

notanumber · May 21, 2017

Personally, I would be more concerned about the ability to return to work and stand your assigned shift safely, than the safety of staying late at the end of the shift.
I have a one hour commute each way, and pull 12hr nights; I'm okay in the morning when it's time to leave, but if expected to stay late it impacts my ability to work that COMING night...when there is no replacement.

For me, it's the opposite. I'm usually reasonably alert in the evening/night even with poor sleep, but by the time morning rolls around I'm getting 'spacey' and having more trouble concentrating (unless an adrenaline-boosting event rolls around at 0600).

dayandnight · May 21, 2017

I'm in Canada. Work 12 hr nights, four in a row. It is generally expected that if days is short then the night nurse has to stay and finish a morning med pass. There is no such expectation for days to stay late. I have in the past simply refused and referred them to call our DOC, because I was so fatigued and did not feel safe to stay and then drive the 40 minutes home later.
I did ask our licensing body about this, but they werent very helpful.
Can I be disciplined or fired for refusing an unsafe practice like this? Not that I would expect it - our management is definitely above average in caring for employees. But is this position defensible and ethical?

You can ask. In our hospital we work short all the time. A lot of nurses are willing to accept OT because of the money but a lot of them refuse. You should not be forced to stay over and you shouldn't be guilty for refusing to do so.

If any issues rise with your manager, please talk to your union.

Silverdragon102, BSN · May 22, 2017

I am not sure if your union does it but I know mine requires us to complete a form which is in triplicate that one copy goes to the manager listing shortages and one copy goes to the union and one copy stays with the writer and the union require follow up from the manager on steps to try and cover shortage. We many times work short and unless deemed absolute necessary we are not manadated to stay and it we are usually only for the first 4 hours. Only time that is affected is if on own and you can't leave as no other qualified staff is present then you have no choice but to stay.

NurseSpeedy, ADN, LPN, RN · May 25, 2017

I question why it would be a routine issue with the day shift showing up on time. I am day shift. I get my butt to work ON TIME. Two tardees equal an occurrence (same as one absence) and if you reach a certain number you are terminated.

I have been late ONCE-my report was written and my meds were NOT passed. I have seen some night nurses staff any pull the non-narcs for med pass to help, but honestly if the role was reversed I would rather push everything that was pulled under my pixis login.

The problem here lies with management. Staff need to report to work on time and then this would not be a repeated issue that the offgoing nurse has to deal with. I did deal with this with private duty. I would cringe when 15 minutes went by and shift change because I knew someone was still sleeping. I had a 50 mile drive ahead of me and a return trip in the morning. I understand and it stinks when you have to stay.

Fiona59 · May 25, 2017

I question why it would be a routine issue with the day shift showing up on time. I am day shift. I get my butt to work ON TIME. Two tardees equal an occurrence (same as one absence) and if you reach a certain number you are terminated.
I have been late ONCE-my report was written and my meds were NOT passed. I have seen some night nurses staff any pull the non-narcs for med pass to help, but honestly if the role was reversed I would rather push everything that was pulled under my pixis login.
The problem here lies with management. Staff need to report to work on time and then this would not be a repeated issue that the offgoing nurse has to deal with. I did deal with this with private duty. I would cringe when 15 minutes went by and shift change because I knew someone was still sleeping. I had a 50 mile drive ahead of me and a return trip in the morning. I understand and it stinks when you have to stay.

This would never be done in Canada.

Employee Assistance gets involved. The tardy issue is rarely addressed. It's just too much paperwork for Managers. I can tell you exactly who will arrive at 0659, 0704, 0710 on my unit. It's never addressed. And yes, theses same nurses are the first out the door at 1515.

I remember seeing one union newsletter addressing this issue. It seriously suggested having a Steward call the problem employee to make sure they were out of bed at a certain time. I just remember shaking my head and thinking hell would freeze over before I did that.