This is my fourth job so far. I made the jump for a pay increase, and I've been here for around eight months. When I interviewed, I made sure I let them know my schedule and what I was available to work. I told them I wasn't available on weekends and that I wasn't interested in any over-time (I said this so they would know not to call me on my off days- my sister who is also an RN told me it's a more polite way to let them know you don't want to be called on your days off) I started working, I liked the unit and everything was fine and dandy...
Until I started getting calls CONSTANTLY to come in. It started the second weekend I was off and has not stopped since. The ringing off the wall, the pressuring phone calls that start on Friday and normally persist all the way up until Sunday afternoon. It's incredibly irritating. Part of me wants to just block my work number. It's not as though I don't have the lady balls to say no, I do, but how many times can I say that I can't and that I'm not interested? I think what makes me more angry is the fact that they always want an explanation as to why I can't come in. At first I would struggle to come up with excuses. "I've already had several glasses of wine. I'm sorry!" "I'm actually visiting my sister and she's two hours away! I can't. I'm sorry". Then after a while I realized I was being ridiculous and just started telling them the truth; that I was off work and just didn't want to work. Yet, the phone calls persist... I understand that it's frustrating to be understaffed, but my coworkers just call in constantly and there just aren't enough nurses... I'm already tired of picking up the slack once I'm there that I don't want to pick up the slack on my off days too.
My coworkers drive me bonkers as well. They always want to switch days off! I don't know how many others have weekends off, but I'm thinking it's not many. I'm constantly asked if I will switch. "Little Johnny has a baseball game this weekend. Will you switch with me?" "I have a baby shower on Saturday, want to switch me days?" From bat mitvahs to pet shows, I have heard it all. I feel a little bad, but at the same time, I ASKED FOR MY DAYS OFF FOR A REASON. I'm unavailable on weekends. I'm not interested in switching. I try not to be rude about it, but I'm always asked time and time again. Explaining that I'm unavailable doesn't seem to hit home for anyone.
I'm thinking I got spoiled because my past jobs included a mid-sized hospital and a dialysis clinic. I just had never experienced this before. Being short staffed? Yes, on the occasion. Getting bombarded with requests to switch shifts and come in? No. One would be fine, but multiple calls? Noooo.
I'm not sure if it's anything to quit over, but it is driving me up the wall. I'm starting to just turn my phone off on my days off.
You say it isn't something to quit over. But I would be concerned about the chronic understaffing. Basically the employer is asking you nurses to subsidize their poor management. It's not good for patients or nurses, but they can bill the patients the same whether they have to pay for a full unit's worth of nurses or not. If the nurses have to regularly work short, stay on for an extra shift or on their says off, then the nurses are taking on something that really isn't their responsibility. The employer will use their tactics to maintain this status quo that benefits them. I think this is especially true in a for-profit setting. And your schedules/middle managers/peers get sucked into the system and stressed out, displaying the annoying behaviors that you noted. Meanwhile the owner/board/CEO doesn't get too engaged in changing anything.
So true. It is annoying, and I have considered quitting, but overall I do enjoy the setting, the people (although the constant requests are annoying), and my schedule. I interviewed with several different places before I found this hospital and they gave me the schedule that I wanted.
This is the perfect example of why the mandatory every other weekend schedule and every other holiday works (then the holidays rotate each year so that makes it fair)
question: why would somebody who's been there longer than you not get the option to take their weekends off?
On the other hand, it's borderline harassment to be calling somebody like that in my opinion. When I'm on the other side, I call once and leave a message just to say I did call, but understand why somebody would say no.
If if someone wants to switch shifts. It doesn't hurt to ask but the shouldn't get mad when its a no either.
If somebody else asks me why I'm not coming in, it's disrespectful. Everybody has a life (or several...) to take care of outside of work and it's not their business to know what I do in my personal time.
This is the perfect example of why the mandatory every other weekend schedule and every other holiday works (then the holidays rotate each year so that makes it fair)
question: why would somebody who's been there longer than you not get the option to take their weekends off?
On the other hand, it's borderline harassment to be calling somebody like that in my opinion. When I'm on the other side, I call once and leave a message just to say I did call, but understand why somebody would say no.
If if someone wants to switch shifts. It doesn't hurt to ask but the shouldn't get mad when its a no either.
If somebody else asks me why I'm not coming in, it's disrespectful. Everybody has a life (or several...) to take care of outside of work and it's not their business to know what I do in my personal time.
I honestly don't know the details' of anyone else's schedule. I can only speak for myself. During the interview I let them know my availability. They agreed. For me, it's less about "deserving" and more about negotiation. Of course, I had a job at the time. I was perfectly fine with walking had they not been able to accommodate my request (and previous places I interviewed with had certainly done that). I'm not sure how my coworkers negotiated/requested their schedule or if they did at all.
I never answer the phone when staffing calls me. They can leave a message and I will call back if I'm interested. Co-workers will also stop asking you for favors if you never say yes. Beware that they're not likely to do you favors either, though.
My first job as a new graduate was a chronically short staffed hospital. They actually kept calling and asking me to work for months after I'd resigned and moved to another state.
I had a nurse manager that kept calling me after I turned in my resignation and for a couple of YEARS after I quit, asking me if I would vonsider coming back to work for her.
The funny thing was, I quit partly because I thought she was incompetent to the point it was scary. When I quit I made it clear it was because the judgement call that she made with an issue was beyond crazy (there were multiple but one took the cake) and I wasn't going to work for a company than was so chronically understaffed that it was neglecting the residents (I would walk into a room to do med pass, smell something foul, do a quick check and KNOW it wasn't within the past two....probably 12....hours). Um, hell no I'm not coming back. I don't know how many times I told her that I was already working at a new job but she kept trying.
I had employers call all the time asking me to come in. Before I had my daughter, I did come in a lot, sometimes regretting I had answered the phone.
Then I couldn't come in-no one to watch my child. One kept calling and I eventually said, "Not to be rude, but I can't. I never can. I work the weekend. My husband works the week. There is no one to watch my child". She told me I know but I am required to ask. I did realize that there was no pressure when I would bring up my daughter. If they did, I would have to say, "are you offering to babysit?"
Just a note to the people getting upset about the "not working weekends" part. I don't work weekends either, nor do I work holidays. It's not magic or favoritism, it's what is in my signed employment contract. Not everybody HAS to work weekends and holidays, even when they work for a large, very busy urban hospital like I do. No weekend/no holiday upon date of hire contracts actually do exist.
To the OP: when I worked for an institution that behaved in the manner you are describing, it was a symptom of a much larger problem with chronic understaffing and dangerous working conditions. I ended up leaving that institution for much safer, saner working conditions. If you do not want to leave (or cannot leave), then my advice is the same as it always is in these situations: "no" is a complete sentence.
Unless you are on call, you are not obligated to answer phone calls from work on your day off. If they really need extra nurses, they simply should hire traveler nurses. Don't let them take advantage of you to save their money.
I'm the same way, let it go to voicemail, they can leave a message. I already work full time, and I have small children that I like to spend my time off with, so I rarely pick up OT. But I will make trades to help my coworkers out, because there are times when I request trades as well. But honestly, my employer calls me nearly every day that I'm off to pick up, and since I work days and nights, there's not much room I can pick up in without burning myself out. I think a lot of places work this way for staffing, it's not particularly unusual for nurses. I work in LTC, but I know our local acute care hospital created a float team - nurses hired specifically to float between floors and cover when there's call ins. You're guaranteed part time or full time hours, but you have no rotation, it's almost strictly call in.
You should not be insisting to have every weekend off. That is inappropriate. I worked as a bedside nurse for 13.5 years and ALWAYS had to work weekends. I was coordinator of our hospital's stroke program for 6 years. During that time, I had every weekend off. And, yes, I felt extremely fortunate.
They don't... but it's strongly encouraged. There is pressure there, if you get what I mean. I do have it in writing, I'm not worried about it getting taken away. I just feel pressured to answer? It's more annoying than anything.
Especially when a random nurse that I don't know very well texts me and asks if we can switch days so she go to a bachelorette party...
My advice is to be accommodating to co-workers because it may be you that needs a day off and may be required to find your own replacement. If you get the reputation of not ever switching, aspect the same treatment if you need a day for some reason.
It's not as though I don't have the lady balls to say no, I do, but how many times can I say that I can't and that I'm not interested? I think what makes me more angry is the fact that they always want an explanation as to why I can't come in. At first I would struggle to come up with excuses. "I've already had several glasses of wine. I'm sorry!" "I'm actually visiting my sister and she's two hours away! I can't. I'm sorry". Then after a while I realized I was being ridiculous and just started telling them the truth; that I was off work and just didn't want to work. Yet, the phone calls persist... I understand that it's frustrating to be understaffed, but my coworkers just call in constantly and there just aren't enough nurses... I'm already tired of picking up the slack once I'm there that I don't want to pick up the slack on my off days too.
NurseDisneyPrincess
66 Posts
So true. It is annoying, and I have considered quitting, but overall I do enjoy the setting, the people (although the constant requests are annoying), and my schedule. I interviewed with several different places before I found this hospital and they gave me the schedule that I wanted.