I'm hoping that someone can help me with my current situation. I am (well was) a nurse in a hospital setting working the overnight shift for the past 10 months. I found a new position, so emailed my formal resignation notice to my manager (as I would not see her in person for over a week). Yesterday morning was the first time I saw her since and I spoke with her in her office. In total, I gave 3 and a half weeks notice. She tells me how unprofessional I am and how ungrateful I am because the only reason I'm able to accept a new position is due to all the education given to me here. Again, I apologized, told her the night shift was becoming too much for me to handle and the new location is less than 10 minutes from my house. I also expressed my appreciation for all the education and learning opportunities I've had. She then goes on to say if I don't give a full 4 weeks I won't receive my accumulated PTO paid out. I explained that I gave 3 weeks and 4 days, as I start my new job two days after. She then tells me if I can't give the full 4 weeks she'll just cut her losses now and take my ID badge after I clock out. I was shocked. I wanted to work the amount of time I had left and give proper notice, and if she would have communicated to me that I need to work 1 more shift to cover my 4 weeks, I would have. Working 12 hour night shifts, an extra 3 days (I gave 3 weeks 4 days notice exactly) doesn't necessarily equal 3 nights of work since we only work 3 nights in total a week. I'm so confused. I don't want a termination on my record. I spoke to HR and they are "investigating" but when I tried to follow up later in the day, they didn't give me any information. I've been an employee in good standing, have never been written up or disciplined, and I've never called out. My manager is known for being a bit impulsive, but can she fire me like this? I'm so hurt because everyone is telling me she's saying that she just fired me and a woman who works at my new employer also works here. I don't want this reputation following me in the future.
I used to work in the software arena where this is common. Once you give notice, you are out the door - usually with security. You get PAID for those weeks but you are still escorted out.
I just resigned for a closer position at my employer - it's in the HR manual that you need to give four weeks notice in order to have a PTO payout, so that's what I gave.
This is called being vindictive on your nurse manager's part. At your previous job level/grade of employment, 2 weeks is the standard amount of proper heave-ho time unless there's some hospital policy that everyone forgets to read about 4 weeks on page 4001 of the manual. Since you actually exceeded that standard and gave 3 weeks and 4 days notice you did no wrong. Now if the manager wants to somehow defame you through HR to other potential employers you might cautiously consider with the guidance of an attorney a defamation lawsuit. The only problem with that is the hospital would lie about the circumstances of the real reason for their trashing you and say your supposed infraction had something to do with the old standby lie like you "diverted drugs", enaged in "unsafe nursing practice",or my personal favorite, "not a good fit."
Don't you just groove on the collegiality of it all.
You can't make this stuff up folks because unless human nature changes this crap will go on forever.
I hope that any nurses who had to work shifts to cover the open shifts that the nurse manager needlessly created did OK, didn't make any errors due to fatigue or unfamiliarity with the unit, didn't hurt themselves due to fatigue or unfamiliarity with the unit, didn't mess up plans with their families, and so on. This nurse manager is probably one of those nurses that screams, "Unsafe, unsafe," when someone makes the same errors that they made and covered up.
This is called being vindictive on your nurse manager's part. At your previous job level/grade of employment, 2 weeks is the standard amount of proper heave-ho time unless there's some hospital policy that everyone forgets to read about 4 weeks on page 4001 of the manual. Since you actually exceeded that standard and gave 3 weeks and 4 days notice you did no wrong. Now if the manager wants to somehow defame you through HR to other potential employers you might cautiously consider with the guidance of an attorney a defamation lawsuit. The only problem with that is the hospital would lie about the circumstances of the real reason for their trashing you and say your supposed infraction had something to do with the old standby lie like you "diverted drugs", enaged in "unsafe nursing practice",or my personal favorite, "not a good fit."
Don't you just groove on the collegiality of it all.
You can't make this stuff up folks because unless human nature changes this crap will go on forever.
Love your response...! Also, I too have never worked anywhere requiring 4 weeks notice. However, in all contracts for work, it is prudent to read the whole 4001 pages, even when the wording is confusing, is contradicted in other sections, and has multiple "unless", "if" , and "in addition to" sentences. I especially like when figuring out PTO accrual, you have to do a 6 step mathematical problem to get the answer and make sure you have the correct day of the week and time of day, only to find out you are 1.75 days short of seniority in order to qualify for the additional 0.843 % of the 42nd day after you returned from FMLA, unless your original hire date was before XYZ, but not after ABC, in a leap year.
Don't forget to take into consideration the alignment of the planets and the direction the wind is blowing over the South Pole too, or else you could be completely wrong and find out that you are signing up to donate your PTO funds to help finance Administration's Christmas party, to which you wouldn't get invited to anyway.
Don't forget to take into consideration the alignment of the planets and the direction the wind is blowing over the South Pole too, or else you could be completely wrong and find out that you are signing up to donate your PTO funds to help finance Administration's Christmas party, to which you wouldn't get invited to anyway.
Good one! I just love when a huge corporate hospital system asks the employees to donate money for a foundation that benefits
the corpration. Yes! Happened at one place I worked.
if you apply for unemployment and contest it as you having quit, you'll have an answer in writing. Also, if she never gave you any paperwork, HR may not honor it. What you are owed in PTO may depend on the state. In ny they owe you 5/6 of the yearly package as NY prorated it. Here in NJ they don't owe it until a full year. Or whatever their written policy is, applied equally to all the employees.
That's so far as the company. What she does as an individual, if she tries to trash your reputation, and I don't think after she cools down in a few weeks will bother, is inflammatory and subject to civil and criminal offence, if untrue. I think after you've been at the new job for a year she won't barely remember your name.
That is true. In some companies ( I haven't seen it in nursing) they escort you right to the door as a matter of policy, so you don't have a chance to copy files, steal clients, download trade secrets etc.
Once one gives notice, the employer has no obligation to an employee. It's happened to me and many others... Kinda sucks but it happens. You're clearly the one with integrity and are better off... Now, read your contract and fight for your PTO!
featherzRN, MSN
1,012 Posts
I used to work in the software arena where this is common. Once you give notice, you are out the door - usually with security. You get PAID for those weeks but you are still escorted out.
I just resigned for a closer position at my employer - it's in the HR manual that you need to give four weeks notice in order to have a PTO payout, so that's what I gave.