Hello everyone. I have been reading discussion on this site for the past few years. Ive finally decided to come here to vent and get some advice. My manager asked me to work every Monday night on this schedule, while still doing two 7a-8p shifts. We do 13 hour shifts at my facility. She claims that the night nurses that she has can not work Monday nights. These nurses do not have young children, but just "prefer" not to work Monday night. I have a one year old child. I agreed to work the shift, but only be because she said I would work Monday night and then come back on a Thursday or Friday.
Well she didn't make the schedule out that way. She has working every wedensday morning. They only gives me one day off. I will sleep most of that day. I worked like this last week and was utterly exhausted and disoriented. When I asked her if I could have some time to thin about working Monday night she said no I have to get the schedule out. Then she stared going on about making it "mandatory". This manager also asks me to cover a night shift whenever she has a call out. She does not ask the other nurses. I've only been at this job a few months.
I feel like I'm being taken advantage of. What do you guys think? Should I suck it up or seek other employment? Sorry this is so disjointed! Your feedback is appreciate.
It has nothing to do with seniority. Having a child does matter actually. Nurses without children do not have to worry about childcare and should be available to work any given night. I was hired for day shift and am being assigned a Monday night shift because of "preference" and not necessity.
Hey! Hey! My Monday night tango classes shouldn't take a backseat because you have children!
All kidding aside, learn to take a stand, and live with the consequences. You're being awfully passive-aggressive in this situation with your manager.
It has nothing to do with seniority. Having a child does matter actually. Nurses without children do not have to worry about childcare and should be available to work any given night. I was hired for day shift and am being assigned a Monday night shift because of "preference" and not necessity.
OP when I was reading your opening thread, I was having some sympathy because it does seem like a tough schedule. However, then you posted this above. Just because someone does not have kids does not mean that they can work every night.
have you tried talking to your co-workers to see what is going on, maybe someone may switch once in a while with you.
Your manager did ask you, and you agreed to the Monday nights. If you have things in your life such as child care issues, you should factor those into your scheduling. There are things that I really care about and I have adjusted my schedule sometimes and just dealt with it at other times.
Managers care about the balance on the units and patient safety. If they factored in every employee's home life, the unit would be empty of nurse's. While for you it is your child, for other's it may be their husband, wife, friend, family, etc.
Talk to your co-workers and see what can be done. Child or no children working is always ahrd.
IM NOT ASKING FOR PRIORITY! I was hired for DAY SHIFT. With no rotations mentioned what so ever. I'm asking for a fair schedule. The two night nurses should have been able to alternate working Mondays. I agreed to rotate only because I was promised two days off in between.
Check your formal job description. I guarantee you there is a statement at the end of the list of job responsibilities that says something like "And other duties as assigned." It doesn't really matter that rotating wasn't "mentioned what so ever" in your interview. There are no staff nurse jobs that guarantee you will never be rotated to another shift.
This isn't a retail job, where they can find anyone with a pulse to fill the empty spot on the schedule. This is a serious issue your manager is having with making sure that the staffing ratios are safe for patients. I have no doubt that before she became manager (even even still as manager) she makes personal sacrifices for the job.
It's about seniority, and that's pretty much it. Nursing is about adaptation. In my interview my manager stressed the importance of flexibility and prioritization of the PATIENTS. I think "you're gonna work all the holidays this year" is what she was trying to say to me lol.
On the other hand, if you really think you're being taken advantage of...another job is an option, but you know it'll probably happen there too.
I did not imply that I knew what their lives were like. You appear ignorant to make that assumption about the post.
It doesn't make her look "ignorant" at all-it makes her look like she correctly interpreted your statement.
I also disagree that manager should be taking your personal situation into consideration. That's not her job. Her job is to fill the schedule.
All that said, I would not work rotating shifts, children or no children, and would look for a different situation that I could live with. I think people here are way too quick to encourage people to quit when there is something unsatisfactory going on, but in this instance, that's exactly what I would do if this could not be resolved.
I did not imply that I knew what their lives were like. You appear ignorant to make that assumption about the post. Would you like to work my Monday night 13 hour shift and report to work at 0700 Wed.? Feel free to do so. This is an unfair schedule. An EMPATHETIC manager takes someone's home life into account when creating a schedule. No one should have to rotate unless there is a dire necessity. Not just because the other nurses "don't like Mondays".
You took your foot out of one pile and planted it in another.
You made the decision to have a child, and that does not make your schedule more important than mine.
What you describe is, however, a completely unfair schedule. You have to take responsibility for your part in it. She asked you if you could work a night every week, and you said yes. No, it wasn't fair for her to play switcheroo with your recovery time - consider yourself burned, and do not accommodate her further requests to turn your life upside-down when other staff are not expected to do so.
DO NOT frame it as you being inconvenienced as a mother. DO NOT accuse the other staff of being inflexible. Maybe Monday is their night to take care of that family member with cancer. Maybe Monday night is when their bowling league meets, which is their only social outlet and their main way to burn off the stress of nursing. You don't get to decide what's important enough for someone else to ask for a night off.
DO express your concern that rotating shifts with no recovery time impacts your ability to practice safely as a nurse. THAT should matter to a hospital. DO tell her that you are unable to work further night shifts after the published schedule is completed. If she protests, tell her that you will work nights if all staff are required to do so on a rotating basis.
As for the calls to cover other shifts, they are asking. You can tell them no.
Um, no. Nurses without children may have other obligations and are not at the beck and call of you and your child's scheduling needs.
AMEN! The OP was waaaaay off base and completely offensive with that remark. Every single one of us Nurses makes personal sacrifices for our job. The OP's narcissistic assumption hit a nerve with me.
My response to the OP is this: Your schedule sucks, likely because your attitude sucks! and you won't be successful at negotiating scheduling with your coworkers with such a narcissistic and self-aggrandizing attitude. You are and your time is NOT any more important than any other nurse simply because you have a child. Pining yourself against the childless is not a way to win this argument. I suspect your coworkers have picked up on your bad attitude and that is why you're having scheduling issues. Get off your high horse and watch how things improve
Whether or not you have kids or they have kids doesn't matter. Is there a seniority component to this issue?
Kids and seniority are not the only issues. Fairness matters, lying matters.
And the OP learning to say NO matters.
OP, it sounds like your boss lied to you, manipulated you, conned you. I wasn't there, so can't truly say who said what, was there misunderstanding, misrepresentation, what?
But you can start by telling your boss that you need to either not work 7p to 7a on Monday if you are expected back on Wednesday at 7a or that you will work every Monday night if you can come back for 7a on Thursday or Friday. Tell her what you told us - that you are disoriented and feel ill. Leave the having kids issue out of it.
Also, unless you need the money, do not pick up extra shifts. The boss seems to be using you because you are easy. Learn to just stop answering the phone, which should have caller ID and an answering machine. Change your numbers if you have to.
It has nothing to do with seniority. Having a child does matter actually. Nurses without children do not have to worry about childcare and should be available to work any given night. I was hired for day shift and am being assigned a Monday night shift because of "preference" and not necessity.
Childless nurses might be caring for grandkids, nieces and nephews, younger siblings.
And even if they aren't, they have many other interests and obligations. You are the one who decided to have a child. No one, I assume, forced you to do that.
And there are lots of childless nurses who wish they did have childcare issues. It would mean they have a child. Maybe they have been unable to have kids, maybe their kids died or were killed or stolen. Kids are an awfully sensitive issue.
Leave this issue out of your discussions with your boss and coworkers when it somes to scheduling, unless you are saying you can't get a babysitter on Monday nights.
Those with children often seem to think they deserve holidays off, especially Christmas. In the world of work, in Nursing and other fields that are 24/7, this just isn't so. I can see seniority being an issue, but not necessarily that someone deserves to be off because they have kids.
If this is really an issue, consider working in a type of Nursing that is daytime only, like school nursing, clinic or MD office nursing, maybe education, there must be a couple of others.
and you won't be successful at negotiating scheduling with your coworkers with such a narcissistic and self-aggrandizing attitude. You are and your time is NOT any more important than any other nurse simply because you have a child. Pining yourself against the childless is not a way to win this argument. I suspect your coworkers have picked up on your bad attitude and that is why you're having scheduling issues. Get off your high horse and watch how things improve 
supakimchee
35 Posts
Hey! Hey! My Monday night tango classes shouldn't take a backseat because you have children!
All kidding aside, learn to take a stand, and live with the consequences. You're being awfully passive-aggressive in this situation with your manager.