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.
Did you actually read the posts? Because you totally misrepresented me in your previous post. The "collective" largely agreed with her regarding the shift issue. The OP completely stepped in it when she brought up the kid thing. That's ​what people are objecting to.
and my point was, she took that into consideration when she picked the job!. then they change it up on her. AND she was posting after doing the monday noc. that she probably did not get enough sleep for, and has already stated that it causes her to be ill and disoriented! did you really miss that part?, and that is not only aimed at you but Ruby as well. her kids are no less important than anyones sick relatives, or monday noc foot ball. her first mistake was saying yes the first time.
and this is coming from some one with NO kids, never had any, period
I have worked bedside for 30 Years. I have always accommodated staffing needs ( still do on my work from home job). I have NEVER been asked to swing from days to nights in the same week.
OP knows it is affecting her performance, and it is not safe. IF the " paperwork" somehow covers this.. forcing ANY nurse , to swing shift to cover staffing holes is a safety issue.
How about "as needed" by the facility.. with using common sense?
Manager needs to cover her holes with agency staff.. not use and abuse the day shift.
Thank you! some one whom can read and understand!!
Thank you! some one whom can read and understand!!
Morte, MOST of us agree with the OP that the schedule situation is egregious. I'm mystified as to why you're having trouble understanding this. My beef was with the nurses with no kids issue and that's true for most of us.
Whether or not you made the choice to bear children is of no interest to coworkers or management. You don't get special treatment because you are childed and others are not. The other nurse was there before you and there is no reason she needs to work Monday nights if that was the agreement in place. You do not deserve the other nurse's days off just because they suit your personal life better because you have a child.
Specializes in ER, ICU/CCU, Open Heart OR Recovery, Etc.
I remember being the most recently hired nurse in an ICU in the early 90's. My first holiday season I worked EVERY ONE of the major holidays from Thanksgiving on...because the senior staff all had children. I wasn't pleased about it, but I spoke up. I pleasantly said I don't expect this to occur again and requested I be scheduled to work every other holiday...like our written unit and hospital policy was written. I never got scheduled to do Thanksgiving through NY Day again.
I also feel that any time I have felt disoriented or exhausted, I don't go in. It's not safe. Period. The BON isn't going to care how one is scheduled if something happened and a patient is injured/dies.
Safeguard your license OP. In the end it won't matter if you offend someone. You and only you can take care of yourself.
The word is NO. Pleasant, firm, and backed with policy. If they don't want to abide by that, vote with your feet and leave.
and my point was, she took that into consideration when she picked the job!. then they change it up on her. AND she was posting after doing the monday noc. that she probably did not get enough sleep for, and has already stated that it causes her to be ill and disoriented! did you really miss that part?, and that is not only aimed at you but Ruby as well. her kids are no less important than anyones sick relatives, or monday noc foot ball. her first mistake was saying yes the first time.
and this is coming from some one with NO kids, never had any, period
NOBODY said her kids weren't as important. Where in the heck did you get that? What we are saying is those of us who don't have kids have lives that are just as important. This was in response to her idea the childless nurses should be available to take any night shift simply because they don't have children. Go look at her third (I think) post. I NEVER said what happened to her schedule was right. Show me where I did!!! I even called it incompatible with life. I'm AGREEING with you on that aspect and I'm not going to let you paint me as some kind of idiot incapable of reading comprehension. Especially, as far as my posts, I'm not the one with a comprehension problem. But to distill it down for you. I think what her manager did was very wrong. I think her idea that nurses with kids should have priority on scheduling over nurses without is also wrong. We are on the same side.
Specializes in Specializes in L/D, newborn, GYN, LTC, Dialysis.
I really dislike it when someone comes on and implies those who do not agree with the original post somehow fail in reading comprehension and this is not the only post I have seen this occur. It comes across as condescending and insulting.
Morte, MOST of us agree with the OP that the schedule situation is egregious. I'm mystified as to why you're having trouble understanding this. My beef was with the nurses with no kids issue and that's true for most of us.
Exactly...that was my whole last paragraph in my post. Changing shifts more than once a week is not reasonable, even with an "other duties as assigned" clause in her job description.
What I took issue with was the notion that the fact that she is a mom should have been a consideration. When called out the first time, she didn't agree "I see what you're saying, and of course my child shouldn't be a special consideration. I was exhausted and emotional." She defended the notion that having a child mattered in staffing.
The only consideration on the table needed to be "this is a ridiculously unreasonable and unsafe staffing practice."
And again I agree that it is. That is a ***** schedule to ask anybody to work, and I would never work a job that had that kind of requirement. My first job was rotating with the shift changing q 1-2 weeks with 1 day off in between. After a few months I requested to go to straight nights, because I couldn't handle the constant scrambling of my sleep schedule.
It's known that forward-rotational shift work (nights to pms to days) is better than the reverse (days to nights) and that more than one 24-hour period off between rotations is safer. This is both for the worker's health and for reducing medication errors. I wish I had time to search for a more evidence-based source for you, but the Canadian Center for Health and Safety (Canada's version of the US's OSHA) has some fact sheets that might be helpful. Also, stressing the safety angle rather than your QOL or perceived "fairness" might get you farther. Good luck.
Are you serious right now? I work, have kids and go to school. I work nights on Monday for 12 hours and then days on Wednesday for 12 hours. Stop acting as if this is the end of the world! Be grateful you have a job right now, as many nurses are without due to the job market. A manager is not required to work around your children, nor are your coworkers. Implying that your own need is greater than your coworkers, is selfish and extremely unprofessional. We all have lives outside of our work life, and your own kids do not trump the needs of another. We take care of dying family members, are attending school or are working another job to make ends meet. Not wanting to work a Monday, might be a very personal reason that the coworker does not want to disclose. You do not get to decide what they can and cannot do, due to you having children. This post has to be one of the most selfish and unprofessional posts I have read on here. This is another classic example of the sense of entitlement people can get and expecting the world to revolve around them and only them.
Per OP "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. "
OP made an additional comment that having a one year old would make this "arrangement' even more difficult. The AN community then chose to blast her on that?
OP stated she was NOT asking for any special considerations.
Far from any sense of entitlement. OP needed guidance as to how to handle management manipulation.
This is a crazy schedule for anyone, whether they have children, no children, a dog, a cat, other obligations, anything!
You need to tell manager quite firmly that this quick rotation of shifts does not allow for sufficient rest and you can not provide safe nursing care. End of discussion.
And I too have worked jobs (at the VA) where I was forced to work 5 - 8 hr shifts/week, we worked 2 days, 2 evenings, then two nights then had two days off and it repeated itself. Needless to say I left after one year of that craziness.
You agreed to work Monday nights, with the stipulation that you got an appropriate amount of time off before your next shift. They aren't meeting your stipulation - have a talk with your manager. I'm sorry that you're in this position, and I hope you stand up for yourself.
morte, LPN, LVN
7,015 Posts
and my point was, she took that into consideration when she picked the job!. then they change it up on her. AND she was posting after doing the monday noc. that she probably did not get enough sleep for, and has already stated that it causes her to be ill and disoriented! did you really miss that part?, and that is not only aimed at you but Ruby as well. her kids are no less important than anyones sick relatives, or monday noc foot ball. her first mistake was saying yes the first time.
and this is coming from some one with NO kids, never had any, period