Happy Holidays!
Well here we are, at the start of another holiday season. The crisp air, the fresh snow…the holiday work schedule…….

For the third year in a row, I will be working Thanksgiving.  This is my 3rd nursing position in as many years, and as luck would have it, I’ve been scheduled for Thanksgiving each year. I am not so upset by this, as the holiday pay will go a long way towards financing the next big upcoming holiday—Christmas.

This year I do not have to work Christmas, and I AM glad of that. My first year as a nurse, I was put on the schedule for 7a – 7p Christmas day. There was an issue of seniority, and being the newbie I was given no real choice. I did, however, manage to barter down to 7a –330p, and then magically got flexed for the first 4 hours of my shift. It wasn’t all bad, but still…having worked Thanksgiving that year, and then knowing I would be required to work New Year’s as well…I did find it a little unfair.

How does the holiday schedule work for you? I am interested in hearing the different ways that hospitals manage their nursing schedule throughout the holidays. Where I work now goes by the every-other holiday rule, which I suspect is the way many places plan for holiday staffing. What about your place of employment? Are there any other creative ways to arrange the holiday schedule?