can i ask??

Re: can i ask??

FINNIGAN — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 18:14:19 GMT

Thanks guys, uve been very helpfull, am always ok with filling in for colleagues but one late i cannot fill in for , have commitments afterwork,, i have been made to feel bad, but im not backing down this time, i appreciate that doc/hosp/dentist apptmts are to be taken as lunch break/holiday etc, but im no longer willing to come back for 2-3 hrs after work for staff meetings unpaid, if i have to lose time for personnal apptms. sorry for gripe but enuff is enuff lol

Re: can i ask??

Alison Clare Hickman — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 07:29:47 GMT

Hi Kerry,

Yeah, this is what happens at my practice - and then another night I would get half an hours overtime...the practice purse would be better off giving me the oppo to work back the time lost, at time, rather than paying me MORE for overtime... but that's how the rules work...go figure!

Ali h

Re: can i ask??

Kerry Brennand DipAVN (Surgical) RVN A1 MBVNA — Sun, 03 Feb 2013 20:31:30 GMT

Sorry only just seen this thread I have just started a new one as I got half hour deduction from my wage last month for going to the doctors at 4pm shift ended at 4.30pm only time I could get......I did offer to go back to work to make time up but was told it was fine????? Very confused!!!

Re: can i ask??

Roseann21 — Sun, 03 Feb 2013 18:50:55 GMT

Surely this is down to the practice and to whatever is in your contract? No two places are the same, so you need to ask - the practice should have protocols for all these things and once you ask, you will know where you stand. If you then think it is unfair, it is up to you to bring this up with whoever is in charge and put your case forward.

Re: can i ask??

Alison Clare Hickman — Sun, 03 Feb 2013 12:05:05 GMT

Hi,

every practice I have been at seems to work slightly differently...

a) paid time off for dentists/doctor appmts (so long as you tried to arrange them at most convenient time to work). Paid Sick leave.

b) some paid time off if it was, say, for a hospital appointment. These tend to be quite difficult to rearrange at convenient times and are mostly dictated by the hospital.

c) no paid time off at all for anything, including sick leave (just SSP when relevant).

d) OOH meetings - we got dinner (usually pizza / sarnies / treats) but attendance was not compulsory. It was not seen as 'playing the game' if you failed to attend a single one so we all tried to do at least one or two in the year. Exceptions made for nurses with family responsibilities though.

e) OOH meetings - revolving compulsory meetings held during normal work hours (ie staff took turns to attend and cover)

f) OOH meetings - bring your own food for a compulsory attendance and overtime was paid

g) OOH meetings - food provided, overtime paid (these were nearly always fully attended - wonder why?!)

h) OOH meetings - compulsory attendance and no overtime paid was the normal at one place I worked at. I politely suggested that as we were not paid for sick leave, doctors/dentists appointments etc that this did not seem to be fair so they eventually instigated d) and e)... Not without a lot of muttering!

I agree, that what is the practice at your current place of employment doesn't seem fair. It tends to play on your sense of duty to do things OOH without some form of compensation and so we do it; but this eventually breeds resentment I find. I, like many of my fellow nurses out there do do lots of work without financial recompense, it's just how we are (that's a good thing, we're kindly souls). However there is a limit, as I said before, and fair play between your employer and you is, I would suggest, the right path. So, perhaps I can suggest you consider raising the subject of fair play like I did? You never know...

Ali h

Re: can i ask??

Julie-Anne Wilson — Sun, 03 Feb 2013 11:32:39 GMT

For normal working hours cover, our HN is the one that makes up the rotas and she works out the cover. If our holiday lands on our weekend on, we arrange a swap ourselves - most of the nurses are happy to swap or take extra hours if a swap isn't possible.

As for dental/doc appts, I have no idea. I live too far from my work to arrange these things during the working day so I've never had any experience with it. I think most of the nurses/receptionists in our practice will use the appt as their lunch hour? Depends how long you're away for. I know when I got mauled by a cat and was taken to A&E, I wasn't planning on taking my lunch break that day as I felt I was away for a long time at the hospital but I was told by others to just take it.

We don't tend to have meetings OOH so, again, I have no experience with this but I think you should be able to put it down as overtime or at least have the option of not going. I'd hate to be forced to stay late and not get anything back for it.