Mandatory overtime?

1 How many of your facilities use mandatory overtime as a staffing solution? My employer staffs us inadequately to begin with, then if there's a call in, we end up getting mandated. This has been happening at least once a week lately, plus people find out they're getting mandated at the last minute. It seems like it happens more and more frequently as I continue to work there. It's very hard on employee morale and unsafe for patients. I'm curious what other nurses' takes are on this topic.
My facility has to give us at least a 7 day heads up about mandatory overtime. I think its mainly because we are a huge hospital with the capabilities to float staff to make up for those missing. I like the extra money but when I have to work 4 days a week, it can take a toll.

we have had to do 24 hrs of call per 4 week schedule for about a year now. and we can almost bet we will be called in b/c we have been so short. It has nearly killed my unit and alot of the "good" and experienced nurses have left and a bunch have gone part time. They don't want to do alot of new hires b/c they are afraid the census will drop. Pay is very good but it is not worth losing time with family.

The laws concerning mandatory OT vary facility to facility, union to union contract state to state.

I'm not sure how overtime can be made mandatory from a legal standpoint, but I don't know. I hadn't heard of this. if they called me last minute, I probably wouldn't pick up the phone. how do you make plans? what if you were out at dinner and had a beer and then they called you in? are you supposed to just go in anyway?

at my job when they post the schedule they will have the needs marked with stars for how many people can sign up on certain days. they give you so many days to sign up for the alloted amount of hours. we must answer if they call us on the on call time we signed up for. we get paid a small amount while on call wether we are called in or not then if we are called in we get time and a half.

Mandatory to come in if they call you??I'd say "F off" if they mandated that.

No mandatory overtime, which is a good thing. Not having enough staff is a bad thing. Not attempting to get help at all is a really bad thing. Not aknowledging that acuity needs are increased, and saying, "Oh, well, deal with it," is a really bad thing. Using guilt to bring in staff who are already cooked beyond done is cruel and nasty. Making sure that there is adequate staff for every shift is a wonderful thing, because it is so beautiful and rare, like flawless diamonds.

if you're not unionized and this continues, call your state dept of wages and employment. there have been court cases where the mandates and threats of "we'll charge you with patient abandonment!!!" have been scotched because the longstanding pattern of mandates indicated there was no serious attempt to hire staff. a pattern of inadequate staffing is a management problem, not an emergency.

Management makes the decisions about what is an adequate staff, not the people who are actually working on the floor. They are the ones who determine if the nurses can, in fact, handle all that needs to be done, acuity notwithstanding. If a request for more help is made, which is more frequent than not, the response is, "we don't have anyone." I think that this is one big reason why people don't pick up extra shifts; they know that they will be entering into one of the seven levels of Hades. And we all need our jobs. I can understand, though, why they only work their schedule, and nothing else. They are all TIRED.

I think I should have been more specific. I mean mandatory overtime (which we call "being mandated") in that you are already there, getting ready to finish your shift and leave, then you get a call from the supervisor stating that you are "mandated" and are forced pretty much to stay another 4 hours, if you worked a 12. If you have to come in and work again that night/morning, it's too bad for you, because they don't seem to care. If they were calling me at home and I wasn't actually at work, I could just avoid the call. This is happening more and more frequently, and you can see why it destroys employee morale. It's very difficult for nurses with children especially, because they aren't given enough notice to make arrangements to pick up their kids or anything.

Quote from ednursetobei'm not sure how overtime can be made mandatory from a legal standpoint, but i don't know. i hadn't heard of this. if they called me last minute, i probably wouldn't pick up the phone. how do you make plans? what if you were out at dinner and had a beer and then they called you in? are you supposed to just go in anyway?

Our floor is always short and they have a hiring freeze. We are being mandated daily to work 12 to 16 hour shifts. It is killing my floor and a lot of nurses have left. Personally 16 hours is too much for me. I worry about my standard of care when I am so tired and then have to be back to work in 6 hours by the time I get home. I used to be so proud of my floor and my hospital, now I can't stand going to work not knowing if I will have to work 4 more hours on top of my 12 hour night shift.