Help me decide my working days PT

[moise]

Contemplating asking for one of the below after maternity leave. I’ve done a pros and cons list but can’t decide. Currently my baby is very young so I can’t imagine what combination of days off is going to work best with a toddler.

Monday & Tuesday (4 day weekend)
Monday & Thursday (never working more than 2 days in a row)
Tuesday & Thursday (the next day is always a day off)
Wednesday & Thursday (two weekends)

DM works part time and has Mon/Tue off, so she has suggested I ask for other days. She wouldn’t be regular childcare for both these days but she would likely do two half days, or one of the days, whenever not on holiday. It would also be good contingency in case DD couldn’t attend the childminder for whatever reason.

I think having a Monday off is advantageous for bank holidays which is what I am keeping in mind.

I wouldn’t want to ask for a Friday off, as it is a more relaxed, fun day in my office and everyone is in good spirits- the work socials also occur almost entirely on Fridays.

I work p/t one of which is a Monday. I don’t work Bank Holidays as our business doesn’t open bank holidays. I only get pro rata hours for a bank holiday so in order to cover my days off I need to use 3hrs annual leave for any bank holiday on a working day. It was much more beneficial when I worked my days midweek as I’d accrue hours from the bank holidays

Wednesday and thursday

That makes sense! So you’re disadvantaged for working a Monday?

So between DM and I we have 4 of 5 weekdays off? Or just for the mini weekend? :)

I think while your DC are in nursery it is advantageous to not have them in nursery two days in a row - less likely to miss lots of days due to illness so that could be something to consider.

You sound as though you think you will get all bank holiday Mondays off - you won't, you'll have to use annual leave.

Unless Monday is my NWD, that’s what I’m saying. Then you get a small amount of extra leave to account for the missed bank hols if I’m correct

Oh do you think? I have heard people say the opposite and that they settle better with two consecutive days in childcare, but I must say that always surprised me as I always thought what you were saying makes more sense

Although I might have less annual leave if I didn’t take Monday, I guess it may be swings and roundabouts if DM is around and available to help on other days we might save some from the nursery bill so advantageous in other ways

I know you said no to Fridays, but I have found over the years that the overwhelming majority of my friends who also worked pt also tended to have Fridays off so it was a lot easier to arrange to meet up with them and their DCs. Our DCs are grown up now but a lot of us still don't work Fridays and catch up then. When I first went back I was made to work Tue/Thur/Fri for business reasons and hated working Fridays for that reason. Also having a break in the middle of the week was really disjointed for actual work, it effectively means you have two mornings a week when you are playing catch-up with emails etc instead of one. Having Mondays off I always felt behind all my colleagues when I came in on Tuesday and I missed all the "what did you get up to at the weekend" stuff. I finally settled on working Mon/Tue/Wed and despite the bank hol thing it is by far the best pattern I have worked (have also done Tue/Wed/Thur).

Have the Monday off. Gives you your BH allowance to use mainly elsewhere (aside from the ones which fall on other weekdays).

I'd then take the Tues as well tbh. We find the traffic / commute really heavy Tues-Thur and Friday traffic much much lighter.

I have Mondays off which means I get bank holiday prorota which I like.
I also never get the Sunday work feeling

Someone made a good point about nursery. If they have a temp or diarrhoea they have to have 48 hours off. Not having them close together may help with that. However mine goes to nursery Wednesday to Friday. He always catches something on a Wednesday, shows symptoms on Fridays has Saturday to Tuesday to recover and go back again. If it was spaced out he would likely end up missing nursery more. Having back up childcare on days your working days is a very good idea.

From the AL pov, in the majority of workplaces, it is best NOT to work on a Monday, as you will get 3/5 of a day's hours added to your AL for every BH that is on a Monday (always at least 4) whereas if a BH falls on a working day, you have to forfeit some of your AL hours (2/5 of a day for each BH).

Whether it is better for you to be in work 2 days together, as opposed to 2 days apart, will depend on your job to an extent.

From a 'going to places when they are quieter' pov, it's generally better to have your NWDs earlier in the week, but that depends if you might want to meet up with friends. Ditto if you are likely to spend time with your Mum or if you prefer the idea of her being possible emergency cover on your working days.

Also bank holidays full on Monday and Fridays mostly you don't have to pay nursery fees if they don't go in on those days but you will if they are there usual days

When your DC is at school, lots of inset days happen on Monday plus BH means you don't need to find childcare if you're already not working Monday

Maybe a good compromise then is a Monday off (could see DM) and then one weekday from Wednesday-Friday. You’ve explained the BH allowance really well, I always struggle to get my head around it. Thanks!

I agree with @ExtraDisorganised about playing catch up with your work when you don't have your working days all in a row. Depending on what you do, this is something to consider. I've worked Weds-Fri and Mon/Thurs/Friday and much preferred the 3 consecutive days

Didn’t think of this but v true

If you work part time and you don't usually work Mondays I don't think you get a different day instead. I think I'd go for doing 2 days in a row rather than spread them out .

I did a 3 day week for 4 months to use up annual leave. I had thurs / Fri off as had grandparent help. I would have preferred to break up the week and have had weds / Fri off.

It might be worth having a quick chat with HR. I got 25 days annual leave plus bank hols. With then being pro rated I had to use some annual leave to cover these.

I'd work Tues-thurs.

That way until LO starts school it gives you long weekends and many places you may want to go away to offer fri to mon.

Personally I prefer to work consecutive days and think a long weekend feels more like a long weekend if you are off either side of sat and sun!

Thinking ahead term time school hours worked out at a half post in my old job. Might be a something to think about and mention at work so they can plan for it. Before my kids went to school I worked Wednesday afternoons all day Thursday and Friday. Still saw friends and it was great. Shopped with dh on Saturday and batch cooked on Monday.

It can feel that way. I preferred 2 consecutive days for childcare as it’s over and done with. I also don’t ever work weekends so love a long weekend every week

I have worked PT for 18 years and have worked every possible combination you can think of. All have their pros and cons.

My favourite arrangement is having Mon and Fri off, working three consecutive days Tues-Thurs.

I love not working Mondays because I never have the Sunday night feeling. And can get lots done on the Monday when shops and roads are generally quieter. Sometimes town is empty on a Monday morning which is great, especially for the Nov/Dec Christmas shopping period. Plus if there's a bank holiday I get the days given to me as annual leave to use when I choose so it evens out in the end.

I found Mondays off good from a BH / AL point of view. Do you know what other part timers do? Maybe worth while finding out as you may have to work the days they don't so it may limit your options, just a thought before you set your heart on a pattern.