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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

I genuinely want to know ?

86 replies

crikeybill · 06/07/2012 11:05

Ok So i work in a busy NHS hospital office.
There are 3 managers that work together and have to cover each other, of which I am one.
One of the managers has handed in her notice and leaves next week, this leaves me and another woman. We are not replacing her ( thanks Budget cuts !)
Other woman is pg and goes on maternity leave end of November, this means it will be just me for the whole of 2013. No problem with that, she is entitled to have dc go on maternity leave etc. Although the workload will be interesting Shock We dont really get on to be honest and infact we rarely speak unless its work related. We have separate offices so can avoid each other quite easily apart from at meetings.

Anyway she and I both have school age children. Hers is 5 and mine are 8 and 9. I got in today and she has booked the whole of the summer holidays off apart from 1 week !!! Plus that week is overlapping with mine which i understood couldnt happen !!!! She hasnt asked me what I am doing, she hasnt asked me if this is ok ( we will have to cover each other now the third one has gone ) and frankly im fuming.
I spoke to our line manager who said that as far as he is concerned it is first come, first served !! he is rubbish though as he hates confrontation so will have just let her have it !

I am so angry. I am angry that I will be working most of the holidays, apart from the 1 week I booked back in March. I am angry that she doesnt feel that as it is now just us two she should have spoken to me. I am angry that my crap line manager has allowed it to happen !!

I really want to email her to point all this out but dont want to sound petty and im genuinely wondering if I am being petty ????

Am I being unreasonable ??
What would you do ?

OP posts:
ThisIsAUsername · 06/07/2012 11:09

Talk to her. Don't email, talk. I'd explain that you're going to be covering for her whilst she is on maternity leave, plus practically the entire summer holidays, you both have children, and ask if you can take a couple of weeks off her in the holidays. It isn't fair. YANBU.

manicbmc · 06/07/2012 11:10

Do you have a HR dept? Go to them.

squeakytoy · 06/07/2012 11:10

What sort of cushy job allows her to book so many weeks holiday in one block?

LindyHemming · 06/07/2012 11:13

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Original poster
crikeybill · 06/07/2012 11:14

squeaky she hasnt booked it all in one block thats the ( in my opinion ) sneaky thing. She has booked a fortnight off, then back for a week then off for a fortnight, then 3 days off then then another 3 three. She has pretty much bagsied time off every week off the summer holidays which is how we have overlapped.

We do have a HR dept but they will say all annual leave is allocated at managements decision. Hmm

OP posts:
girlpancake · 06/07/2012 11:14

I would be angry. But I do kind of think you should have been booking your holiday before July. By this stage she might well have assumed that you didn't want more time off in the summer, or that you were planning on taking advantage of cheaper weeks away later on.
I would talk to her, and if that fails, I would talk to HR. Thisisausername is right, don't email her a stroppy note, go and see her.

OutragedAtThePriceOfFreddos · 06/07/2012 11:15

How much holiday entitlement do you get?

Play her at her own game and book off Easter or whenever else you want. Bear it in mind and set yourself reminders to get your holiday in as soon as ou possibly can. Or, talk to her and come to an arrangement.

Original poster
crikeybill · 06/07/2012 11:15

euphemia I knew someone would ask that. I work in a cancer unit and we have to set clinics up one month in advance once we know how many women we are dealing with. So round about now is when we would usually start booking summer leave. She clearly waited till I was away and booked the lot !!Angry

OP posts:
girlpancake · 06/07/2012 11:16

And I don't think arranging holiday like this is necessarily sneaky. She's not allowed time off in a block, so she's acted within the rules. I think you've just left it too late this year. If you know you have to co-ordinate, you needed to talk to her weeks ago imo. But you could still try talking to her now.

wfhmumoftwo · 06/07/2012 11:17

You need to talk to her. Explain that you also have a child that you wanted to spend some time with over summer. Ask her to consider this and can you both sit down and agree which dates work best for both of you. Don't threaten her with the whole 'i'm covering for you next year' rather gentley remind her that it will be difficult for you to take time off while she is out and you are doing the work.
If she is not prepared to be reasonable i think you need to speak to your manager again, and then HR to see if something can be done.
Taking the whole summer off does not seem right (unless you are a teacher) We would never be able to do this in my company and need special permission for anything longer than 2 weeks in one go.
YANBU, she is.

Original poster
crikeybill · 06/07/2012 11:18

Once you have been here over 10 years you get 32 days annual leave. She is going on ML in November so i guess is using all hers up.

I get that she may have assumed I didnt want any, but shouldnt I have been asked that !!!
As we dont talk any conversation i go and have might look confrontational so im wondering what to say !

OP posts:
Original poster
crikeybill · 06/07/2012 11:21

girlpancake I havent left it too late, you cant book it in advance !

We also have the same rule about more then 2 weeks off in one go but I have just looked in the leave book and she has actually asked for parental leave and stated that she needs to be off to look after her child in the summer holidays as she has no one to do it ! So is that to be every summer holiday then I wonder.

Gah I need to talk to her dont I, ok thanks.

OP posts:
SquidgyBiscuits · 06/07/2012 11:23

If its first come first served, she's done nothing wrong at all. Surely if you wanted time off during the holidays you could have booked it by now, given that the holidays are a couple of weeks away?

I operate the same first come first served policy for my own staff. If one comes to me with a holiday request and nobody else has it booked then generally speaking I'll approve it. It's not a bloody playground and I'm too busy to get involved in office politics.

lisaro · 06/07/2012 11:24

The holidays start soon. Don't you think you've left it very late?

Original poster
crikeybill · 06/07/2012 11:25

squidgy I CANT book it off in advance !!!! As I said we have to wait till the month before so I know what clinics are running. We have never before run a first come, first served policy either ! Historically the three of us have had to discuss it first, as number 3 has handed in her notice she obviously didnt want to deal with just me and has gone ahead and done it.

OP posts:
Original poster
crikeybill · 06/07/2012 11:27

I.CANT.BOOK.IT.IN.ADVANCE...but thanks for your help Confused

OP posts:
Quenelle · 06/07/2012 11:28

Ask your line manager who will cover your holidays next year when your colleague's on mat leave and you're on your own. Can't they put the same measures in place so you can take another week this summer?

itdidntworkout · 06/07/2012 11:28

Arrange a meeting with her and your line manager to discuss. If you don't have any luck, raise a grievance with HR. having worked in the NHS for many years, a grievance is the only way to get things resolved, sad, but true!

girlpancake · 06/07/2012 11:29

You may not have been able to book it in advance, but you could have talked to her in advance. That's the problem here. You don't really like each other so you're working against each other instead of together. This is just the outcome of that routine behaviour at your work.

HipHopOpotomus · 06/07/2012 11:29

You seem to have a very good case for fair distribution of holidays across staff members in school holidays.

You need to talk with her directly about this and try and work something out between you.

Plomino · 06/07/2012 11:30

I think you 're going to have tomy and talk to her , but don't be too surprised if her attitude is 'tough' . You might just have to learn from this and play her at her own game .

I can't believe you have to wait till this late in the day to book it though ! Mind you , I've just had to put in my 2013/14 request for primary annual leave , and the cut off date is the 9th July or it's too late !

Original poster
crikeybill · 06/07/2012 11:33

Ok thank you. I take on board your comments about us not talking to each other. It is childish and needs dealing with.

OP posts:
girlpancake · 06/07/2012 11:39

good luck!

BadDayAyTheOrifice · 06/07/2012 11:40

"Plus that week is overlapping with mine which i understood couldnt happen"
I don't understand. Have you got some holiday booked or not?

Original poster
crikeybill · 06/07/2012 11:47

Yes I have one week booked off which I booked in march. I was able to book that early as there is always a minimum available to ensure you get "something". She also booked a week. So as it stood when i left wednesday we had a week each. I got in today, the diaries were opened yesterday and it was all gone.

OP posts: