Christmas Leave 'I have kids'

[paintityellow]

Yes I know this comes up every year, but it's so bloody annoying. The Christmas leave list went around in September, with it being specified that priority for Christmas Day would be given to people who worked it last year.
Despite this we now have a couple of people really trying to pressure others to give up Christmas Day because 'I have kids'. One of these women has had the last 3 Christmas Days off, the other's kids are teenagers. One of the people they're trying to pressure wants to fly home to spend Christmas day with her parents, Another has no family in the area so also wants to travel home for Christmas. Both worked last year.
AIBU to find this attitude infuriating?

And I'm out. I've reached my quota of reading posts designed to make me feel like a worthless irrelevant piece of shit only good to do the things other people don't want to do.

No doubt there will be several more threads to remind me of that before Christmas though so I'm sure I won't miss out

Thank you as always to the lovely parents of which there have been many on the thread who understand that childless people are still actually human beings deserving of respect, compassion and equality.

What would you suggest the solution is here then? Most people here seem to think any mother longing to be with their young dcs on Christmas Day is a selfish individual who should suck up the realities of their ‘lifestyle choice’.

DHs company runs 365/24. It’s a production company making materials for other companies internationally. They can’t close down. They also run financially January to December so it’s a important month for them.
Im sure there are lots of other companies doing the same.

Ok so you think a parent deserves a decade of advantage. Why? A lot can happen in a decade to anyone including those of use who don't have children.

Also how many two year olds do you know just fully understand the concept of Christmas let alone the bloody calendar. I think 2-3 maybe even 4 are optimum ages for delaying a day.

This year will be the last Christmas for a close relative in their 30s. Why do your children trump that? Please explain in full as my relative will be dead next year. Your children will be a year older. I want to understand

I disagree completely. Any modern company who wants to attract and retain decent staff will do so by ensuring that all staff have equal treatment around flexible working and equitable annual leave arrangements. Companies that discriminate against childless people will more than likely end up in a tribunal and rightly so. People without children are entitled to be treated decently and fairly..not shoved to the back of the priority queue...

So two female employees, both 30 years old. One a parent and one, not. You wouldn’t treat them fairly by alternating who has time off at Christmas?

No- in my earlier post, I said I understand medical, care, emergency service workers would be needed. I wondered who else was asked to work.

Oh do bore off! Just because you can only find joy in something involving children doesn't mean that others can't enjoy a time without children (some of us enjoy things more without children). Please tell me where it is writ that Christmas is primarily aimed at children?

It was years ago now but I'll never forget the look on her face when I turn up with this huge bouquet of flowers (and 'thinking of you' card I might add) at the door. Her grandma kept saying 'oh aren't they beautiful'....i was like 'yes technically they are for you' 😂😂

I forgot to add she didn't even have children. I know that's in the title of the thread but it's all getting abit serious on here so thought I'd try lighten the mood 😊

I'm struggling to think of any work that needs to be done at Xmas except care homes and hospitals. Everything else can shut down surely?
I'm surprised so many people have to work it

Everyone takes their turn.
Lots of MNs have made this very obvious suggestion.
Everyone is equal.

Shouldn't be at the expense of pressuring people who aren't mothers and making their lives harder.

It’s not about adults “caring about Christmas”, but so what if they do? Some adults love Disneyland too. I care about having time off because I like to travel over Christmas (to escape Christmas because I don’t like it!) and that absolutely takes priority for me over someone else’s kids.

No, just the ones who suggest that someone who doesn’t have children has no life and clearly must work Christmas to allow parents to take priority.

If a parent is ‘longing to be with their young DCs on Christmas Day’ and for some reason, can’t do any of the things to address the issue suggested by actual sensible parents on this thread, they need a new job not a belief that they have the right to exploit their childless colleagues.

Use your imagination! Do you use electricity and water over Xmas? Do you expect fresh food in the shops on Boxing Day? Do you expect to be able to call 999 and get a response from the police and fire brigade? Should car breakdowns be attended-to? Etc.

Goodness, people live such small sheltered lives!

Well, there is an easy way to resolve this. Employers who require people to work on Christmas Day don't hire anyone who has children. Would that suit the "we must be allowed to spend the day with the kiddies" brigade?

As I've said multiple times, Year on/Year off, because being a mother does not make one woman more deserving of preferential treatment when it comes to annual leave allocation than her colleague.

And as has been said by many, there are lots of jobs that do not require Christmas working. If it's inconceivable to a parent that they should be required to work on Christmas Day it seems obvious that they should prioritise looking for an alternate working situation.

Just quit. Find another job that doesn’t ruin your life like this. This is one of the main reasons I don’t do shift work any more.
Working over the holidays is rubbish whether you have kids or not. Now I have my own family I would never, ever work a job that robbed me of Christmas with my children.

That isn’t a problem for those without children to solve.

If someone has chosen to have children, and has chosen to work a job that requires them to work during holidays, then yes, they should indeed suck it up.

I have Muslim family members who don’t celebrate Christmas. They still prefer to have the day off so they can meet up with all their other family members who also have that day off. So they often request Christmas Day off at work too. That must get some people’s blood pressure up!

Disney adults are a very strange breed of people but don’t get me started on that

You very quickly get back to the argument about essential workers during Covid. The reality is, society only works if everyone does their bit. So at one level most people are ‘essential workers’. Want the police / hospitals / fire stations / care homes open? Then you need people to work in them. And you need heat, light, mobile and broadband to be working too, and people to answer the phone. You need people to be able to get to work, so fuel, taxis, busses. So that’s petrol stations, breakdown services, drivers. Then they need food and drink, so that’s convenience stores, take away, restaurants and fast food places. And the rubbish needs taking away. So refuse collectors and people to run the waste sites. More staff, chefs, waiting staff and dustmen. They need supplies ready for when they open the next day. So that’s lorry and van drivers. But the vehicles need loading, so that’s warehouses and staff. And they need systems, so that’s IT teams. It’d be quicker to list who doesn’t need to work. And that’s basically accountants and lawyers ;)

I am glad you have understanding employers. I am so sorry for your loss and can only imagine the heartache Christmas Day must bring every year. I hope the rest of your colleagues are more understanding Xx

I didn’t say priority over all. I’d just hope for compassion and understanding from management and among colleagues. I’m sure you must have colleagues who will readily cover your shifts in those circumstances.

Let those mothers either find jobs that don't require Christmas Day shifts, or adapt their family celebrations to their work schedules.

Stepping on other people and claiming some sort of false superiority of need is not the answer. Many of us "long" for all sorts of things, but it's not up to our co-workers or employers to sacrifice in order to provide those things.