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?

The thing is, toddlers don't know when Christmas is. They literally have no idea what day of the week it is.

So this isn't for their benefit, is it? If you have toddlers and you have to work on Christmas Day, you just move your Christmas Day to another day in late December and your kid is literally none the wiser.

And if you have children who are old enough to know when Christmas Day is, they're also old enough to understand that Mummy or Daddy has a job which unfortunately doesn't stop just because it's Christmas, so this year we are going to do Christmas on Boxing Day instead. Or open presents on Christmas morning before Mummy goes to work, then have pizza in the evening when she gets back, and do the big Christmas dinner on Boxing Day. Whatever.

In fact, there are probably at least a million children in the UK who have some sort of Christmas Day on a day other than 25th December every year, because their parents are no longer together and they can't celebrate with both their parents at once.

So this is really not the big deal that some people seem to be suggesting it is.

Children aren't going to be traumatised by the fact that their parent had to go to work on Christmas Day some years. They are traumatised by actual abuse and neglect.

What does worry me is what kind of children these entitled parents who think their Christmases are more important than those of their child free colleagues are raising.

Because if you, a grown bloody adult, are stamping your foot and shouting, "It's not FAAAAIIIIIRRRRR!" when your colleague says, "no, I won't swap shifts with you and work on Christmas Day, I have plans", how are you teaching your children to share toys, how are you teaching them to deal with disappointment, how are you teaching them that the world doesn't revolve around them and that they can't always have everything they want in life?

I assume that you are not teaching them these things, and that you are raising spoilt, entitled brats.

I think we might be allowed to celebrate it...but only if we cover any and all work that these entitled parents want us to do and acknowledge that their (random) children are more important that our aged, maybe even dying parents, and any other person who is important in our lives.

If we are very, very lucky we may get allowed out for NYE because all childfree people are just interested in drinking and partying.

Oh and after having yet more of my colleagues bully me today about giving up my leave for them....I too am digging my heels in.

And they can start 2024 with an HR investigation into bullying and harassment at work.

Surely if you believe children should be with their parents on Christmas day, then it is the PARENTS' responsibility to make that happen. As in, they should make sure it is possible, rather than assuming other people will make that possible for them.

Stand strong

Huge shout-out to Smilesup and her DP.

They are absolutely right.

Does he sacrifice his day for Christians on this Christian day of celebration.

Well done.
Stand your ground.
Sick of all this discrimination.

So he will happily sacrifice Christmas Day so his colleagues with little ones can have the day off. Which will pretty much be the remainder of his entire working career- there’s always going to be workers with small children. I’d be a little upset and insulted to be honest if my dp wasn’t interested in spending Christmas with his family because the kids aren’t the ‘right’ ages anymore. Family is family .

Easter is the Holy Day of obligations for Church of England Christians, not Christmas.

But more importantly, remember your King James Bible, Luke 12.2

"It were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he cast into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones."

Christ would expect children to be prioritised on his own birthday.

Happy to work Xmas day when his kids were young, happy to work Xmas day now they're older.

Wonder what his kids take from that...

Did you really just type that?

Before this thread closes, may I say I hope everyone with or without children has a happy Christmas on whatever day they get to celebrate it - and many thanks to all the key workers who keep things running for the rest of us..

In response to someone playing the Christian card.

The point I was making is I think children are more important on Christmas day than adult Christians.

The better criticism of my post will require someone with a bit of bible knowledge

Amen to that!

I don't care what cards anyone feels they want to play.

Everyone is equally entitled to time off at Christmas, regardless of whether they have children or not, are a practising Christian or not, or any other circumstances they may feel are relevant.

If working over Christmas is a dealbreaker for you, get another job where you will not be required to work on bank holidays.

Otherwise, do your fair share and stop arguing that your Christmas is more important than everyone else's.

who cares?

not me.

Hear hear

Talk about misinterpreting the bible! Little ones refers to all of God's people, all ages, races and sexes being equal. So...the opposite of what you were reaching for.

I have never argued that my Christmas is more important than anyone else's. If anything I argued that my Christmas is less important than other peoples'.

I admired a PP whose DH worked Christmas shifts so his colleagues with young children didn't have to. I wonder if that offends you because you enjoy being selfish.

Stop being a diddy

There's doing a good turn and then there's being a total doormat for the benefit of people who wouldn't return the favour for you.

I wonder how that man's own children feel about the fact that, having been forced to miss out on Christmas with them when they were young, he now voluntarily misses out on Christmas with them so that people they don't even know can be with their children every year.

I hope one day he realises there is more to life than work, and more to life than pleasing people who will have forgotten your name within two weeks of your retirement, and put his own family Christmas first for once.

Understood you are selfish.

Ultimately I think a fair few posters need to understand that childfree/childless people have just as much right to spend the day with their families as others, and if they paused for just a second might realise that its usually easier to "move" Christmas day as a family with kids than a single adult.

I had plenty of boxing day Christmas dinners when my mum worked shifts, and reading some of the entitled messages on here I thank God for that life lesson.

🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄🙄

In response to @Sayitaintso33 ’s deliberately goady shite being spouted.

Final word. If you’re an entitled wanky parent NO, you are not more important than any of your colleagues.