2yo ds, nursery closed for 2 weeks at xmas, work wont let me have time off, wtf am i going to do

[whatamigonnado]

is this even legal.

they said i can only have time off if i work loads extra before xmas which i cannot do.

What job do you do?

pharmacist in a retail store

Wow - you've given them 6 months notice, and they've given you a flat "no"?

How many colleagues do you have - can you appeal to the better nature of those that don't have young children, so that they'll swap with you?

Advertise in the local paper for a student (someone experienced with children and good with children like my 3 student children) to come to your house and look after her. Even if it costs a bit at least you keep your job and your employer's good will. The employer might even chip in if they really need you at work.

already they are sorting xmas, havent even taken my summer hol yet.

its down to the manager.

if i dont work loads of extra days, which i can't
i cannot have the time off.
and the nursery is closed

my family live abroad

that is an option xenia, i had not thought of that.

they have just pissed me off so much

do most nurserys really close for 2 weeks at xmas?

Can you ask around local childminders if they could cover ? Some may have charges whose parents will take them out over Christmas . Can dh/dp cover some ?

What about parental leave (unpaid)? I don't think, provided you give adequate notice, that an employer actually can say no.

I'd be tempted to see them in the employment tribunal, its sex discrimination. You don't have to quit to sue.

Our nursery has always closed for the week between Christmas and New Year. Am I right in assuming you are single? Do you work full time or part time? If part time perhaps do swaps with other Mum friends?

parental leave? idont know much about that.

i know its out of order but im thinking of just going off sick

couldn't give a shit if i get sacked tbh

dh cannot gete hardly anytime off either

flowery im not sure you got my link.

where do you live?

whatami unfortunately although you are entitled to 4.8 weeks holiday a year, there is no law about your employer allowing you to take any of it when you choose - they can specify when you take all of it if they like, depending obviously on what's in your contract.

So there's not a lot you can do, unless you feel there's some sex discrimination going on or anything like that. When does your holiday year run from and to? If it's the end of the holiday year in December and you've got lots of holiday left, they ought to let you have some. I'm confused about why you need to work loads of extra days as well, that's a bit weird.

I am assuming you want to take these two weeks off as part of your normal annual leave entitlement so I'm not sure what difference working extra days would make to them. Either they need you during those two weeks or they don't, how does you working extra weeks earlier help? And if you have 2 weeks holiday entitlement when are they proposing you take it instead? Seems odd not to let you have any over the Christmas period, although technically legal.

I am off now, will check back again in the morning.

whatamigoingtodo - I work in retail, and due to the nature of the business, our policy is not to grant holiday in the week leading up to Easter Sunday or the 2 weeks prior to Christmas, as these are the 3 busiest weeks of the year. Are you employed directly by the store? What are your terms & conditions as far as holiday booking is concerned (should have been covered when you joined them)

While this is our company stance, there will always be exceptional circumstances, and given the advance notice you have given your employer of your childcare issues, it would be foolish of them not to meet with you to try and agree some kind of arrangement. Is locum cover a possibility?

dont want to say where i am due to being id in rl

thanks flowery.
where i work retail pharmacy, no holidays are allowed during nov or dec or start of jan.

i get 25 days holiday plus bank hols.

the nursery is closed. i have no family in the uk.

work will not allow me to take time off at xmas.
but i need to care for my son.
im i able to take the time off as parental leave?

im happy not to be paid.
all i want is to be able to look after my ds when the nursery is closed.

i dont know why thay want me to do loads of extra hours, suppose it because they reackon it will be v busy.
which it prob will.
also the hours are extended late night openings etc so they need cover.
although they an easily use locum agencies

surely as a parent im entitled to some sort of help from my employers if my ds nursry is closed

when i worked retail i used to quit jobs if i needed to get off for Xmas.

expat can you believe they can do this to me?

they cannot stop you taking it as parental leave.

Yeah, I can. Sorry, but my experience wasn't a good one.

why don't you contact a nanny agency and hire a temp nanny to cover the period?

whatamigonnado I sympathise, I am a nurse and looking like I am going to have to work Christmas. No good appealing to colleagues as most of us have small children, and tbh I think that as I went into my job knowing the unsocial hours I wouldn't ask my colleagues to do my "share"

Yes, afaik most nurserys shut from around 23rd December to early in the New Year.

Thankfully my dh has that time off otherwise I would be in the same position as you.

Those of you saying that the op can definitely get parental leave. Are you sure? What happens if all/most of her colleagues are also entitled to parental leave and all apply for the same time period? Is that just tough on the company/shop who then has to sort alternative cover?

Mine is closed for 2 weeks this year due to when Christmas day falls etc.

Do you work every day? The reason i ask is that i work three days and to enable me to have the two weeks off i am working half an hour extra each day from August to get the time off

well if push comes to shove ill have to quit

i dont really want ds going to another [erson tbh its taken a while to settle him into nursery

the thing that really annoys me is the can get a locum in they just dont want to

im really mad about this.

do you think id be out of order if i went off sick?