Is it rude to take 10 day vacations as an employee requiring backup coverage for work duties?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you rarely take vacation time like this, it's ok and do it.

My colleague took 3 weeks off in June. He is working 3 weeks this month in July, and then he is taking another 3 weeks off from end of July to August. This is during a time our department is already short-staffed. THAT is being inconsiderate and an a$$.

And whose fault is it you're inadequately staffed? Not his. Management's.

Having a life outside of work is not inconsiderate. Taking as much vacation as you can is not inconsiderate. And since it comes up often, quitting is not inconsiderate, even if that leaves your colleagues with more work. In every case, the answer is "management hire adequate staff."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am married to a teacher and agree that it's a different situation than an employee with a 52-week work schedule and PTO bank. He just has a lot more time off than I do built into the calendar already. The tradeoff is that he can't take a random 2 weeks off in October...but he gets more than 2 weeks *without having to ask or arrange coverage* over winter break and summer; plus another week for spring break. I could use up my whole PTO bank, including time I've carried over from previous years, and I'd still have less time than he does in one year.

Yes, it's "unpaid" time off insofar as the contract is for X days, but when it's paid out over 12 months and the benefits continue, it's not actually like you're unemployed during breaks. And yes, it would be nice to have more flexibility to take off for appointments and other personal/family needs as they come up throughout the year. But I don't think it's reasonable for teachers to say they should be able to take 2 consecutive weeks off *any time* of year when the breaks are built in.

Teachers shouldn’t have to turn down once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. My colleague had the chance to go to Spain recently for a family reunion, one uniting her entire family from multiple countries for the first time ever. Should she have skipped it, or should she have put her life first? I missed a few days last year to drive my first born to college. Should I have skipped it, or should I have placed my family first?

Sometimes the big moments in life don’t happen during the convenient summer months. And at a time when we have a severe teacher shortage, perhaps we should consider what we can do to keep them. Seeing them as humans and not mere teachers would help.

DP, I agree with you, but I hope you extend the same understanding to students when they get pulled for family trips. Pretty tired of teachers acting like that's a sin.

[Anonymous]

Not at all. I’m planning to do it myself ne t year. Leadership always takes good care of themselves and takes off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am married to a teacher and agree that it's a different situation than an employee with a 52-week work schedule and PTO bank. He just has a lot more time off than I do built into the calendar already. The tradeoff is that he can't take a random 2 weeks off in October...but he gets more than 2 weeks *without having to ask or arrange coverage* over winter break and summer; plus another week for spring break. I could use up my whole PTO bank, including time I've carried over from previous years, and I'd still have less time than he does in one year.

Yes, it's "unpaid" time off insofar as the contract is for X days, but when it's paid out over 12 months and the benefits continue, it's not actually like you're unemployed during breaks. And yes, it would be nice to have more flexibility to take off for appointments and other personal/family needs as they come up throughout the year. But I don't think it's reasonable for teachers to say they should be able to take 2 consecutive weeks off *any time* of year when the breaks are built in.

Teachers shouldn’t have to turn down once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. My colleague had the chance to go to Spain recently for a family reunion, one uniting her entire family from multiple countries for the first time ever. Should she have skipped it, or should she have put her life first? I missed a few days last year to drive my first born to college. Should I have skipped it, or should I have placed my family first?

Sometimes the big moments in life don’t happen during the convenient summer months. And at a time when we have a severe teacher shortage, perhaps we should consider what we can do to keep them. Seeing them as humans and not mere teachers would help.

DP, I agree with you, but I hope you extend the same understanding to students when they get pulled for family trips. Pretty tired of teachers acting like that's a sin.

So many teachers were absolute azzes about travel during school. My kids were top students and my dh's schedule meant we could never go anywhere during holidays or most of the summer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am married to a teacher and agree that it's a different situation than an employee with a 52-week work schedule and PTO bank. He just has a lot more time off than I do built into the calendar already. The tradeoff is that he can't take a random 2 weeks off in October...but he gets more than 2 weeks *without having to ask or arrange coverage* over winter break and summer; plus another week for spring break. I could use up my whole PTO bank, including time I've carried over from previous years, and I'd still have less time than he does in one year.

Yes, it's "unpaid" time off insofar as the contract is for X days, but when it's paid out over 12 months and the benefits continue, it's not actually like you're unemployed during breaks. And yes, it would be nice to have more flexibility to take off for appointments and other personal/family needs as they come up throughout the year. But I don't think it's reasonable for teachers to say they should be able to take 2 consecutive weeks off *any time* of year when the breaks are built in.

Teachers shouldn’t have to turn down once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. My colleague had the chance to go to Spain recently for a family reunion, one uniting her entire family from multiple countries for the first time ever. Should she have skipped it, or should she have put her life first? I missed a few days last year to drive my first born to college. Should I have skipped it, or should I have placed my family first?

Sometimes the big moments in life don’t happen during the convenient summer months. And at a time when we have a severe teacher shortage, perhaps we should consider what we can do to keep them. Seeing them as humans and not mere teachers would help.

DP, I agree with you, but I hope you extend the same understanding to students when they get pulled for family trips. Pretty tired of teachers acting like that's a sin.

So many teachers were absolute azzes about travel during school. My kids were top students and my dh's schedule meant we could never go anywhere during holidays or most of the summer.

Teachers don’t create attendance policies. We just take the heat for them.

I’m happy to support student absences. If I’m told ahead of time, I’ll create a streamlined independent unit covering everything missed for my class. I’ll even create it so it can easily be done in a car or on a plane so it doesn’t impact the trip itself. 2 of 3 times, however, all that work is wasted when the student doesn’t do it anyway.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you rarely take vacation time like this, it's ok and do it.

My colleague took 3 weeks off in June. He is working 3 weeks this month in July, and then he is taking another 3 weeks off from end of July to August. This is during a time our department is already short-staffed. THAT is being inconsiderate and an a$$.

And whose fault is it you're inadequately staffed? Not his. Management's.

Having a life outside of work is not inconsiderate. Taking as much vacation as you can is not inconsiderate. And since it comes up often, quitting is not inconsiderate, even if that leaves your colleagues with more work. In every case, the answer is "management hire adequate staff."

And management also gets away with what it can. If nobody takes vacation and/or works insane hours, they are more than happy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am married to a teacher and agree that it's a different situation than an employee with a 52-week work schedule and PTO bank. He just has a lot more time off than I do built into the calendar already. The tradeoff is that he can't take a random 2 weeks off in October...but he gets more than 2 weeks *without having to ask or arrange coverage* over winter break and summer; plus another week for spring break. I could use up my whole PTO bank, including time I've carried over from previous years, and I'd still have less time than he does in one year.

Yes, it's "unpaid" time off insofar as the contract is for X days, but when it's paid out over 12 months and the benefits continue, it's not actually like you're unemployed during breaks. And yes, it would be nice to have more flexibility to take off for appointments and other personal/family needs as they come up throughout the year. But I don't think it's reasonable for teachers to say they should be able to take 2 consecutive weeks off *any time* of year when the breaks are built in.

Teachers shouldn’t have to turn down once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. My colleague had the chance to go to Spain recently for a family reunion, one uniting her entire family from multiple countries for the first time ever. Should she have skipped it, or should she have put her life first? I missed a few days last year to drive my first born to college. Should I have skipped it, or should I have placed my family first?

Sometimes the big moments in life don’t happen during the convenient summer months. And at a time when we have a severe teacher shortage, perhaps we should consider what we can do to keep them. Seeing them as humans and not mere teachers would help.

Sure, but I look at "once in a lifetime" as a special circumstance, vs this thread's general consensus that "you should be able to take leave anytime you want." Like, we'd like to be able to travel in the fall when the weather is cooler, but we can't because of my husband's teaching schedule. It's a different paradigm than someone with 15-20 days PTO for a full year and NO built in breaks.

[Anonymous]

Yes, teachers certainly have less flexibility to take off extended periods that are not during school breaks. However, my sister, who is a teacher, gets days off for winter and spring break and in the summer that I, as an accountant, do not. So it is easier for me to take days off when I want to but she has more breaks built in.

[Anonymous]

No one is saying not to use all the vacation time one gets per year.

But there is an aspect of courtesy and being a good colleague when it comes to how and when someone uses their vacation time. For example, would a big law partner take 3 weeks off in the middle of busy season with a client? How bout a doctor who takes 3 weeks off and his/her partners have to cover all their patients' issues during that time? Or an accountant takes PTO during tax season and their partners cover all their work?

Sure, you can say it's a management problem. But there's only so much management can do if one has the PTO hours to take off. Some people abuse the system.

[Anonymous]

F*** NO.

Stupid American mindset worrying about workloads for others if you take a holiday. You EARNED it. It is not your problem at all about workload while on vacation. If your company can't handle it, then it is a garbage company and they need to hire more staff.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just took 2.5 weeks off. Yeah, I felt guilty, but I have the time. And I've already taken 2 other week long vacations this year. I figure if my boss doesn't want me to take the time off, she wouldn't approve it.

I bust my butt and pick up a lot of coverage when other people are out.

You're taking A LOT of vacation. You've taken off over a month, and we're only halfway through the year. That's a lot. Just FYI in case you're unaware, because you said your boss wouldn't approve it if it weren't ok. Don't be surprised if you get feedback at some point that you're taking too much leave.

STFU.

It isn't a lot of leave. This is the most American toxic dumbass mindset ever on full display right here. F off with this trash. If the employee has 2.5 weeks vacation in the bank, they have the right to take it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Two work weeks off work for Europe. Is it inconsiderate of those who cover your job while you are ooo?

I feel guilty but I would love to travel and explore.

I am having a hard time staying in the workplace precisely because i don’t want to have to think about these situations for the rest of my life until I am too old and decrepit to even enjoy vacations. Every time I have to take even 1 week off it’s always having to plan around major deadlines. I also got tired having to plan in advance when project timelines constantly move making it rather moot and always having some drama around people taking vacations in the midst of deliverables deadlines no matter how you plan. It’s true even in the most laid back workplaces. In toxic places this work culture is just pure hell.

[Anonymous]

Not rude

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Two work weeks off work for Europe. Is it inconsiderate of those who cover your job while you are ooo?

I feel guilty but I would love to travel and explore.

I am having a hard time staying in the workplace precisely because i don’t want to have to think about these situations for the rest of my life until I am too old and decrepit to even enjoy vacations. Every time I have to take even 1 week off it’s always having to plan around major deadlines. I also got tired having to plan in advance when project timelines constantly move making it rather moot and always having some drama around people taking vacations in the midst of deliverables deadlines no matter how you plan. It’s true even in the most laid back workplaces. In toxic places this work culture is just pure hell.

You and me both. I'm downshifting to consulting just to avoid having to deal with this idiocy. There is always something due at work, it never changes. This and face time games depress me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am married to a teacher and agree that it's a different situation than an employee with a 52-week work schedule and PTO bank. He just has a lot more time off than I do built into the calendar already. The tradeoff is that he can't take a random 2 weeks off in October...but he gets more than 2 weeks *without having to ask or arrange coverage* over winter break and summer; plus another week for spring break. I could use up my whole PTO bank, including time I've carried over from previous years, and I'd still have less time than he does in one year.

Yes, it's "unpaid" time off insofar as the contract is for X days, but when it's paid out over 12 months and the benefits continue, it's not actually like you're unemployed during breaks. And yes, it would be nice to have more flexibility to take off for appointments and other personal/family needs as they come up throughout the year. But I don't think it's reasonable for teachers to say they should be able to take 2 consecutive weeks off *any time* of year when the breaks are built in.

Teachers shouldn’t have to turn down once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. My colleague had the chance to go to Spain recently for a family reunion, one uniting her entire family from multiple countries for the first time ever. Should she have skipped it, or should she have put her life first? I missed a few days last year to drive my first born to college. Should I have skipped it, or should I have placed my family first?

Sometimes the big moments in life don’t happen during the convenient summer months. And at a time when we have a severe teacher shortage, perhaps we should consider what we can do to keep them. Seeing them as humans and not mere teachers would help.

DP, I agree with you, but I hope you extend the same understanding to students when they get pulled for family trips. Pretty tired of teachers acting like that's a sin.

So many teachers were absolute azzes about travel during school. My kids were top students and my dh's schedule meant we could never go anywhere during holidays or most of the summer.

Teachers don’t create attendance policies. We just take the heat for them.

I’m happy to support student absences. If I’m told ahead of time, I’ll create a streamlined independent unit covering everything missed for my class. I’ll even create it so it can easily be done in a car or on a plane so it doesn’t impact the trip itself. 2 of 3 times, however, all that work is wasted when the student doesn’t do it anyway.

It isn't attendance policies that are the issue. It's teachers.