Hello all,
I work in youth residential care work. Our clients live in housing that is supplied by my organisation and the state child protection system, and staff members are required to provide 24/7 support for the clients (this includes sleepover shifts and shifts at all hours of the day). We do get to utilise the sleepover room from 10pm – 6am, but this is circumstance dependent (if a client needs emergency assistance that night or is experiencing a crisis, we are expected to stay up and continue working with them). Plus, even if the clients aren't in need of our assistance – it is always the WORST night's sleep (at least for me), with an uncomfortable bed and never knowing if you will get woken up at some ungodly hour because the client wants assistance.
My organisation has a policy to not roster someone for a 24-hour shift without an agreement being signed. I haven't signed this agreement.
Well, rostering thought it would be ok to roster me a 2pm – 7am shift, and then a 9am – 2pm shift the next day. This totals 22 hours across a 24 hour window.
I've declined the 2pm – 7am shift, and sent the rostering department an email explaining that I cannot work shifts like this. Let's see if they reply to the email and what they say!