2008 Woodie Awards
Working holiday shifts causes some students to cut family time short, celebrate alone
By: Orion Staff
Issue date: 11/19/08 Section: Features
Family comes first during the holidays - unless students need to stick around for work.
Senior Chris Batoosingh used up all his days off earlier in the semester to celebrate Halloween, he said. And with no vacation time left, he'll have to cut family time short.
Batoosingh is bummed out because his family is coming up to Sacramento for Thanksgiving at his parents' house, he said.
"And now I'm only going to have a few hours to visit with these people that I haven't seen in years," Batoosingh said.
His family is also disappointed that he can't get more time off, he said. And as an added negative, Batoosingh's family is mixing Thanksgiving with Christmas because he will have zero time to go home during winter break.
"Now I have to pack this multiholiday family time into a few hours," Batoosingh said. "I'm pissed."
Other students, such as senior Stacy Bushgen, who said she worked last year at
5 a.m. the day after Thanksgiving, have also had to cut home visits short in the past.
But this year Bushgen will, for the first time, have her whole Thanksgiving break to spend with her family since she started college, she said.
"I'm stoked because my niece is old enough now to know who I am," Bushgen said. "So having a full week with her will give us some good time to bond."
Bushgen comes from a family-oriented background, so she is excited to join in on all holiday activities, she said.
"Every year we have a cooking competition at my house, so that's how we all spend time with each other - in the kitchen," Bushgen said. "It's going to be great to know I can enjoy a glass of wine and don't have to rush back to Chico right after dinner."
Lindsay Hanna, a nursing major, is working Wednesday and Thursday of Thanksgiving break but sees the best of both worlds, she said.
"I'll be done by 2:30 p.m. on Thursday so I'll be able to drive home to the Bay Area and have dinner with my whole family, plus, I get the holiday pay," Hanna said.
Employees at Enloe Medical Center are required to work at least one holiday a year, Hanna said.
"This way I can be home for Christmas, and I prefer that," Hanna said. "And my friends and I are having our own Thanksgiving dinner the day before."
Laura Hennum, a spokeswoman at Enloe Medical Center, said the hospital understands that many employees want to be with their families on Thanksgiving, but there are a lot of patients this time of year.
"This is flu season, and we have people coming in 24 hours a day," Hennum said. "We're really grateful that our staff does make the time to work on the holidays."
Enloe Medical Center also provides a free Thanksgiving dinner for employees on the holiday, Hennum said.
While spending holidays without family is often portrayed negatively, some students can see the benefits in having that time to themselves.
Despite his disappointment, even Batoosingh has found an upside to his responsibility to work over this Thanksgiving break: free time.
He is looking forward to catching up on school stuff and relaxing, he said.
"My roommates are going home, so it'll be nice to have our big house to myself," Batoosingh said. "The whole town's atmosphere is a lot more mellow, I'm looking forward to that."
Related links
On Thanksgiving, many feast while others still work
American Management Association's Thanksgiving at Work guide
Senior Chris Batoosingh used up all his days off earlier in the semester to celebrate Halloween, he said. And with no vacation time left, he'll have to cut family time short.
Batoosingh is bummed out because his family is coming up to Sacramento for Thanksgiving at his parents' house, he said.
"And now I'm only going to have a few hours to visit with these people that I haven't seen in years," Batoosingh said.
His family is also disappointed that he can't get more time off, he said. And as an added negative, Batoosingh's family is mixing Thanksgiving with Christmas because he will have zero time to go home during winter break.
"Now I have to pack this multiholiday family time into a few hours," Batoosingh said. "I'm pissed."
Other students, such as senior Stacy Bushgen, who said she worked last year at
5 a.m. the day after Thanksgiving, have also had to cut home visits short in the past.
But this year Bushgen will, for the first time, have her whole Thanksgiving break to spend with her family since she started college, she said.
"I'm stoked because my niece is old enough now to know who I am," Bushgen said. "So having a full week with her will give us some good time to bond."
Bushgen comes from a family-oriented background, so she is excited to join in on all holiday activities, she said.
"Every year we have a cooking competition at my house, so that's how we all spend time with each other - in the kitchen," Bushgen said. "It's going to be great to know I can enjoy a glass of wine and don't have to rush back to Chico right after dinner."
Lindsay Hanna, a nursing major, is working Wednesday and Thursday of Thanksgiving break but sees the best of both worlds, she said.
"I'll be done by 2:30 p.m. on Thursday so I'll be able to drive home to the Bay Area and have dinner with my whole family, plus, I get the holiday pay," Hanna said.
Employees at Enloe Medical Center are required to work at least one holiday a year, Hanna said.
"This way I can be home for Christmas, and I prefer that," Hanna said. "And my friends and I are having our own Thanksgiving dinner the day before."
Laura Hennum, a spokeswoman at Enloe Medical Center, said the hospital understands that many employees want to be with their families on Thanksgiving, but there are a lot of patients this time of year.
"This is flu season, and we have people coming in 24 hours a day," Hennum said. "We're really grateful that our staff does make the time to work on the holidays."
Enloe Medical Center also provides a free Thanksgiving dinner for employees on the holiday, Hennum said.
While spending holidays without family is often portrayed negatively, some students can see the benefits in having that time to themselves.
Despite his disappointment, even Batoosingh has found an upside to his responsibility to work over this Thanksgiving break: free time.
He is looking forward to catching up on school stuff and relaxing, he said.
"My roommates are going home, so it'll be nice to have our big house to myself," Batoosingh said. "The whole town's atmosphere is a lot more mellow, I'm looking forward to that."
Related links
On Thanksgiving, many feast while others still work
American Management Association's Thanksgiving at Work guide
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