When a company is short staffed, who is responsible for dealing with that problem? Are the employees responsible? Should they feel obligated to work overtime to help out even if they don’t get paid for it? Or is that a staffing issue that should be handled at a higher level, either by finding a way to reduce the amount of work or by hiring more employees?

I definitely don’t think the employees should feel obligated to work overtime, especially if they’re not being paid for it.

In this story, a nurse who works at a hospital is wondering if she’s being a jerk by not eagerly agreeing to work as much overtime as her bosses throw at her. I don’t think she’s doing anything wrong. Keep reading to see if you agree.

WIBTA for refusing OT even though my unit is understaffed and I’m free?

I (29 F) am an RN and I work in the ICU.

Almost 2 weeks ago my boss (#1) was asking people to stay after their shift to help out because they were severely understaffed.

They decided not to renew the travel nurses’ contracts despite knowing that the unit would be busy.

So I stayed an extra 2 hours (total of 14 hours) to help out that day as per the request of my boss (#1).

This sounds really frustrating!

A week later, I find out that I’m only getting paid 30 mins of OT only. They never approved of the other 1.5 hrs.

Honestly, my boss probably forgot to approve it because it was a busy day.

Anyway, last week, I called payroll to rectify it but I still see my paycheck for tomorrow without the retro OT pay.

She’s hesitant to work overtime again.

Fast forward to now, my bosses (#1 & 2) keep texting me asking to pick up OT.

I told them I don’t feel comfortable picking up shifts until I get paid.

It’s only 1.5 hrs of OT so it’s not much and it’s not like I’m busy… but I feel like if you value your staff, you should make sure to pay them. Oh and make sure there’s enough staffing so people don’t burn out. It’s been super busy on the unit and we don’t even get crisis pay.

So…am I being a petty jerk?

I think she’s being completely reasonable.

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about a man who stops speaking up in his Zoom meetings after getting constantly interrupted.

Let’s see if Reddit agrees.

This person points out that she isn’t obligated to work overtime no matter the circumstances.

This is a good way of thinking about it.

Yes, she needs to make sure she gets paid.

Another nurse weighs in.

Getting paid for your work isn’t asking too much. Getting paid overtime when you work overtime isn’t asking too much. Refusing to work overtime when you weren’t paid properly when you agreed to work overtime before, only makes sense.

She’s not volunteering her time. If she’s not going to get paid, she might as well spend her time doing whatever she wants.

If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about an employee who just let clients complain after her boss refused to approve overtime.