XP: FI will have to call off to attend our wedding

BrittneyRN

My FI started his job in October of this year. We're getting married in October 2012, so he will be there a year by then. Unfortunately, he gets no vacation until 2013. He requested to take the week of our wedding off unpaid, which was approved. He found out Thursday that the union will not approve for him to be off that many days without possibly being fired. So now we get no honeymoon. Also, he can't request the day of the wedding off, so he will have to call off sick to even attend our wedding. He works night shift, so he'll have to work until 7 am the morning of our wedding, and go back to work the night after the wedding. I'm accepting this, but I feel so bad for him. It sucks that they're not understanding at all.

BrittneyRN

I think January 2013, but he won't get approved until December 2012. Since one month is not enough time to plan a vacation, I think we'll go in Spring 2013. He asked about the wedding the day he got hired, and the manager approved it, hut the union rules are different than what the job actually allows. I'm a logos worried about him actually calling off for the adding, because he could get in trouble since they'll know he obviously nt sick. Oh well, I'm getting married even if he has to be at work at 11 the night of the wedding.

Simply Fated

I think it's a really good idea to postpone the HM. With all the wedding planning, why add in the stress of planning the trip, too, ya know? It could be a blessing in disguise. Why won't they let him have his wedding day off?

BrittneyRN

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_chit-chat_xp-fi-will-call-off-attend-wedding?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:14Discussion:fb73bf8f-1275-40eb-baf7-b53678eb7bd1Post:21794082-a9b3-427b-886d-5a5c17664192">Re: XP: FI will have to call off to attend our wedding</a>:
[QUOTE]I think it's a really good idea to postpone the HM. With all the wedding planning, why add in the stress of planning the trip, too, ya know? It could be a blessing in disguise. Why won't they let him have his wedding day off?
Posted by Simply Fated[/QUOTE]

The only time they can request a day off is if they use a vacation day and he wont get any until 3 months after the wedding. He's also not allowed to have someone cover his shift because they'll be in overtime. He can't trade either, because it's considered overtime. The union rules are crazy strict. It's a notoriously bad company for giving people time off and making people work tons of overtime. My FI had to work 16 hour shift on both Christmas Eve and Christmas, and will work 16 hour shifts on New Year's Eve and day, but that's besides the point. The honeymoon was the part I was looking forward to the most, BUT you gotta do what you gotta do, so I'll get over it. I just feel bad for my FI. I am just praying he doesn't have to go back to work the night of our wedding!

LizziebeeUT

This is part of why I don't like unions. They usually end up being bullies and making life harder for the employees. It sucks they won't let him have your wedding day off.

KiloBravo7

Ah goodness, I feel your pain... I'm in a pretty much identical situation.  FI got hired at an airline in April and management there is horrible.  They don't give vacation time until a year after the hiring date, and vacation needs to be applied for a whole year in advance.  Schedules are put together only a month in advance, and he's typically off for 3-4 days at a time and then gone flying for 2-4 days at a time.  I think we'll get lucky, though... he's high enough on the pilot seniority list that he can construct his own schedule how he wants it, but we still won't know until a month before if he'll even be in town on our planned wedding day.

Does your FI have any coworkers in the same situation?  With all those rules, it sounds like just about any relatively new employee there would have these same problems when planning a wedding.  Maybe have your FI ask around and find out what others have done to deal with this.  And I'd be wary of him calling in sick unless he knows that would work, sometimes employers don't like that... two of my FI's coworkers were recently fired when management found out that they had resorted to calling in sick from flights in order to attend their own weddings.  Hearing about that really bothered me.

Anyways, T&P and best wishes to you and your FI, I hope everything works out!

Simply Fated

16 hours? WTF is the point if having a union if he's working 16 hour shifts? That's exactly what unions are supposed to protect the worker from. This is why unions have such a bad rep. And, seriously? He can't request a day off until he's worked there a year? That sounds absurd to me, but maybe that's just because I've worked retail for so long lol. I'm so sorry your fiancé is getting screwed and I hope everything works out!

a80Lady

I have a job like that as well (weird hours, unions, no time off, etc.). Will your FI's employer allow him to swap shifts? Maybe he could find someone to swap around shifts with so that his "weekend" falls on the wedding day. Hope he makes it to the wedding!

tldh

Just out of curiosity, what union does he belong to?

StephBeanWed61502

Is it possible to push the wedding back?  I know that would be really, really disappointing for you, but it seems like the best way to get the traditional wedding/then leave for honeymoon you've been picturing, plus it seems like the best way to protect your H's new job.

kmmssg

I was also going to suggest pushing your wedding back a few months so the poor guy doesn't have to go to work on his wedding day.  Is that possible?

mcven528

Oh man that really stinks... Of course any one that works in the union can probably take whatever days they want off no matter how long that have worked there. That is just such crap and makes me mad for you. Im sorry

BrightFirefly

That's insane to not even allow him to have the actual wedding date yet. I can understand not allowing for the honeymoon - but 'cmon - one day for a wedding??

Is there some sort of appeal process??

FI's work let him have 3 days off - for us to take a vacation we had already planned - after he had only been there for about a month.

BrittneyRN

We thought about pushing the wedding back, but he won't get approved for the actual vacation until Jan 2013, so I wouldn't have a set date until then and then would have to try and plan the wedding in a few months. We're not willing to wait another 6-7 months to get married. Tldh- I'm not sure what exact union it is. It's just one hes forced to join because of his job. It is a national company, but I'd rather not say on here what company that is. We have accepted that we won't get a honeymoon, and we're ok with that. My FI is going to talk to his immediate boss on Tuesday, as she has been fighting for him to get a vacation, but the union rep will not budge. He says its unfair.