Holiday scheduling puts fairness and retention in focus
Bottom line
A new episode of The Veterinary Viewfinder is putting a familiar workplace flashpoint back on the table: who gets first choice on holiday time off in veterinary practice, and whether seniority should still drive those decisions. Hosts Dr. Ernie Ward and Beckie Mossor, RVT, frame the issue as more than a scheduling annoyance, arguing that holiday policies shape team trust, morale, and retention. Their discussion lands as veterinary employers continue to revisit handbooks, leave policies, and scheduling expectations in a workforce environment where flexibility has become a major factor in whether people stay. (podcasts.apple.com)
Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, holiday scheduling can quickly become a proxy for bigger culture problems, especially when policies feel inconsistent, outdated, or unfair. AAHA says employee handbooks should clearly address scheduling and leave, while recent veterinary workforce research has tied leadership quality, workplace culture, and schedule flexibility to retention and burnout. Industry coverage has also shown that practices use very different approaches, from strict seniority systems to rotating holiday assignments and shared sign-up models, with the common lesson that transparency matters more than tradition alone. (aaha.org)
What to watch: Expect more practices to review holiday scheduling rules before year-end, especially as leaders look for retention wins that don't require a full compensation overhaul. (aaha.org)
A new Veterinary Viewfinder episode is spotlighting one of the most emotionally loaded questions in clinic scheduling: should seniority decide who gets holiday time off? In “Holiday Time Off in Vet Med: Is Seniority Fair,” Dr. Ernie Ward and Beckie Mossor, RVT, revisit a long-running debate that tends to surface every fall, when practices begin sorting out Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s coverage, and the resentments that can come with it. The timing is notable because scheduling flexibility has become a much more visible workforce issue across veterinary medicine, not just a seasonal headache. (podcasts.apple.com)
The broader backdrop is a profession still wrestling with burnout, retention, and uneven workplace culture. AVMA reporting has argued that better work-life balance depends in part on stronger leadership and team engagement, not simply adding more people to the workforce. A JAVMA-listed study on associate retention similarly found that burnout and poor workplace conditions are linked with lower odds of staying, while psychological safety, purpose, and partnership reduce the desire to leave. In other words, a holiday schedule dispute may look small, but it often reflects whether a team believes its leaders are fair, communicative, and willing to plan ahead. (avma.org)
That helps explain why this podcast topic resonates beyond one episode. AAHA’s employee handbook guidance says practices need clear policies on scheduling and leave, and AAHA’s more recent coverage has gone further, describing schedule flexibility as a major driver of both retention and attrition. In that reporting, veterinary leaders and managers said employees often stay longer in imperfect jobs if the schedule works, and leave when flexibility is handled poorly. One practice manager told AAHA that team members should never be made to feel guilty for wanting time off, while another leader emphasized that most people want their schedules farther in advance so they can plan their lives. (aaha.org)
There’s no single industry standard for holiday scheduling, which is part of the problem. Prior veterinary trade coverage shows practices using a range of systems: informal swaps, first-come-first-served sign-ups, seniority-based rotations, equal holiday-share rules, and policies that distinguish between school holidays and public holidays. A dvm360 feature on holiday fairness found strong pushback from child-free team members who felt their personal time was treated as less valuable, while some managers said they tried to accommodate parents for specific moments, like Christmas morning, without making that an automatic rule. Equine practice guidance has likewise stressed equitable workload sharing and clear PTO structures, sometimes with growth tied to seniority, but not necessarily blanket priority for every coveted date. (dvm360.com)
Some practical alternatives are already circulating in the profession. Coverage from EquiManagement recommended building holiday coverage for the full year and tracking who worked which holidays over the previous five years so the same people aren’t repeatedly assigned undesirable shifts. AAHA’s retention-focused reporting also pointed to data-driven scheduling, part-time or flex staffing, and earlier communication as ways to reduce friction. Together, those approaches suggest the real question may be less “Is seniority fair?” and more “Is the system visible, consistent, and broadly trusted?” (equimanagement.com)
Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, holiday scheduling policy is a workforce strategy issue hiding inside a calendar problem. If seniority always wins, newer team members may conclude they’ll spend years absorbing the least desirable shifts. If managers make ad hoc exceptions, longtime employees may feel loyalty isn’t rewarded. And if leaders quietly favor pet parents with children over everyone else, they risk creating exactly the kind of resentment that undermines culture and retention. In a labor market where schedule quality is a meaningful differentiator, practices that can explain their rules, apply them consistently, and revisit them openly may have an edge in keeping both veterinarians and support staff engaged. (aaha.org)
The smartest near-term move for practices may be procedural, not philosophical: decide the rule early, write it down, communicate it clearly, and give staff a real chance to weigh in before the holidays arrive. That doesn’t eliminate disappointment, but it does reduce the sense that decisions are arbitrary or political. It also aligns with broader veterinary management guidance that clear policies and respectful communication are foundational to a functional team culture. (aaha.org)
What to watch: As the 2026 holiday season approaches, watch for more practice leaders to revisit handbook language, test rotation-based systems, or use advance sign-ups and flex staffing to defuse the annual fight over who gets Christmas, Thanksgiving, or New Year’s off. (aaha.org)