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I attended an NRA certified rifle instructor class over the weekend, and ran into an old buddy/former co-worker. He told me a story about how two years ago, he drew a once in a lifetime sort of tag for a limited elk unit in Colorado, and his employer would not let him off. He wasn't asking for vacation, since he had only worked there a few months at that point, just leave for a couple weeks for elk season. I might add, he is a proffesional, (engineer), so he wasn't holding up production anywhere. I told him I would have looked for another job when I got back from hunting. DGK | ||
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That's what "unexpected sick calls" are for.  I can understand the employers side though too (to a point) if the guy had only been there a few months. Unpaid or not, it's kinda quick to ask for time off that doesn't involve some sort of "emergency" (family sickness, death, etc). Did he make the hunt? What a shame if he missed it. | |||
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Uncanny! Waayyyyyyyyy back in 1965, I was slated to go on my first horseback elk hunt in SW Colorado. It was a do-it-yourself hunt with four others. Although we planned on using all our camping gear, etc, we had committed to renting horses, complete with 50% deposits. Plus, we had bought our lic./tags. At the time, I was working at a small Sears satellite store where we sold only major appliances such as wash machines, dryers, TVs and such. There were three salesmen, including me, and we worked strictly on commission. I had already cleared the trip with the store manager. One week before the hunt, one of the guys quit. BUT...the other guy, realizing he could have a goldmine week, said he would be glad to work every day from open to close. Unfortunately the manager didn't go along, telling me that I couldn't take the week off, and if I did, I wouldn't have a job when I returned. My reply was straight forward, and I can still recall the words: "You do what you gotta do. I was looking for a job when I found this one, so I'll do the same thing when I get back." And that's what I did. It took me three days to find one. -TONY | |||
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I'd be looking for work AFTER I returned. Business where I work is very sporadic, so it's very likely that management will ask me to postpone a vacation. Then when business slows down they want you to take vacation at their pleasure. My answer is uniformly the same: "The question is NOT whether I'm going, it's whether I've got a job when I get back." I've been here ten years now. Leaving for a 3 week hunting trip this Friday! | |||
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Thers is a compromise in there somewhere. I would take a week unpaid & put in some extra time before I go & when I get back to keep the boss happy, that's fare. Depends on your situation, but if you have house payments & kids, as many times as I have cut off my nose to spite my face, I would seek a compromise but I would be going! | |||
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Quote: Wow, 1965 huh? I wasn't even born yet.  All I can say is this: IT'S GOOD TO BE SELF EMPLOYED!!! HUNT WHEN AND WHERE YA WANT!! Once in a lifetime tag huh, I would have looked my boss in the face and said, see ya. However, I would have also informed my boss at the time of hire that I had an impending hunt.  | |||
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I never heard of a death-bed statement to the effect of, "I wish I'd worked more." Never, ever, pass up an opportunity to hunt. Too soon we grow old. | |||
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In Colorado you can turn in a license and get your preference points back. I like to say I would have quit, but in reality I would have probably returned the tag, got the points back and waited another year or two. As far as I know almost any elk hunt in Colorado can be attained in 15 years or so. It might not be once in a lifetime, but really close. Now if it was a bighorn sheep tag I would have used unemployment to fund my scouting and hunting. | |||
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Let me tell you a very sad story about a Bighorn Sheep tag in Colorado I drew in 1986. I drew a ram tag for the area that was then known as S32. At the time I was working for Pepsi in Denver driving trucks. Pepsi had a bunch of Labor Day promotions going on at the same time my tag was good for and got very pissy about me wanting some time off. I comprimised with them and just too a Fri-Sun to hunt in the first week and Sat-Sun on the second week. The tag was only good for 2 weeks. Even though I had done a lot of scouting prior to the season, when it came time to hunt some animal rights types moved into my area and disrupted my hunt. This was before such activities were illegal. Needless to say, the rams I scouted headed into the back country and I never found them in the 5 days I had to hunt. I ended up eating a big plate of tag soup with my sheep permit. I have yet to draw another one and probably never will. I made a promise to myself that I would never again let work interfere with my hunting. There are lots of job opportunities out there, but only so many limited tags. I'd bag a job in a heartbeat now for a sheep tag. Mac | |||
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I'm been beefing up for a sheep hunt since February. Just now I learn that my contract might not be renewed come November. I have a very hot lead for a new job. I'll have to manage ending and starting times of both gigs very carefully so as not to interfere. Can't start one job by taking off, can't end the other one doing the same. I hope I can play my cards in such a way that I get two weeks off in between, starting the Labour Day weekend (Canada, Sept 6). Season starts on the 8th! Frans | |||
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I had booked a hunt to Africa when I was laid off. I spent the severance on the hunt shooting extra animals. I had a new job prior to going but told the new employer that I could start before the hunt but was going regardless. He let me go with no grief. If he had given me a problem, I would not have taken the new job. Life is too short, hunt when and where you can. | |||
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It's easy to say here that we would tell the boss adiose, but in reality, if presented with the situation, not so easy. For many, that would mean pick up stakes, sell the house, move to ?, because there may not be any more jobs available in the area in your profession. I know it would be so in my case. At any rate, regarding the job I have now--I accepted the job in early January of '95, to start February 1. But, before I accepted, I informed them that I had an Africa hunt scheduled for the 20th of May. I told them that I of course didn't expect vacation time, but that they needed to either accept that I would be gone for 2 weeks, or it just wouldn't work out. (I had the advantage of being gainfully employed at the time). They said no problem, and the deal, of course, was made. When it came time to go (I'd been working there 3 1/2 months), I was happily surprised upon my return to find that they had given me paid vacation. I took a week that fall for elk, too. I believe the key was letting them know ahead of time. | |||
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Quote: Geez, Doc, all three of my kids were born by then. -TONY | |||
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I'm not altogether sure of the situation my buddy Mike was in at the time. I know he had just built a new house, and he has a couple of young sons. But I would still have taken the hunt. There are quite a few engineering positions available in our area on a regular basis, and he is usually sitting pretty well financially. At any rate, as has been said, life is too short, I'm goin' huntin' Cheers DGK | |||
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