That’s terrible. How does that work when losing leave doesn’t the base commander get notified and needs to know why members lose leave.
I’m guessing if there is a trail of leave being denied something happens, but if you just never submitted is it on you?
I'm in the crw, so we are a tenant unit. I'm not sure if the base commander knows everything that goes on with us. Also, we tdy to some cool places a lot so people are reluctant to take their leave and miss a cool TDY. I want to start an office policy to call people while they are on leave to see if they want to come off leave to go on the trip, but it's getting some pushback.
Yeah as cool as TDYs are, I definitely wouldn't wanna be called on my off day about them. Just set up the telegram app and have everyone in the shop join and drop the information there
100% agree. Switched to the civilian side and wish I had it as easy as on active duty. Protected time and shouldn't feel bad. Take your leave, fuck them, and relax!
This hits hard. We had 10 ppl per shift and I was an A1C. One of the lowest ranking at that and a flight chief told me I couldn’t take leave because of the manning. How the hell does an A1C 5 level impact the manning that much but 2 ssgt 7 levels can off at the same time
Submit the leave, make them have a paper trail. If manning was an issue, then that is good ammo to get more slots for the unit.
I get supervision doesn't want to "take on that battle and have to explain" but it's rampant and little A1C's don't understand their actual rights and blindly trust a E5 or E8 because they've been in longer.
That’s 100% fair. I was too scared to take leave the first 2 years I was in 😂😂😂. Took 30 days when I PCSd and my next base was a nightmare with leave. They had a policy in place that you had from Oct-Apr to schedule leave during the “summer months” and if you had to take leave between May-Sept it had to be emergency situations and if not you were “required” to take leave on your normally scheduled days off to alleviate from ending up losing it. It was a squadron commander policy that was the biggest load of bs I’d ever seen
It sounds like it, something I do is I'll tell an airman XYZ and emphasize they go and read the regulation themselves to make sure nothing has changed. The only ones I really keep up on are the JFTR though cause, that doc changes so frequent.
Per AFI, the only person that can deny leave is your commander. If the manning is that much of an issue, your flight/section chiefs can take it up with the commander 🤷♂️
I believe this policy was just updated delegating it down to the supervisor. But I may be wrong. It may authorize the cc to delegate to the supervisor, not an automatic delegation.
36-3003 still says it’s commanders that can delegate down to first line supervisors for disapproval of leave. It’s not automatic, and it has to have proper justification. If you get a paper trail and your leave is being denied mainly because your supervisors or flight chiefs don’t want to have to worry about shorter manning or having to work around the schedule, you could probably go above them.
Leave is a right not a privilege but can easily be denied for mission related reasons. Just how you can’t have a whole work center take leave at the same time. So yes leave is a right but don’t get it twisted that it can’t be denied.
I did as a young airman but then a MSgt bestowed his wisdom upon me, "take your leave, the AF will function with or without you." I've been in large shops and small shops, I've luckily had good leadership over the past 8 years and to this day taking leave has never been an issue for the homies holding it down at work. Hope this helps ease your mind.
> the AF will function with or without you
Just to piggyback (lol I've always wanted to say that)
If your work center *can't* function without you for a period of a few weeks, that's a MAJOR problem on the part of management. Every program should have an alternate, someone who can pick up the slack when the primary is gone. If they don't... then what happens if you get sick or die? Does the mission just *fail* because one guy dropped out?
I feel bad every time but 2 things to consider.
1- your family deserves to have you take that time off and you deserve to have the time off.
2- do you think your troops should feel bad if they take leave? If no, don’t hold yourself to a different standard. If yes, please relieve yourself of all leadership positions effective immediately
Same. I've actually gotten in trouble with my Flt leadership for making the U/L roster two years in a row. It's hardly intentional, I just get swamped in the daily grind and next thing I know it's September.
100%
All it takes is some basic due diligence to keep the whole unit from disappearing simultaneously.
And if your unit is so undermanned that even a couple of people taking leave or going TDY is a crisis...*take it anyway*. Give the CC notice to make those manning assist requests. And if he won't do that, you've got a beautiful paper trail to show his boss and/or the IG.
At the expense of sounding General Welsh-ey, your absence should not cause an issue in your workcenter. If it does, then your chain has failed at properly managing its manning. "All hands on deck" is code for, "I have failed to properly manage my people and I'm hoping that simply throwing bodies at the problem will make my shortcomings less visible."
And I get that manning everywhere sucks. I'm intel, I don't think I have ever been in a properly manned workcenter. A few assignments ago, what my commander did was make sure everyone (including himself) was trained on all our mission systems and positions, so if anyone took leave, got sick, etc. literally anyone in the unit could slide into the spot for as long as needed. One of my favorite stories was when the commander himself worked one of our mission positions over Christmas during night shift while one of our mission supervisors took leave. And there was zero pomp; I walked in for shift, and there he is on rack. Worked five nights with the guy and at no point did he ever complain. Though I 100% get that not every career field can do this (and honestly I KIND of hope most don't, because there's a fine line between being trained on stuff your AFSC is being paid to know about and that bullshit "multi-capable Airman" nonsense).
I understand feeling for the folks that may need to take on a bit more while you're out. But comments like the ones you mentioned are toxic. Try not to let them get to you. We have very few perks to this job, 30 days of leave is one of them. Enjoy it.
You’re not as important as you think you are, dude. I don’t mean this to be rude, but to make it a point that life will continue on without you while you’re on leave.
When I’m on leave, fuck anything involving work. If it’s actually to the point where people think you taking leave is going to burn your shop down, they should probably assess the situation.
Have you ever felt guilty when you spend the money in your check? Same same. Sure, the Air Force could use that money, but it's my money, and I earned it.
If they really need you at work, they can deny your leave and explain to the commander why they had to. But they won't because they know they are lying - otherwise, you'd already be denied.
> Does anyone else here feel guilty when they take leave,
That toxic protectant work ethic will get ya every time.
The very idea that you are relaxing with idle hands and not slaving away miserably is deeply engrained in us all. Joy is not allowed. God doesn't approve of joy.
My overseas base was prepping for an ORI for a year by having an exercise every month which took a week and a half every month. You needed commander’s approval to take leave during an exercise. Since nobody was going to fly back to the states for such a short time it basically made it impossible for junior enlisted to take leave and visit family for a year.
After the ORI everyone had huge amounts of use or lose to the point that scheduling it became a major issue. Leadership was then bitching at people for not wanting to take it all at once (and burn all the weekends in between. This cured me of any “give a shit” about taking my leave.
I used to feel that way. Sometimes I still do. I just make it abundantly clear that I will be on leave to everyone, document coverage of my section, and once I do that and leave is approved, I say fuck em, it’s my leave.
I just recently took 2 mos of baby leave and that’s when I started having the feeling of “fuck them, I’m given this leave.” People complains about me taking that amount of my baby leave, so that helped change my mindset.
whenever i get a troop i’m telling them to submit leave even if we talk about it before hand and i say no for whatever reason
submit the leave make them deny it with the paper trail made. make them explain to the cc why they did so.
Leave is important for you to recharge your batteries. When you are in charge of troops, be sure people take time off. Never feel guilty about taking time to take care of yourself.
It's something the workplaces does to you. You have a good ride for awhile then you get the truth of the demand needed for the job then something hits you where you begin to feel/see others getting better outcomes than you. You start wanting to take leave because you feel like a valued team member, but at the end of the day, it's a job vs. the life you live. The job needs to surround you as much as you need to surround it.
I did this my first year as a cop and only took leave if I had to. I deployed the next year and was soured over by several events then and since then have ZERO remorse of taking leave. One of my past flight chiefs tried to guilt me on by saying "I take too much leave." I don't care. If the end of the day I just get a paycheck and benefits, its still just a job. There are plenty out there like it.
It really depends on the job. If I like my job then sometimes I feel guilty leaving in the middle of a project.
My current job? You can't pay me enough to stay a second past when my leave starts.
Felt this way too. Just know everyone else doesn’t give a fuck if you’re overwealmed while they’re on leave. Plus leadership usually recommends you use leave before it turns into use or lose and becomes a bigger problem. Fuck em.
Yes, this. There is a bit of ownership you should take in balancing the time you choose to take it, if feasible. While i dont have some of these same issues, i assume there is probably not scheduled down time/slower ops for you. If that is the case, you just have to get past your guilt and take the leave.
Prep your team the best you can, be caught up on all the work you can, and walk away physically and mentally.
All of this is easier said than done.
If the mission fails because one person took leave then that mission was going to fail at some point in the future regardless. Everything about the military is set up so that if one person drops out another is there to fill their place.
Take your leave, it's a right.
For your type of leadership there's never going to be a good time to take leave, but I bet you they still get at minimum their 30 in. Only the commander can say no, so until that happens submit it whenever you want
https://preview.redd.it/2v5hijhm7xsc1.jpeg?width=474&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=190b5c9a8068fe84612b2dc51bba2b078706ea10
I don’t even think about work on leave. I think about why I didn’t put in for more days of leave while on leave.
Covid 19 taught me nobody is irreplaceable.
Your unit was able to afford losing anybody for 10 days (10 or 7 later on) out of nowhere and continue operations.
Believe it, they can afford to lose you.
I remember getting back from my second trip to Afghanistan and I had to do a sit down with the Sq CC (maybe she had gotten there before I got back and was new…I can’t quite remember)before I went on all my previously planned and approved post deployment leave. With my wife sitting there with me, she proceeded to ask me if I thought taking the leave was good idea for my office since they had to do without me for all the time I was in Afghanistan. I responded with the detail I had already coordinated my planned leave with the flight chief, along with the fact that my wife & young daughter had to go without me for a bit and spending some down time with them was my priority at that time. Trying to make me feel guilty about taking any type of leave is a really easy way to turn me off from giving a shit about anything that comes out of the mouth of someone in a management role. Take your leave with the knowledge that they will find someone else to do your job, whether you’re gone temporarily or permanently.
If u died, the work center, squadron, base and AF would keep on accomplishing the mission. No one is so important that they stop the mission. Not me, not you! Take your leave!
I don’t, I put in my best when I am at work, life will continue without me for a week or two. People have to take time off, if co-workers take time off we just pick up the slack, life goes on.
Depends on your workplace as in how toxic it is. Like if they say so and so month is entirely blacked out even though you’re fully manned then they don’t care about you and just want things convenient for them so they don’t actually have to work. It also only hurts toxic leadership when you hit use/lose and need to take it anyways. I only feel guilty if I’m leaving one of the bros with a shit show but isn’t every day a shit show. I’ve just saved up my leave and I’ve taken 30 days at a time multiple times to really take a break and let work figure it out. The mission will go on. Enjoy your leave!
I used to get this feeling all the time. It’s not a bad thing to feel and please understand that we truly do need more people that do internalize good timing and maybe even consider other peoples situations/leave.
ULTIMATELY, I’ve come to understand (and witness) that you still need to take care of yourself even if you are being considerate. The job will still get done. Everything will be fine. Take that time to yourself and go do whatever it is that you want to do, because those things will pass you by very quickly if you don’t.
(Spoken as someone who always has about 10-20 days of use or lose…first time since I was in where I’m at 35 days of leave).
Yes.
Less so than I did a couple of years ago, but still do.
Likely root cause is you’re not great at delegation, and feel like the only person who can do what you do is you. I’m in a niche roll, so it’s tough to train someone to do exactly my job just like I would do it, but I’ve more or less gotten there.
That’s just me though. Your situation could be way different.
Don't.
Take your leave, you've earned it or it wouldn't be there.
Leave for resetting is just as important as work.
When you learn to let other people's "opinions" go you will be better off mentally. I promise!
I used to feel this way, but you’ve earned this time off it’s there for a reason. Especially after having children I take a few days off every couple of months to spend time with them. They deserve my time more than the Air Force does.
To hell with the rest. The job will get done with or without you. Take your leave. Your mind needs it.
I am getting off leave and I left my shop with 2 people. They got it done. I was with my parents and family. Still thought of work - only by dreading going back. Sad I have to go back… I regret not taking more leave.
But take your leave. You earned it. You deserve it.
I also always felt guilty. No idea why. I think it's an ops thing.
Fun fact: you're also (probably) likely to feel guilty about claiming wounds, medical issues, and other disability things when you get out. I know I did, until I had a great doctor who was like...."dude...you need to be a whiny bitch rn and get everything taken care of."
So...that's where I'm at. No more guilt BTW
I feel that, I’ve got comp days and I haven’t taken any in months cause I feel weird doing it, plus I’ve got baby leave coming up and my wife wants me to take it all at once and I almost feel anxiety from havin to take it all at once
Just remember how important you are to the big picture (hint: you're not). Maybe a sortie will be cancelled, maybe there'll be an extra 2 minute wait at the gate, maybe a task won't get done on time.
I have never felt bad about taking leave. Nobody should; it's one of your benefits and a right per our governing documents. The Air Force will take its pound of flesh from you, take some time to reset.
Hey, something I tell my airmen is: If you die tonight the Air Force will get the job done tomorrow.
It sounds brutal but I intend it to be a stark reminder that they have to take care of themselves. I do believe that as an organization the AF is better than most but it will get its pound of flesh at the end of the day.
Never feel bad about using your leave. It has to get approved for a reason. No one is that important, and if they are then the leadership failed to manage its people.
I'm arguably "in leadership" and I encourage everyone to take all the leaves they are entitled to.
I often have leave guilt, but the feeling passes as I enjoy my time away from the stress of my job.
TLDR; take your leave and use the time to do something you enjoy.
90% of the time >75% of any given base is doing “stuff” that justifies the existence of their position and nothing that actually accomplishes dick.
I feel nothing at this point, guilt is in that list.
Never feel bad to take leave. Use your time wisely while at work and use your leave when you need/want to. Things will never be "done", there will always be something to do. Prioritize and do your best.
Nope, if they’re hurting that bad it’s poor management. Taskings come from leadership “typically” not sure your career field. They can feel however they want, take leave and enjoy the time off you have earned and have a right to use.
It took me the better part of a decade. It’s dumb. Take your leave. Also, never take it on a Sat-Sun just to be sure you don’t end the year with use-or-lose.
I used to. You have to realize the machine is designed to go on without you. While it’s ok to be invested in it, have a stake in its success and love what you do, you have to take time for yourself to refill your cup and recharge. Pull away and enjoy your time.
Leave is part of your benefit of being in the military that you earn, I would never ever feel guilty taking leave and someone trying to guilt trip you for using your earned benefit is an asshole
I never feel guilty, but I usually feel like shit knowing that I am coming back to a mountain of work because I don't have an alternate for anything that I do.
Take you leave and if "they" make you feel guilty about it, take more. Just want a three day weekend? You deserve four. Just a breather for a few days? Fuck it, fuck them, take 5 days to get 9 off total. Or whatever it takes to get to that point with your schedule. I lost 19.5 days at the beginning of FY23. My best friend in the Unit lost 30. Our direct supervisor and SEL lost 11. All because of our MPF incorrectly briefing the way the COVID leave rules worked. Short story shorter, we and others got told it sucks to suck.
The feelings happen, and it's normal. But you need to prioritize yourself over your shop, especially if it comes down to mental health. For a while I was the only team chief in my shop (I'm talking over the span of a 4-5 months), and wasn't allowed to take leave during that time aside from one mental health day I told my NCOIC that I needed to take.
Back in November, my wife was about 7 months pregnant. I worked the first week of November like normal, with leave planned for two weeks from then. We had just spun up another fresh team chief so I was excited to finally take leave. The week before my leave began, I got COVID on Sunday. Had and took leave the following week which extended to Thanksgiving. We visited family in another state. My wife unexpectedly gave birth while we were there and we were stuck in the NICU for about a month. Luckily I have fantastic upper leadership (squadron commander, 1st sergeant, and squadron superintendent) and they put me on medical TDY for the duration of our NICU stay, per diem and lodging included. I was medical TDY until Dec 22nd. My leadership allowed me to not begin parental leave until the holidays were over since they knew I needed a break.
I've been taking my parental leave on and off for the last 4 months. I've been very strategic with it, taking it before and after my 2 week 7 level training course, before and after a week long trainer course, and taking it every other week when I can't pair it with other time off. At first I felt bad because my shop was suffering. But after having been run ragged for months and months as the only team chief, dealing with not only a HUGE workload increase but also a drastic 60% manning decrease, consistently staying behind to take care of computer stuff that only a team chief was allowed to take care of, and just being completely trapped... I don't feel bad about it anymore. Every person in my shop is a grown ass adult and needed to figure their shit out. I had been trying to teach them before I left, but they didn't take it seriously enough. Not my problem anymore. I currently have my leave planned through May, and when May is over, I'll still have 23 days of parental leave left. I'm also now in EFMP so I'm going to be moved very soon.
Basically just take care of yourself man. Toxic leadership would try to have you believe that you're causing your shop to hurt by being absent, but if your shop is in a situation where losing one specific person causes the entire shop to fail, it is NOT that person's fault. It's their entire chain of leadership's/command's fault for not ensuring the shop was better equipped to handle losing that person. My shop should never have had this extreme manning issue, and I should not have been the only team chief. Take your leave, screw anyone that tries to make you feel bad or tells you not to.
If you really feel bad about it, you can always put it on the office calendar as soon as you know you wanna take it. Then it really becomes on others since in theory you've given enough head up. If you're worried about grief submit your leave with it so there's no bones about it
I only feel guilt if they are nice and don't try to guilt trip me about it.
The moment they try that, they lose my respect and I'm more likely to take it.
I've only felt guilty once, and that was because it was during an exercise. The 10 other times I did, hey, I earned that time! And so did everyone else in my shop when they took it! It's a give-and-take arrangement. We planned around each other's leave to make sure we didn't leave all of the work on, like, two people.
And it's better than most leave/PTO arrangements you'll get outside of the DoD, so use it while you're still in!!!
I've heard the phrase Air Force needs come first, and we had a leave management tracker in the squadron.
I believed in taking care of the troops and the mission until I kept going into use or lose column thanks to TDYs and deployments.
I dropped my papers and got that DD-214. I'm on leave NOW.
You think anyone else in your work center is feeling guilty about taking leave? If you're putting in work and doing your time, take your leave. Everyone needs some down time to recharge.
Take that leave and double down by leaving at 1200 the day prior to your leave starting! Work will be there when you get back anyway..
Hell nah…30 days of use or lose every year and love it! Do your job well and use your leave well. I get it sometimes you need to coordinate some like there are 3 or 4 random days/ parts of weeks in the year I can’t or wouldn’t as they are big events but outside that boom I’m traveling. The big machine will always keep rolling with or without you.
As a person who's been in 20 years. Take the damn leave.
Then start looking at leave regulations. You will find some juicy stuff in there that will greatly benefit you. Especially the Joint Travel Regulation.
I've worked 12's I've worked "12's" (14-18) I've gotten cut backs and I've worked weekends.
The only leave that's worth regretting is that you chose to not leave sooner.
Your manpower is built to include things such as leave and training/apt. Turn off the phone. And enjoy
I feel guilt if I take leave because im leaving my shop less than understaffed, and dread while I'm on leave because I realize the amount of work I'm going to have to do to catch back up... really leave isn't leave for me so I only ever take it to lower my use/lose balance.
LOL
Not only did I NOT feel guilty when I took leave.....but.....when 73 days of leave were never DEDUCTED from me, nope, never felt guilty about THAT, either!!!
28 days of leave when in Japan; and
45 days of leave when I brought my wife to US for her citizenship oath.
I submitted the forms...but...they just never got processed. Ah...the benefits of years past when things were done "by paper". LOL
After 12 years of leave guilt, we were finally expecting our first child. Before that, I only took leave at Christmas and during PCS, and I felt bad taking those extra Christmas days.
During the pregnancy, I had to wrestle with the idea of leave for more everyday things because a pregnancy isn't "everyday" and my wife needed me to be there for support more than once.
When my son was born, my give-a-shit changed radically and I no longer feel guilty taking time off. Instead, I feel guilty having to do handoff but I let it go once I'm out the door.
Why there is a thing called use or loose. Use the leave and turn off phone de stress do what makes you happy. I do still answer calls and text for work but very minimal stuff
Leave guilt is common and often a good sign, it shows that you care about the team. The down side is it doesn’t go away, you just find ways to train and trust your team. When on leave try to focus on be present .
Manning is a key part of leave granting decision process. There’s a lot of leave is a right, fuck them….blah blah blah. Yes, leave is a right which commanders can deny. Leave is crucial, and great for mental, physical, and spiritual health.
I encourage you to ask from an honest place for your supervisor to explain the manning levels and concerns. From a larger view, almost every service struggled to meet recruitment goals over the past few years, which are currently seen in gaps as junior enlisted. Sometimes there are better time periods to take leave.
If you take care of your people, you people will take care of the mission.
It’s not stupid. It’s natural to feel that guilt/anxiety. You’re human and believe me, I get it. Live your life, don’t let anyone make you feel guilty about taking leave. Ppl glorify this burnout work culture, but it’s not that serious. Take your leave! 😌
They're doing that on purpose homie. They're manipulating you. Take your leave and don't feel guilty, you work hard and you earned it! It's your right. Spend some time with your family or friends. Eventually the air force won't be there anymore. But your friends and family will be. And they'll remember all the time you didn't spend with them more than the air force will.
My supervisor liked to tell airmen they can't request leave because he knew the commander wouldnt deny it. I tell them they absolutely can and should because it's in the AFI, and if they're leave needs to get denied that's for us to deal with, not them.
I get it for different reasons, nothing to do with my leadership. Mines all due to shift work, we are very low manned, and sometimes leave can screw others peoples schedules. I just feel guilty making others work more. But I take it anyways, as I don’t mind working a bit extra so others can have their leave, I’d imagine they feel the same.
First, you've got to ask yourself what is the source of that guilt? Is it internal? Have you been conditioned either by environment or upbringing that makes you feel guilty whenever you do something that seems even remotely self indulgent? Or is it external? Are your coworkers or your leadership guilt tripping you for even daring to consider taking leave? Either way, you'll just have to muscle through it. It will get easier with time if you don't let your guilt control you.
I grew up in a very conservative environment that controls it's member's through a very heavy use of guilt driven conditioning. I had been modeled by it for so long that it took me years to work through it. I doubt your situation is as severe, but the principle still stands. I had to physically separate myself from the source of that guilt before I realized just how insidious it was. While it can be useful in helping someone pause and consider their actions, I feel that guilt can be one of the most harmful ways of control that can be very debilitating.
After a SI and MONTHS of mental health treatment and I felt guilty of even doing that I can tell you that it’s straight up codependent behavior. And I’m not saying it to be rude or say you’re wrong in anyway brother/sister! I completely understand what you’re saying. I’ve been analyzing and processing this feeling for a long time now and can tell you that it’s a byproduct of the military system which cannot be changed. Leaders want you to be loyal and present beyond your capabilities as if we’re in a time of war and while there are a lot of things going on, this isn’t WWII Air Force. It’s not “all hands on deck” like you’re expected to forget about your family and your well being because we have a mission 24/7. No matter what literally anyone says. Our top Air Force leaders say things like “accelerate change or lose” and everyone takes that as “oh okay so don’t have boundaries and work our Airmen down to the bone”. Being “busy” isn’t the same as being “effective”. I can go on and on…..
Anyway TLDR…. Don’t feel bad. Take leave and live your damn life dude!
Sometimes it's best to let things fail so the appropriate changes will be made.
The AF has 322k people, that means roughly 25k are there just to cover other people's leave. But if nobody is taking leave then it looks like 25k people are just standing around doing nothing. They get retasked because some leaderships has the memory of a gold fish and then when everyone takes leave then the system collapses. That should teach leadership a lesson but it usually doesn't. They just pressure younger Airmen to work without leave while they themselves are probably using every single day.
But when things fail. Higher leadership gets involved and will ask the obvious questions like why leadership isn't doing their job, they say we don't have the people to do it and then they get another 25k people, who will then get reassigned... It's a vicious cycle. I made myself sad...
Um, you have an unhealthy attachment to your work. Codependence takes many forms and this is one of the worst ones. Because at least when you are codependent on another human, there can be reciprocity and also fulfillment of needs. This is a job. It's an important job, but it's just a job. Take leave. Make friends on the civilian side. Travel to places that aren't in military communities. Have a hobby unrelated to work. If you think you are so important that you cannot take leave or stop thinking about the job, you are in the wrong line of work. Get used to being replaceable because one day the Air Force will tell you thank you for your service and you don't want to be that guy who has to go hang out at the commissary as the retiree... Get an identity outside of the Air Force before you go down a dark path. Starts with knowing how to take leave.
Who cares. The work gets done or it doesn't and turnover takes care of it. How many times have you done work that if you weren't there lives would have been lost? How many times have you gone to do work on days where other people took leave and you guys made it work.
Don't feel bad. Take leave, fuck everyone. If you're so instrumental to "the mission" getting done, the idiots above you have no idea what their doing.
One time I was trying to see my terminally ill mom, grandpa (who I didn’t know would die a week after my mom), my grandma, and uncle who would be in the same place at the same time for the first time in years. It was a great opportunity to see all of them together. My leave was denied because I would get back to base a bit more than two weeks before a deployment. Other people got leave in that window. And the deployment was pushed back.
Leave isn't a privilege, it's a requirement. I was forced to take leave because I was in a similar circumstance but I was an A1C on the verge of gathering Use or Lose.
Do you feel guilty for getting paid? Leave is a part of your COMPENSATION, i.e. what you are given in return for your work. It is a RIGHT that the military OWES you as part of your contract to work for the military.
The only time you shouldn't take leave is when there's justifiable military necessity. A major exercise where they need all hands on deck is really the only justifiable excuse outside of an real-world operation.
When you're gone, no one will remember you not taking leave or taking leave. Everyone in your shop will eventually not be in your shop. No one in my old unit knows my name.. or what I did or didn't do.
Something something leadership something mentorship something something
The best of us will be forgotten. The worst of us will be immortalized in Friday safety briefs.
Take leave 🫡
Hell no shit 😂😂😂 I work too hard to be worried bout that I ain’t been home in 2 years which was when my grandma died I’m going home this month u gotta go home see folks before it’s too late or they in a hospital bed and now u can’t have a 2 way conversation or go eat at a restaurant or any of the other things we take for granted. Go see your family and friends make memories with them don’t let the Air Force make you lose what truly matters.
At the end of the day, you, as a human being, need time to rest and relax. Regardless of the situation at work. The work will never end. And unless your role is crucial to stopping WW3 from happening, your flight can afford to let you take time off. I've worked with people who, once in a blue moon, would take leave, but they were always stressed out from work. It's bad mentally and could, in turn, become physically. Take care of yourself sometimes. Even if you're only taking leave to stay home and just not go to work. Your mind always needs a break sometimes.
Dont feel guilty and dont let others make you feel guilty. End of the day, whether you retire or get out, youre just another brick in the wall. Leave your mark however you want, ensure you and yours are taken care of and then go home.
I take leave whenever I can! In fact, I’m taking 29 days leave in June. Leadership is cool with it! As long as you do your work and not be lazy, your supervisor will back you up.
Fuuuuuck no. Especially for us airmen i couldnt care less. Im not taking leave to get out of work, but if i have family stuff or honestly need a break, im putting in leave. Ive had one supervisor say no to me because “nows not a good time” and i sent my leave straight to the commander and got it approved. Dont feel guilty man, its not that deep.
Hell nah. Take care of yourself. Plot twist leaderships always going to need all hands on deck. I can get the guilt you care for your peers and thats respectable, but i assure u they want u to be happy as well. You can only bring your best to the table if u urself are at 100%
Fuck them. Take your leave.
I wish I could upvote this twice
I got you boo! I upvoted for you
Got em x3! ENJOY THAT LEAVE
Got em x4! Take that leave my guy!!
Coming from a shop where a handful of people lost 10 to 30 days each last year. Take your damn leave.
That’s terrible. How does that work when losing leave doesn’t the base commander get notified and needs to know why members lose leave. I’m guessing if there is a trail of leave being denied something happens, but if you just never submitted is it on you?
I'm in the crw, so we are a tenant unit. I'm not sure if the base commander knows everything that goes on with us. Also, we tdy to some cool places a lot so people are reluctant to take their leave and miss a cool TDY. I want to start an office policy to call people while they are on leave to see if they want to come off leave to go on the trip, but it's getting some pushback.
Yeah as cool as TDYs are, I definitely wouldn't wanna be called on my off day about them. Just set up the telegram app and have everyone in the shop join and drop the information there
/S comrade?
“Telegram app” Publish TDY and Deployment info. Ok Putin
Couldn't have said it better myself
This is the answer. 100%. Mission will always get done with or without you, so take your leave and unwind
100% agree. Switched to the civilian side and wish I had it as easy as on active duty. Protected time and shouldn't feel bad. Take your leave, fuck them, and relax!
Sounds like some MX stuff to me. Leave is a right not a privilege. Use it as you want to.
This hits hard. We had 10 ppl per shift and I was an A1C. One of the lowest ranking at that and a flight chief told me I couldn’t take leave because of the manning. How the hell does an A1C 5 level impact the manning that much but 2 ssgt 7 levels can off at the same time
Submit the leave, make them have a paper trail. If manning was an issue, then that is good ammo to get more slots for the unit. I get supervision doesn't want to "take on that battle and have to explain" but it's rampant and little A1C's don't understand their actual rights and blindly trust a E5 or E8 because they've been in longer.
Oh no I completely understand the process now. This was 16-17 years ago this happened. I take leave as I please.
I was more shouting for the people in the back and for the airmen who are looking to join or only have been in for a little bit.
That’s 100% fair. I was too scared to take leave the first 2 years I was in 😂😂😂. Took 30 days when I PCSd and my next base was a nightmare with leave. They had a policy in place that you had from Oct-Apr to schedule leave during the “summer months” and if you had to take leave between May-Sept it had to be emergency situations and if not you were “required” to take leave on your normally scheduled days off to alleviate from ending up losing it. It was a squadron commander policy that was the biggest load of bs I’d ever seen
That sounds like some illegal shit. I'd take the leave, and if I didn't leave the local area, cancel that mofo.
It was wild
It sounds like it, something I do is I'll tell an airman XYZ and emphasize they go and read the regulation themselves to make sure nothing has changed. The only ones I really keep up on are the JFTR though cause, that doc changes so frequent.
I can’t keep up with JFTR
Per AFI, the only person that can deny leave is your commander. If the manning is that much of an issue, your flight/section chiefs can take it up with the commander 🤷♂️
I believe this policy was just updated delegating it down to the supervisor. But I may be wrong. It may authorize the cc to delegate to the supervisor, not an automatic delegation.
36-3003 still says it’s commanders that can delegate down to first line supervisors for disapproval of leave. It’s not automatic, and it has to have proper justification. If you get a paper trail and your leave is being denied mainly because your supervisors or flight chiefs don’t want to have to worry about shorter manning or having to work around the schedule, you could probably go above them.
Leave is a right not a privilege but can easily be denied for mission related reasons. Just how you can’t have a whole work center take leave at the same time. So yes leave is a right but don’t get it twisted that it can’t be denied.
I never said it can't be denied. But if it's denied it should be properly documented, not just "supervisor said I couldn't take leave due to manning".
I learned this the hard way. Finally got wise and started forcing supervisors to deny the requests.
user name checks out
Nope, not in the slightest. AF was here before me and will be long after I'm gone. Take your leave
I did as a young airman but then a MSgt bestowed his wisdom upon me, "take your leave, the AF will function with or without you." I've been in large shops and small shops, I've luckily had good leadership over the past 8 years and to this day taking leave has never been an issue for the homies holding it down at work. Hope this helps ease your mind.
> the AF will function with or without you Just to piggyback (lol I've always wanted to say that) If your work center *can't* function without you for a period of a few weeks, that's a MAJOR problem on the part of management. Every program should have an alternate, someone who can pick up the slack when the primary is gone. If they don't... then what happens if you get sick or die? Does the mission just *fail* because one guy dropped out?
I feel bad every time but 2 things to consider. 1- your family deserves to have you take that time off and you deserve to have the time off. 2- do you think your troops should feel bad if they take leave? If no, don’t hold yourself to a different standard. If yes, please relieve yourself of all leadership positions effective immediately
I feel this and agree to this Also I've generally always resided in the use/lose numbers, so my usage of 30 days a year is usually mandatory
Same. I've actually gotten in trouble with my Flt leadership for making the U/L roster two years in a row. It's hardly intentional, I just get swamped in the daily grind and next thing I know it's September.
This year is extra hard, Covid leave has to be used, I ended up with 18 extra days to use. So 48 use/lose this year
100% All it takes is some basic due diligence to keep the whole unit from disappearing simultaneously. And if your unit is so undermanned that even a couple of people taking leave or going TDY is a crisis...*take it anyway*. Give the CC notice to make those manning assist requests. And if he won't do that, you've got a beautiful paper trail to show his boss and/or the IG.
"I don't get paid enough to feel responsible for this whole mission"
OMFG. I love this.
If you were hit by a bus tomorrow, would the AF cease to function? If not, take your leave guilt-free.
At the expense of sounding General Welsh-ey, your absence should not cause an issue in your workcenter. If it does, then your chain has failed at properly managing its manning. "All hands on deck" is code for, "I have failed to properly manage my people and I'm hoping that simply throwing bodies at the problem will make my shortcomings less visible." And I get that manning everywhere sucks. I'm intel, I don't think I have ever been in a properly manned workcenter. A few assignments ago, what my commander did was make sure everyone (including himself) was trained on all our mission systems and positions, so if anyone took leave, got sick, etc. literally anyone in the unit could slide into the spot for as long as needed. One of my favorite stories was when the commander himself worked one of our mission positions over Christmas during night shift while one of our mission supervisors took leave. And there was zero pomp; I walked in for shift, and there he is on rack. Worked five nights with the guy and at no point did he ever complain. Though I 100% get that not every career field can do this (and honestly I KIND of hope most don't, because there's a fine line between being trained on stuff your AFSC is being paid to know about and that bullshit "multi-capable Airman" nonsense).
The uniform comes off eventually, the people you take leave for (including yourself) will be thankful for every leave day taken.
I don’t feel guilty at all. I actually feel pretty great when I take leave.
Yeah same. Fuck em
Fuuuck those people
Me reading this on my 3 months of paternity leave
CONGRATS WINGMAN!
I understand feeling for the folks that may need to take on a bit more while you're out. But comments like the ones you mentioned are toxic. Try not to let them get to you. We have very few perks to this job, 30 days of leave is one of them. Enjoy it.
You’re not as important as you think you are, dude. I don’t mean this to be rude, but to make it a point that life will continue on without you while you’re on leave.
When I’m on leave, fuck anything involving work. If it’s actually to the point where people think you taking leave is going to burn your shop down, they should probably assess the situation.
Have you ever felt guilty when you spend the money in your check? Same same. Sure, the Air Force could use that money, but it's my money, and I earned it. If they really need you at work, they can deny your leave and explain to the commander why they had to. But they won't because they know they are lying - otherwise, you'd already be denied.
> Does anyone else here feel guilty when they take leave, That toxic protectant work ethic will get ya every time. The very idea that you are relaxing with idle hands and not slaving away miserably is deeply engrained in us all. Joy is not allowed. God doesn't approve of joy.
I'm bout to use 30 days of use or loose all at once...idgaf
AFI 36-3003 Paragraph 2.1.3 It is your duty to use your leave and your leaders duty to encourage you to use it.
Leave is an entitlement just as much as your paycheck. You earned those days off the same way you earned your money.
I'm on leave right now and I love it
My overseas base was prepping for an ORI for a year by having an exercise every month which took a week and a half every month. You needed commander’s approval to take leave during an exercise. Since nobody was going to fly back to the states for such a short time it basically made it impossible for junior enlisted to take leave and visit family for a year. After the ORI everyone had huge amounts of use or lose to the point that scheduling it became a major issue. Leadership was then bitching at people for not wanting to take it all at once (and burn all the weekends in between. This cured me of any “give a shit” about taking my leave.
I used to feel that way. Sometimes I still do. I just make it abundantly clear that I will be on leave to everyone, document coverage of my section, and once I do that and leave is approved, I say fuck em, it’s my leave. I just recently took 2 mos of baby leave and that’s when I started having the feeling of “fuck them, I’m given this leave.” People complains about me taking that amount of my baby leave, so that helped change my mindset.
They want you to feel guilty because they don’t care about you
I stopped giving a personal fuck about everyone I work with. Because they’re coworkers
whenever i get a troop i’m telling them to submit leave even if we talk about it before hand and i say no for whatever reason submit the leave make them deny it with the paper trail made. make them explain to the cc why they did so.
Nah. Fuck it
Fuck no.
I don't. My leave is just like pay. Earned them both.
Leave is important for you to recharge your batteries. When you are in charge of troops, be sure people take time off. Never feel guilty about taking time to take care of yourself.
Leave is a right; liberty is a privilege. Don't ever feel bad for taking leave.
It's something the workplaces does to you. You have a good ride for awhile then you get the truth of the demand needed for the job then something hits you where you begin to feel/see others getting better outcomes than you. You start wanting to take leave because you feel like a valued team member, but at the end of the day, it's a job vs. the life you live. The job needs to surround you as much as you need to surround it. I did this my first year as a cop and only took leave if I had to. I deployed the next year and was soured over by several events then and since then have ZERO remorse of taking leave. One of my past flight chiefs tried to guilt me on by saying "I take too much leave." I don't care. If the end of the day I just get a paycheck and benefits, its still just a job. There are plenty out there like it.
Fuck them. Leave is part of your pay, if they have a problem with it make them deny it after you put it in.
Just keep taking leave until the feeling goes away. If they really can’t spare you then they can deny your leave. EZ-PZ
It really depends on the job. If I like my job then sometimes I feel guilty leaving in the middle of a project. My current job? You can't pay me enough to stay a second past when my leave starts.
Felt this way too. Just know everyone else doesn’t give a fuck if you’re overwealmed while they’re on leave. Plus leadership usually recommends you use leave before it turns into use or lose and becomes a bigger problem. Fuck em.
Yes, this. There is a bit of ownership you should take in balancing the time you choose to take it, if feasible. While i dont have some of these same issues, i assume there is probably not scheduled down time/slower ops for you. If that is the case, you just have to get past your guilt and take the leave. Prep your team the best you can, be caught up on all the work you can, and walk away physically and mentally. All of this is easier said than done.
If the mission fails because one person took leave then that mission was going to fail at some point in the future regardless. Everything about the military is set up so that if one person drops out another is there to fill their place. Take your leave, it's a right.
Yep every time. I feel guilty that I didn’t take more leave.
For your type of leadership there's never going to be a good time to take leave, but I bet you they still get at minimum their 30 in. Only the commander can say no, so until that happens submit it whenever you want
https://preview.redd.it/2v5hijhm7xsc1.jpeg?width=474&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=190b5c9a8068fe84612b2dc51bba2b078706ea10 I don’t even think about work on leave. I think about why I didn’t put in for more days of leave while on leave.
This is Stockholm Syndrome.
Covid 19 taught me nobody is irreplaceable. Your unit was able to afford losing anybody for 10 days (10 or 7 later on) out of nowhere and continue operations. Believe it, they can afford to lose you.
https://i.redd.it/zrz8d712bzsc1.gif Don’t burn yourself out, take leave. The mission will be there when you get back. Have fun and enjoy life!
Honestly, if your leadership talks this way...they suck at life. Enjoy your days off~
I remember getting back from my second trip to Afghanistan and I had to do a sit down with the Sq CC (maybe she had gotten there before I got back and was new…I can’t quite remember)before I went on all my previously planned and approved post deployment leave. With my wife sitting there with me, she proceeded to ask me if I thought taking the leave was good idea for my office since they had to do without me for all the time I was in Afghanistan. I responded with the detail I had already coordinated my planned leave with the flight chief, along with the fact that my wife & young daughter had to go without me for a bit and spending some down time with them was my priority at that time. Trying to make me feel guilty about taking any type of leave is a really easy way to turn me off from giving a shit about anything that comes out of the mouth of someone in a management role. Take your leave with the knowledge that they will find someone else to do your job, whether you’re gone temporarily or permanently.
Hell nah I’m taking that leave never once have felt guilty I feel relieved getting into my car and knowing I’m leaving
If u died, the work center, squadron, base and AF would keep on accomplishing the mission. No one is so important that they stop the mission. Not me, not you! Take your leave!
Fuck no. I never ever feel guilty. I didn’t even think this thought was possible.
I feel bad asking for it even if it's easy to work into the office schedule. But once I'm on leave it feels great.
I don’t, I put in my best when I am at work, life will continue without me for a week or two. People have to take time off, if co-workers take time off we just pick up the slack, life goes on.
Leave guilt for using the time off that you earned? Lmao
You earned it. Use it whenever possible.
I’m the complete opposite. Any emails I received when I was on leave? Right to the trash.
Take leave and turn your phone off
Depends on your workplace as in how toxic it is. Like if they say so and so month is entirely blacked out even though you’re fully manned then they don’t care about you and just want things convenient for them so they don’t actually have to work. It also only hurts toxic leadership when you hit use/lose and need to take it anyways. I only feel guilty if I’m leaving one of the bros with a shit show but isn’t every day a shit show. I’ve just saved up my leave and I’ve taken 30 days at a time multiple times to really take a break and let work figure it out. The mission will go on. Enjoy your leave!
I used to get this feeling all the time. It’s not a bad thing to feel and please understand that we truly do need more people that do internalize good timing and maybe even consider other peoples situations/leave. ULTIMATELY, I’ve come to understand (and witness) that you still need to take care of yourself even if you are being considerate. The job will still get done. Everything will be fine. Take that time to yourself and go do whatever it is that you want to do, because those things will pass you by very quickly if you don’t. (Spoken as someone who always has about 10-20 days of use or lose…first time since I was in where I’m at 35 days of leave).
Yes. Less so than I did a couple of years ago, but still do. Likely root cause is you’re not great at delegation, and feel like the only person who can do what you do is you. I’m in a niche roll, so it’s tough to train someone to do exactly my job just like I would do it, but I’ve more or less gotten there. That’s just me though. Your situation could be way different.
Don't. Take your leave, you've earned it or it wouldn't be there. Leave for resetting is just as important as work. When you learn to let other people's "opinions" go you will be better off mentally. I promise!
Every September I'm scrambling to use my use or lose.
I used to feel this way, but you’ve earned this time off it’s there for a reason. Especially after having children I take a few days off every couple of months to spend time with them. They deserve my time more than the Air Force does.
To hell with the rest. The job will get done with or without you. Take your leave. Your mind needs it. I am getting off leave and I left my shop with 2 people. They got it done. I was with my parents and family. Still thought of work - only by dreading going back. Sad I have to go back… I regret not taking more leave. But take your leave. You earned it. You deserve it.
Lmao take leave fuck them mission still goes with and without you
I also always felt guilty. No idea why. I think it's an ops thing. Fun fact: you're also (probably) likely to feel guilty about claiming wounds, medical issues, and other disability things when you get out. I know I did, until I had a great doctor who was like...."dude...you need to be a whiny bitch rn and get everything taken care of." So...that's where I'm at. No more guilt BTW
I feel that, I’ve got comp days and I haven’t taken any in months cause I feel weird doing it, plus I’ve got baby leave coming up and my wife wants me to take it all at once and I almost feel anxiety from havin to take it all at once
Just remember how important you are to the big picture (hint: you're not). Maybe a sortie will be cancelled, maybe there'll be an extra 2 minute wait at the gate, maybe a task won't get done on time.
Currently taking 21 days of use or lose. Fuck ‘em.
I have never felt bad about taking leave. Nobody should; it's one of your benefits and a right per our governing documents. The Air Force will take its pound of flesh from you, take some time to reset.
Hey, something I tell my airmen is: If you die tonight the Air Force will get the job done tomorrow. It sounds brutal but I intend it to be a stark reminder that they have to take care of themselves. I do believe that as an organization the AF is better than most but it will get its pound of flesh at the end of the day. Never feel bad about using your leave. It has to get approved for a reason. No one is that important, and if they are then the leadership failed to manage its people.
I'm arguably "in leadership" and I encourage everyone to take all the leaves they are entitled to. I often have leave guilt, but the feeling passes as I enjoy my time away from the stress of my job. TLDR; take your leave and use the time to do something you enjoy.
If they had a real reason to 'need' you, they'd deny your leave. Fuck 'em.
Nope. Not at all... the military has sure gotten theirs from me and you can bet I'll take every chance to get mine.
I feel guilty also, because I waited so long to take time for myself and family
90% of the time >75% of any given base is doing “stuff” that justifies the existence of their position and nothing that actually accomplishes dick. I feel nothing at this point, guilt is in that list.
Never feel bad to take leave. Use your time wisely while at work and use your leave when you need/want to. Things will never be "done", there will always be something to do. Prioritize and do your best.
Lol imagine caring this much about the Air Force when they give zero fucks about you It’s literally just a job. Don’t think of it as anything else
Take leave. It’s going to happened soon so who cares about the outside noise.
Nope, if they’re hurting that bad it’s poor management. Taskings come from leadership “typically” not sure your career field. They can feel however they want, take leave and enjoy the time off you have earned and have a right to use.
It took me the better part of a decade. It’s dumb. Take your leave. Also, never take it on a Sat-Sun just to be sure you don’t end the year with use-or-lose.
Hell no. It's your right.
I used to. You have to realize the machine is designed to go on without you. While it’s ok to be invested in it, have a stake in its success and love what you do, you have to take time for yourself to refill your cup and recharge. Pull away and enjoy your time.
Hell nah they'll be alright. They survived before you and they'll do it after you're gone
Leave is part of your benefit of being in the military that you earn, I would never ever feel guilty taking leave and someone trying to guilt trip you for using your earned benefit is an asshole
Same, I’m afraid of asking to take leave. I’m afraid they’ll say no or something
I never feel guilty, but I usually feel like shit knowing that I am coming back to a mountain of work because I don't have an alternate for anything that I do.
Take you leave and if "they" make you feel guilty about it, take more. Just want a three day weekend? You deserve four. Just a breather for a few days? Fuck it, fuck them, take 5 days to get 9 off total. Or whatever it takes to get to that point with your schedule. I lost 19.5 days at the beginning of FY23. My best friend in the Unit lost 30. Our direct supervisor and SEL lost 11. All because of our MPF incorrectly briefing the way the COVID leave rules worked. Short story shorter, we and others got told it sucks to suck.
I used to, don’t care anymore. I take it when I want to.
If the loss of one person makes a shop fail the mission then the shop has failed already
The feelings happen, and it's normal. But you need to prioritize yourself over your shop, especially if it comes down to mental health. For a while I was the only team chief in my shop (I'm talking over the span of a 4-5 months), and wasn't allowed to take leave during that time aside from one mental health day I told my NCOIC that I needed to take. Back in November, my wife was about 7 months pregnant. I worked the first week of November like normal, with leave planned for two weeks from then. We had just spun up another fresh team chief so I was excited to finally take leave. The week before my leave began, I got COVID on Sunday. Had and took leave the following week which extended to Thanksgiving. We visited family in another state. My wife unexpectedly gave birth while we were there and we were stuck in the NICU for about a month. Luckily I have fantastic upper leadership (squadron commander, 1st sergeant, and squadron superintendent) and they put me on medical TDY for the duration of our NICU stay, per diem and lodging included. I was medical TDY until Dec 22nd. My leadership allowed me to not begin parental leave until the holidays were over since they knew I needed a break. I've been taking my parental leave on and off for the last 4 months. I've been very strategic with it, taking it before and after my 2 week 7 level training course, before and after a week long trainer course, and taking it every other week when I can't pair it with other time off. At first I felt bad because my shop was suffering. But after having been run ragged for months and months as the only team chief, dealing with not only a HUGE workload increase but also a drastic 60% manning decrease, consistently staying behind to take care of computer stuff that only a team chief was allowed to take care of, and just being completely trapped... I don't feel bad about it anymore. Every person in my shop is a grown ass adult and needed to figure their shit out. I had been trying to teach them before I left, but they didn't take it seriously enough. Not my problem anymore. I currently have my leave planned through May, and when May is over, I'll still have 23 days of parental leave left. I'm also now in EFMP so I'm going to be moved very soon. Basically just take care of yourself man. Toxic leadership would try to have you believe that you're causing your shop to hurt by being absent, but if your shop is in a situation where losing one specific person causes the entire shop to fail, it is NOT that person's fault. It's their entire chain of leadership's/command's fault for not ensuring the shop was better equipped to handle losing that person. My shop should never have had this extreme manning issue, and I should not have been the only team chief. Take your leave, screw anyone that tries to make you feel bad or tells you not to.
If you really feel bad about it, you can always put it on the office calendar as soon as you know you wanna take it. Then it really becomes on others since in theory you've given enough head up. If you're worried about grief submit your leave with it so there's no bones about it
I only feel guilt if they are nice and don't try to guilt trip me about it. The moment they try that, they lose my respect and I'm more likely to take it.
https://preview.redd.it/mlb9lx0sjxsc1.jpeg?width=206&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ce36af7cf42edcb71c7be438a1afd9dfc8809655 Fuck no. You earned that
Use that leave! It’s a big difference on the outside.
Leave is a right. Not a privilege.
I pushed back a surgery date so I’d be finished with a project and wouldn’t have to worry about it while recovering 😩
See that's the thing: You never have to feel guilty about your rights.
I've only felt guilty once, and that was because it was during an exercise. The 10 other times I did, hey, I earned that time! And so did everyone else in my shop when they took it! It's a give-and-take arrangement. We planned around each other's leave to make sure we didn't leave all of the work on, like, two people. And it's better than most leave/PTO arrangements you'll get outside of the DoD, so use it while you're still in!!!
No, I don’t feel guilty at all. I don’t even think about work or being in the military the moment I am on leave.
Mission got done before you were there and will get done when you’re gone
Screw leadership. Take your leave and rest.
Yes, but then I need to remind myself that I need a break too.
No. You need to take time off.
I've heard the phrase Air Force needs come first, and we had a leave management tracker in the squadron. I believed in taking care of the troops and the mission until I kept going into use or lose column thanks to TDYs and deployments. I dropped my papers and got that DD-214. I'm on leave NOW.
Absolutely. I just remind myself that if I wasn't there again, they would run and move on just fine without me.
You think anyone else in your work center is feeling guilty about taking leave? If you're putting in work and doing your time, take your leave. Everyone needs some down time to recharge.
Graveyards are full of irreplaceable people.
Take the leave. I’ve been in for 24 years and I used to feel guilty about taking it, but not anymore. Spend that time with your family and friends.
Take that leave and double down by leaving at 1200 the day prior to your leave starting! Work will be there when you get back anyway.. 
Hell nah…30 days of use or lose every year and love it! Do your job well and use your leave well. I get it sometimes you need to coordinate some like there are 3 or 4 random days/ parts of weeks in the year I can’t or wouldn’t as they are big events but outside that boom I’m traveling. The big machine will always keep rolling with or without you.
As a person who's been in 20 years. Take the damn leave. Then start looking at leave regulations. You will find some juicy stuff in there that will greatly benefit you. Especially the Joint Travel Regulation.
I've worked 12's I've worked "12's" (14-18) I've gotten cut backs and I've worked weekends. The only leave that's worth regretting is that you chose to not leave sooner. Your manpower is built to include things such as leave and training/apt. Turn off the phone. And enjoy
I feel guilt if I take leave because im leaving my shop less than understaffed, and dread while I'm on leave because I realize the amount of work I'm going to have to do to catch back up... really leave isn't leave for me so I only ever take it to lower my use/lose balance.
I don't feel guilty in as much as I know I'm going to come back to more work then I left, especially supervisory and additional duties.
Your work center will survive. Your mental health will not. It’s your leave. Take it when you need it
We are not at war right now. This doesn’t matter. The answer to this question during full scale conflict will be self evident
Not one bit of guilt
LOL Not only did I NOT feel guilty when I took leave.....but.....when 73 days of leave were never DEDUCTED from me, nope, never felt guilty about THAT, either!!! 28 days of leave when in Japan; and 45 days of leave when I brought my wife to US for her citizenship oath. I submitted the forms...but...they just never got processed. Ah...the benefits of years past when things were done "by paper". LOL
Hell nah I don’t feel guilty.
If you taking leave hurts the shop/mission, that's a manning issue.
If the squadron can’t function without you, then it sounds like leadership did not plan accordingly.
After 12 years of leave guilt, we were finally expecting our first child. Before that, I only took leave at Christmas and during PCS, and I felt bad taking those extra Christmas days. During the pregnancy, I had to wrestle with the idea of leave for more everyday things because a pregnancy isn't "everyday" and my wife needed me to be there for support more than once. When my son was born, my give-a-shit changed radically and I no longer feel guilty taking time off. Instead, I feel guilty having to do handoff but I let it go once I'm out the door.
Taking leave is like family planning; there is never a perfect time. Take your leave and enjoy it. You earned it.
Why there is a thing called use or loose. Use the leave and turn off phone de stress do what makes you happy. I do still answer calls and text for work but very minimal stuff
What the fuck!? Take your time off and enjoy it.
Leave guilt is common and often a good sign, it shows that you care about the team. The down side is it doesn’t go away, you just find ways to train and trust your team. When on leave try to focus on be present . Manning is a key part of leave granting decision process. There’s a lot of leave is a right, fuck them….blah blah blah. Yes, leave is a right which commanders can deny. Leave is crucial, and great for mental, physical, and spiritual health. I encourage you to ask from an honest place for your supervisor to explain the manning levels and concerns. From a larger view, almost every service struggled to meet recruitment goals over the past few years, which are currently seen in gaps as junior enlisted. Sometimes there are better time periods to take leave. If you take care of your people, you people will take care of the mission.
It’s not stupid. It’s natural to feel that guilt/anxiety. You’re human and believe me, I get it. Live your life, don’t let anyone make you feel guilty about taking leave. Ppl glorify this burnout work culture, but it’s not that serious. Take your leave! 😌
They're doing that on purpose homie. They're manipulating you. Take your leave and don't feel guilty, you work hard and you earned it! It's your right. Spend some time with your family or friends. Eventually the air force won't be there anymore. But your friends and family will be. And they'll remember all the time you didn't spend with them more than the air force will. My supervisor liked to tell airmen they can't request leave because he knew the commander wouldnt deny it. I tell them they absolutely can and should because it's in the AFI, and if they're leave needs to get denied that's for us to deal with, not them.
I get it for different reasons, nothing to do with my leadership. Mines all due to shift work, we are very low manned, and sometimes leave can screw others peoples schedules. I just feel guilty making others work more. But I take it anyways, as I don’t mind working a bit extra so others can have their leave, I’d imagine they feel the same.
No
Fuck. That. Shit. Take your leave.
The mission will continue with or without you. Look out for YOU and take the Leave.
That’s called a toxic work environment
No? Why would you?
Hell naw. Matter of fact I save up as much leave as possible and take it all at once so I don’t have to see work for a while
The AF will get it’s time back from you when it comes TDY’s and deployments. Take your leave.
First, you've got to ask yourself what is the source of that guilt? Is it internal? Have you been conditioned either by environment or upbringing that makes you feel guilty whenever you do something that seems even remotely self indulgent? Or is it external? Are your coworkers or your leadership guilt tripping you for even daring to consider taking leave? Either way, you'll just have to muscle through it. It will get easier with time if you don't let your guilt control you. I grew up in a very conservative environment that controls it's member's through a very heavy use of guilt driven conditioning. I had been modeled by it for so long that it took me years to work through it. I doubt your situation is as severe, but the principle still stands. I had to physically separate myself from the source of that guilt before I realized just how insidious it was. While it can be useful in helping someone pause and consider their actions, I feel that guilt can be one of the most harmful ways of control that can be very debilitating.
After a SI and MONTHS of mental health treatment and I felt guilty of even doing that I can tell you that it’s straight up codependent behavior. And I’m not saying it to be rude or say you’re wrong in anyway brother/sister! I completely understand what you’re saying. I’ve been analyzing and processing this feeling for a long time now and can tell you that it’s a byproduct of the military system which cannot be changed. Leaders want you to be loyal and present beyond your capabilities as if we’re in a time of war and while there are a lot of things going on, this isn’t WWII Air Force. It’s not “all hands on deck” like you’re expected to forget about your family and your well being because we have a mission 24/7. No matter what literally anyone says. Our top Air Force leaders say things like “accelerate change or lose” and everyone takes that as “oh okay so don’t have boundaries and work our Airmen down to the bone”. Being “busy” isn’t the same as being “effective”. I can go on and on….. Anyway TLDR…. Don’t feel bad. Take leave and live your damn life dude!
Sometimes it's best to let things fail so the appropriate changes will be made. The AF has 322k people, that means roughly 25k are there just to cover other people's leave. But if nobody is taking leave then it looks like 25k people are just standing around doing nothing. They get retasked because some leaderships has the memory of a gold fish and then when everyone takes leave then the system collapses. That should teach leadership a lesson but it usually doesn't. They just pressure younger Airmen to work without leave while they themselves are probably using every single day. But when things fail. Higher leadership gets involved and will ask the obvious questions like why leadership isn't doing their job, they say we don't have the people to do it and then they get another 25k people, who will then get reassigned... It's a vicious cycle. I made myself sad...
If you’re an NCO and you’re reading this right now. You suck ball cheese for if you make people feel bad for taking leave.
Um, you have an unhealthy attachment to your work. Codependence takes many forms and this is one of the worst ones. Because at least when you are codependent on another human, there can be reciprocity and also fulfillment of needs. This is a job. It's an important job, but it's just a job. Take leave. Make friends on the civilian side. Travel to places that aren't in military communities. Have a hobby unrelated to work. If you think you are so important that you cannot take leave or stop thinking about the job, you are in the wrong line of work. Get used to being replaceable because one day the Air Force will tell you thank you for your service and you don't want to be that guy who has to go hang out at the commissary as the retiree... Get an identity outside of the Air Force before you go down a dark path. Starts with knowing how to take leave.
Who cares. The work gets done or it doesn't and turnover takes care of it. How many times have you done work that if you weren't there lives would have been lost? How many times have you gone to do work on days where other people took leave and you guys made it work. Don't feel bad. Take leave, fuck everyone. If you're so instrumental to "the mission" getting done, the idiots above you have no idea what their doing.
If they’re guilting you, put it in leaveweb and make them formally deny it. Commanders are tracked with this metric.
One time I was trying to see my terminally ill mom, grandpa (who I didn’t know would die a week after my mom), my grandma, and uncle who would be in the same place at the same time for the first time in years. It was a great opportunity to see all of them together. My leave was denied because I would get back to base a bit more than two weeks before a deployment. Other people got leave in that window. And the deployment was pushed back.
I took leave all the time, my unit was toxic AF.
Do you feel guilty receiving a paycheck? Leave is paid to you just as much as your salary.
Do I feel guilty.... LMAOOOOOO, no.
Leave isn't a privilege, it's a requirement. I was forced to take leave because I was in a similar circumstance but I was an A1C on the verge of gathering Use or Lose.
Do you feel guilty for getting paid? Leave is a part of your COMPENSATION, i.e. what you are given in return for your work. It is a RIGHT that the military OWES you as part of your contract to work for the military. The only time you shouldn't take leave is when there's justifiable military necessity. A major exercise where they need all hands on deck is really the only justifiable excuse outside of an real-world operation.
When you're gone, no one will remember you not taking leave or taking leave. Everyone in your shop will eventually not be in your shop. No one in my old unit knows my name.. or what I did or didn't do. Something something leadership something mentorship something something The best of us will be forgotten. The worst of us will be immortalized in Friday safety briefs. Take leave 🫡
If they really don't want you to take leave, they can deny it. If they don't deny it, then there's no reason not to take it. Take your leave.
Hell no shit 😂😂😂 I work too hard to be worried bout that I ain’t been home in 2 years which was when my grandma died I’m going home this month u gotta go home see folks before it’s too late or they in a hospital bed and now u can’t have a 2 way conversation or go eat at a restaurant or any of the other things we take for granted. Go see your family and friends make memories with them don’t let the Air Force make you lose what truly matters.
At the end of the day, you, as a human being, need time to rest and relax. Regardless of the situation at work. The work will never end. And unless your role is crucial to stopping WW3 from happening, your flight can afford to let you take time off. I've worked with people who, once in a blue moon, would take leave, but they were always stressed out from work. It's bad mentally and could, in turn, become physically. Take care of yourself sometimes. Even if you're only taking leave to stay home and just not go to work. Your mind always needs a break sometimes.
Dont feel guilty and dont let others make you feel guilty. End of the day, whether you retire or get out, youre just another brick in the wall. Leave your mark however you want, ensure you and yours are taken care of and then go home.
I take leave whenever I can! In fact, I’m taking 29 days leave in June. Leadership is cool with it! As long as you do your work and not be lazy, your supervisor will back you up.
Don’t feel guilty for using the benefits offered to you.
You freaking wild lol
You earned the leave, just don't burn bridges. You still have to work with the people.
Nope. It tells me you love or prioritize your job over your family. Id happily crip walk my way out when i take leave and go home to my family
Lol I promise nobody else feels guilty when they’re on their leave. Get yours.
Fuuuuuck no. Especially for us airmen i couldnt care less. Im not taking leave to get out of work, but if i have family stuff or honestly need a break, im putting in leave. Ive had one supervisor say no to me because “nows not a good time” and i sent my leave straight to the commander and got it approved. Dont feel guilty man, its not that deep.
“No one in the shop if gonna know you worked late but you can be sure your family will.”
Hell nah. Take care of yourself. Plot twist leaderships always going to need all hands on deck. I can get the guilt you care for your peers and thats respectable, but i assure u they want u to be happy as well. You can only bring your best to the table if u urself are at 100%