It’s that time of year again, and Thanksgiving week could be one of the few stretches when the staffing math shifts in your favor as a nurse.
Thanksgiving nursing shifts open up for a simple reason: staff clinicians use their earned time off, patient needs continue, and facilities start looking for coverage.
For nurses and certified nursing assistants (CNAs) seeking extra income, this is a great opportunity.
In this guide, learn:
- Why Thanksgiving week opens up shifts
- The 4 ways to pick one of those shifts
- What these shifts tend to pay
- How to work the holiday
Why could there be more open shifts during Thanksgiving week?
The pattern repeats most years. Staff clinicians request Thanksgiving off well in advance, and those approvals tend to cluster on the same few days.
Meanwhile, patient census in many settings holds steady or climbs, and respiratory illness usually picks up by late November.
None of this means a facility planned badly. It means a predictable number of people earned time with their families and took it, which is how time off is supposed to work. What follows is a set of open shifts that need qualified clinicians, posted at a moment when fewer people are competing for them.
If that sounds familiar, it’s the same dynamic behind PRN shifts for flu season, just with a date attached.
Which days matter most?
Thanksgiving week is not one block of demand. Each stretch behaves differently:
- Thanksgiving Day: The most requested day off and usually the hardest for facilities to cover. Rates posted for this day tend to reflect that.
- The Wednesday before: Travel day for a lot of staff, which means call outs and late time-off requests often land here.
- The Friday and the weekend after: The most overlooked stretch of the week. Many clinicians stop looking once Thursday is covered, so these shifts can stay open longer.
Clinicians who stay flexible with PRN shifts during Thanksgiving week often find the least crowded options in the back half of the holiday.
How can you pick up a Thanksgiving shift?
There are 4 realistic routes to a holiday shift, and the right one depends mostly on whether you are already on staff somewhere.
Volunteering through your facility
If you work at a facility, the earliest and usually least competitive route is simply telling your manager you want the holiday.
Submitting your availability or a volunteer request before the holiday schedule is finalized puts you ahead of those who wait to see what they are assigned.
Timing varies by facility, so ask your scheduler when the holiday schedule closes rather than assuming. Once it’s set, the decision has usually been made for you.
Float pool and internal resource teams
Many facilities route holiday coverage through an internal float pool or resource team before looking anywhere else. These clinicians cover across units and tend to get first access to open holiday blocks.
Joining a float pool generally requires being part of the facility's internal staff, and most have their own requirements around cross-training and unit competencies. Asking about it before November if this interests you.
Trading holiday shifts with a coworker
Trading holiday shifts with coworkers is an underused option. Some clinicians want the holiday pay, and some want the day at home, and those 2 groups can usually help each other.
For example, taking a coworker's Thanksgiving shift in exchange for one of your December dates can work for both of you.
Swaps typically require approval and have to follow your facility's call out policy and scheduling rules, so check how your unit handles them before making promises to a coworker.
Picking up shifts through a marketplace
A marketplace is the only route on this list that does not require working somewhere already.
On Nursa, for example, facilities post their own open shifts and set their own rates, so clinicians can see what per diem Thanksgiving shifts pay before requesting them and can request shifts at more than one facility.
Some facilities also post shift blocks, which cover a group of shifts rather than a single one. A block across the Thanksgiving-to-December stretch solves a bigger coverage problem than a single Thursday and tends to provide steadier income for the clinician taking it.
Do nurses get holiday pay?
It depends entirely on which situation you are in. Holiday pay for nurses works one way for staff clinicians and a different way for independent contractors.
Do staff nurses get time-and-a-half on holidays?
Holiday pay, time-and-a-half, double time, and flat holiday bonuses are benefits your employer chooses to offer.
They vary widely between facilities. Under federal law, private employers aren't required to pay a premium for holiday work, so holiday pay depends on your facility's policy or, if you have one, your union contract.
For this reason, your own facility's policy is the only reliable source. Check your employee handbook or ask human resources which days count as holidays, what rate applies, and whether you have to work a scheduled shift before or after the holiday to qualify.
Who knows? You might get a surprise in the form of an extra rate you weren't expecting!
Are per diem nurses paid extra on holidays?
Not through a premium added to the rate. As an independent contractor (1099), you earn the posted rate because a holiday shift differential is an employer benefit, and a 1099 clinician doesn't have an employer in that sense.
What often happens instead is that facilities post higher rates for holiday coverage, since those shifts are harder to fill. That is a decision each facility makes on its own, so it’s never guaranteed.
The practical advantage is that you can see the number before you commit and compare it against other facilities posting the same week.
What do Thanksgiving shifts pay compared to a normal week?
Thanksgiving shift pay depends on your role, setting, area, and the facility posting. A single national average would not tell you much about what is available near you this November.
A better approach is to build your own comparison. You already have the information you need, and it takes a few minutes.
How do you compare holiday rates?
Work through these steps for any holiday shift you are considering:
- Find your baseline: Look at what the same role, setting, and shift length pays on an ordinary week in your area.
- Pull the holiday rate: Compare it against what is posted for Thanksgiving week.
- Multiply out the shift: Take the hourly rate and multiply it by the full shift length to compare totals, not hourly numbers.
- Subtract what the shift costs you: Account for the commute, time away from your own plans, and anything you pay out of pocket.
- Compare against the alternative: A higher holiday rate at a facility 45 minutes away may land below a standard rate 10 minutes from home.
The goal is a number you can actually weigh against your holiday, rather than a rate that just looks good.
When do holiday schedules get set?
Staff schedules and marketplace postings run on separate timelines. Knowing which clock you are on tells you when to act.
Staff schedules lock early
Internal holiday schedules close well before the holiday, and after that point, changes usually require a swap rather than a request. Clinicians who wait to see what they are assigned generally lose the chance to choose.
Many facilities also use block or rotating holiday schedules, in which units alternate the holidays they cover each year. That is why some staff clinicians cannot volunteer to take Thanksgiving shifts at all in a given year.
Marketplace shifts post continuously
On a marketplace, they get posted continuously. Open shifts keep appearing throughout the week as time-off approvals settle, census changes, and people call out.
That means a clinician looking for last-minute nursing shifts on the Monday of Thanksgiving week may still find coverage available, though there is no guarantee.
Setting up notifications for your area and license type is more practical than refreshing a list, especially during a week when you have other things to do.
Which settings post the most holiday shifts?
Coverage needs look different depending on where you work:
- Hospitals: Emergency departments and inpatient units run continuously, so hospital shifts on Thanksgiving Day are among the most consistently posted.
- Skilled nursing and long-term care: Residents stay through the holiday, so coverage is constant. Nursing home shifts over Thanksgiving frequently need CNAs alongside licensed clinicians.
- Assisted living: Smaller teams mean a single call out has an outsized effect, and coverage needs can appear suddenly.
- Behavioral health: Holidays can be a difficult stretch for residents, and facilities often want steady staffing in place.
Which Thanksgiving shifts fit your license?
CNA Thanksgiving shifts are usually most plentiful in skilled nursing, long-term care, and assisted living, where direct resident care continues regardless of the date.
Licensed practical/vocational nurses (LPNs/LVNs) tend to see strong demand in those same settings, particularly around medication passes and treatments.
Registered nurses (RNs) generally have the broadest range across hospitals and post-acute settings.
Availability still varies by region and facility, so take a look at what is actually posted near you.
What is it like to work Thanksgiving as a nurse?
Working Thanksgiving as a nurse means a smaller team and a different rhythm.
Some units run quieter than a typical Thursday, while others stay just as busy. Either way, administrative traffic usually drops off, which many clinicians find to be the best part.
Patients and residents are away from their families, and small gestures mean more than usual. Teams working a holiday often bring food, and that shared meal tends to be what people remember about the shift.
How can you work the holiday and still see family?
Working Thanksgiving does not have to mean missing it. A few adjustments cover most of it:
- Move the meal: Many families shift the gathering to Wednesday or Saturday without anyone minding much.
- Take one shift, not the week: Picking up a single day leaves the rest of the stretch open.
- Plan your food: Thanksgiving leftovers may beat whatever the vending machine offers.
Which shift time protects your holiday?
Decide what matters most to you, then choose accordingly:
- A day shift frees up the evening.
- A night shift leaves a midday or afternoon meal intact if you can rest before and afterward.
- An evening shift works if your family eats at midday and you work nearby.
Choosing which hours you give up is one of the real advantages of picking up holiday shifts as a nurse, and it’s worth using deliberately.
Should I pick up Thanksgiving shifts?
Picking up nursing shifts during Thanksgiving makes sense for some clinicians and not others. It tends to work well when you have a specific savings goal, when your family gathering is on another day anyway, or when you want to bank income before December spending starts.
Clinicians who pick up a holiday block may find the facility worth returning to, and some facilities post permanent and internal roles on their Nursa profiles for clinicians seeking steadier work.
You may want to consider skipping if you are already running low on energy, if you have been working long stretches without real recovery time, or if this is the one gathering your family holds all year. Extra pay does not replace that.
If you would rather avoid holiday work altogether, consider nursing jobs that don't require holiday work.
Start browsing Thanksgiving shifts near you
It's your choice. Browse what's posted near you for Thanksgiving week, check each rate before you commit, and pick the shift or shift block that best fits your holiday. Turn on shift notifications for your area and license type so new postings reach you as they go live.
Sign up with Nursa to start browsing shifts near you.
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