Most are morning start. I have a "late" start, and that is 12:00 noon. As far as I know, there are no night "shifts." However, this may be different from DC to DC. Benefits start the day you do, but you cannot participate in the 401K until you have been there a year. Vacation is 1 week after 1 year, 2 weeks after 2 years, and you get paid your ADP (Average Daily Pay) for vacation days. However, every 3 months you will accrue a paid "safety day," as long as you have no incidents. You will also be able to defer paid holidays if you work them. So, I was already to take a small vacation based on my safety days. Personal days, I believe, start after 1 year, but I do not think they pay ADP (I'm not sure, as it hasn't come up and I have only been here 7 months). I am showing sick time on my sheet now, but do not know if I can use it yet (I haven't called in sick to a job for 10+ years, so never know how that works, LOL).
Next year I will be taking 2 weeks off for a big family vacation. Will use my week of vacation, safety days and deferred holidays. I will lose nothing pay wise except layover pay, due to ADP being used. How many jobs can you say that about?? My X job punished me for taking my vacation by paying me only a little over 1/3 of my ADP per day. So, I would have to use 3 weeks of vacation to be able to take 1 week off.