Why do CNA's get low pay for the hard labor that they do?

Nursing Students CNA/MA

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Today was the fourth day of clinicals as a CNA student, and so far I had quite an experience but I am loving every moment of it. I am just so surprised how fast the CNA's have to be to get to their residents up and going. The experience i loved so far is the time you get to be with the residents at bedside. I knew what I was going into wasn't easy and and the pay is low. I find it bizarre that all these CNA's are working so hard with the amount of workload that they have and are not getting paid like more than $10 or better yet $15 and up. I understand they may not have an education of an RN or and LVN/LPN. My instructor is a retired RN and told us the higher the education the less time you spend at beside with the resident/patient. This may or may not be true but the truth is the workload of a CNA is just wow, but that's pretty much how the health system goes. Life isn't always fair I guess and someone has to do the job.

Anyways, I just want to share my thoughts.

To all the CNA's out there who have doing this for years I give you my utmost respect. I appreciate what you guys do. Hopefully as a CNA student and soon to be a rn student I can acquire what I learn and use this experience to one day be a great nurse!

Enjoy the rest of your day or night!

Simple

Hard Labor=less pay

More education with less labor=more pay

Mewsin -19.87 hr? CNA? That's better than what some RN's make in my area. Are you in California?

I'm in Canada actually. The wage is huge for me. I'm a nursing student and picking up one shift on the weekend is over $200. Although I'm already doing the math, my lpn wage will be $33 an hour when I'm finished, well worth it for the stress of school.

Specializes in ED, Telemetry,Hospice, ICU, Supervisor.

Very limited scope of practice.

Hard manual labor does not always mean better pay

I'm in Canada actually. The wage is huge for me. I'm a nursing student and picking up one shift on the weekend is over $200. Although I'm already doing the math, my lpn wage will be $33 an hour when I'm finished, well worth it for the stress of school.

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Canada pay NA good wage, 18cad to 24cad hourly plus shift differentials

As others have said CNAs have less responsibility than RNs. Many CNAs are just using the job as a stepping stone to nursing, and are willing to take less pay for the experience they get. Could I make more as a server? Probably, but being an ER tech is giving me way more experience and will help me more with becoming an RN than being a server would.

I'm in Canada actually. The wage is huge for me. I'm a nursing student and picking up one shift on the weekend is over $200. Although I'm already doing the math, my lpn wage will be $33 an hour when I'm finished, well worth it for the stress of school.

Where are you going to make $33 as an LPN? I'm an RN in Toronto at $30

Where are you going to make $33 as an LPN? I'm an RN in Toronto at $30

Keeping in mind I'm still a nursing student, so I'm not making it yet. Our lpn starting wage is step 1 $31.01, step 2 $32.10, step 3 $33.21. I'm in SK.

This could explain why we ended up with a number of Toronto grads in our facility.

Keeping in mind I'm still a nursing student, so I'm not making it yet. Our lpn starting wage is step 1 $31.01, step 2 $32.10, step 3 $33.21. I'm in SK.

This could explain why we ended up with a number of Toronto grads in our facility.

Wow that's super high and cost of living I'm sure is cheaper than Totonto!

I have always earned an average of 11 an hour I won't even look twice at jobs offering less than 9. I did have to get some education and considering how demanding the job is I just won't do it for less. If I am going to get paid 7.50 I am going to go work as a server somewhere.

I have been an EMT for YEARS and I get paid less than CNA's... That is why I am in Nursing School. I have worked in the worst conditions ie: 120 degree heat traffic collisions on the HWY, raining & snowing... I got paid less than 14.00/hr for the last 10 years... why because that is the going rate for the dime a dozen EMT's out there. It only took me 6 months to get certified, no prereq's required...

You're comparing apples to oranges. CNA is a much harder job than EMT from my experience, and I've done both. I'll be the first to admit EMTs are probably a little underpaid, but I found being an EMT to be a fairly easy job, where else do you get paid while your sleeping. It could be stressful at times, but still a lot easier than most jobs I've done. I've never found being a CNA an easy job, its difficult backbreaking stressful work with little to no respect.

As for the added responsibility of being an RN versus a CNA. Yes being an RN can be more stressful im sure, but RNs typically make like TWICE what a CNA makes. I also dont buy the notion that CNAs have no accountability. CNAs where I've worked get fired and investigated at a FAR higher rate than RNs do.

Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
I also dont buy the notion that CNAs have no accountability. CNAs where I've worked get fired and investigated at a FAR higher rate than RNs do.
On the other hand, in all my years in nursing I've never encountered a CNA who has been personally named in a lawsuit.

Nurses get sued. Doctors get sued. Healthcare facilities get sued. People and entities with legal accountability over patients get sued, and this does not include the CNA.

I live in the metro Detroit area. My base rate is almost $17 an hour and I am on the lower end of what other NAs on my unit make ( seniority ). I am also one of the few that is actually certified. After shift differentials and weekend rates I make as much as a lot of LPNs.

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