Pay vs. specialty - page 2

Where I work, ICU, CCU and ER nurses get a higher starting salary than everyone else, also a nurse with a BSN gets a higher starting salary than a nurse with a diploma, and a nurse with an MSN gets a higher starting salary than the previous 2, regardless of experience. A lot of people dont like this and the argument is always that, nurses working on the same floor do the same thing so why the pay difference if not based on experience? We also have a direct entry masters program here, for people interested in going into nursing with a bachelors degree in another field. When they graduate, they have a higher starting salary even though they have no experience

I'm not sure why the individual states in the U.S don't have unions to regulate wages. I work in Saskatchewan, Canada. I have been a diploma RN for 22 years and am at the top of my wage scale. The facility I work at is not unionized but we follow the pay grades of the union which include increases when new contracts are negotiated with the government. I am not sure what new grads start out with but I am sure it must be around $ 30.00 an hour. It always amazes me that we are going to the Philipines and other countries to recruit for nurses when I read that jobs in the U.S are scarce. Why are USA nurses not applying for jobs over here?? I work in LTC and make $45.35 an hour. Our dollar for the past few years has been at par or better. It is like we don't exist for US nurses. I realize why the unions haven't been able to organize like ours is because your healthcare is privatized and ours is government run. There are good and bad things to be said about both, but that is another topic.