Do you think you are adequately compensated in your job as a nurse?

I was a tech in the ICU and there were some nurses there that made over $100K a year. Want to know how? Working a bunch of overtime with bonuses and not having any time for themselves. It can be done but at what cost? One nurse would work 6 12 hour shifts be off for one, work another 5 off one and so on and so forth. Who can live like that? Another nurse left the unit to work somewhere else and she is only making $8 more than I will make as a new grad and that is not including my night shift pay. And she has been a nurse for 16 years and if I work a weekend night she will only be making $3 more than I will doing to same job. Now that is not fair.

For the stress we have to deal with, the pace we must keep, the missed breaks and lunches, and the fact we have peoples lives in our hands, No, we are not paid what we are worth.

Any hospital in the world could function for weeks, maybe months without administrators, even housekeepers (I've had to clean rooms and I know what a mop and bucket is for) - but they could NOT function even one shift without nurses. I dare say, for experienced nurses, they could even function without doctors in say, a disaster (where the law may allow for bending). I personally have saved my share of doc's arses by catching their errors - AND I've guided new ones on what meds and treatments to order for patients, even in critical care areas. I've taken ACLS classes with some docs, very scary at their lack of knowledge.

Considering all this, we are definitely not being compensated adequately.

I am a male nurse. The very definition of the word "nursing" implies that if I am able to nurse, I am a female; so I thought I'd clarify. I have spent the last four years as a nurse in ohio and my pay stacks up to the national average, no better and no worse (Just think, those were four good years of life that could have been spent in college). However, there seems to be some kind of myth that nurses are well-paid and have wonderful schedules and benefits. Not true in all situations. I have found my work to be very inflexible on scheduling, unless of course I want to work overtime for some kind of kindergarten smiley-face incentive. Personally, I hold my future in the highest regard and I see no place in it for nursing, there is simply no opportunity to advance compared to other careers. Sure there are thousands of people who will tell you they know so-and-so who makes five hundred dollars an hour doing travel nurse agency legal consulting or some other BS. Nursing is a waste of time, it is a waste of your life. I know that this site is all about nursing pride and whatnot and everyone will hate me for this post, but I can't really get over the resentment I have for being duped into believing that this was the best thing for my future.

I do very well for myself in Nursing. It provides an excellent supplemental income. for me.

I feel the pay is ok, not saying much I guess. I more resent having no pension other than what one puts into a 401k, or 403b plan. Once retired, it will certainly be poverty. Advice to anyone in their early career or lets just say their 20's put as much as you can into your retirement , make yourself a priority. There is nothing once you quit working.Beyond what you have put in, and medicare, hopefully social security.Course one can always go work for the VA system I understand they have a pension system.

I'm pretty happy with what I'm paid. My base salary is higher than the regional average, and I receive a decent yearly bonus based on performance. Down side? The benefits suck, specifically the medical insurance. Cigna--arrggghhh. The previous poster was right--better start saving for retirement right away, because getting a matching contribution to a 401K is nigh impossible.

here in italy i won't say that the nurses are paid well, comparing with us salaries... even with the lowest one...

I have been nursing for 30 years and am pain pretty well at my current job. I have good vacation and education benefits but I get my insurance coverage through my husband's job. He is also a nurse and works via the state system. They have wonderful insurance benefits. I would like to make a bit more, but I have only been at this hospital for 3 years. Still, I make more here than I did in Texas at the director level, and I am the charge nurse here. We live in Seattle now and my hospital is union.

Canadian picture is much different

There is only one route to Registered nursing now and that is with a degree.
Top salary in Canada will be over $80,000per annum ( Alberta) when their collective agreement expires in 2010.

This is for a bedside nurse with no specialty.( this is the lowest level of responsibility for the union job classifications)
Salary scales are from 6 to nine years and range from about $23hr to start to well over $35hr.

I believe because of unionization that nurses wages do not vary as much across the country as in the US. Also nurses are not paid for the area they work. Anurse is paid for the level of responsibility and span of control and years of experience.

A nurse at the lowest level of responsibility and span of control (direct care) in extended care gets paid the same as a nurse in ICU or acute surgery or dialysis.

other compensation includes
--paid vacation - many provinces have 4 weeks to start
--paid ed leave
--paid shift differentials
--paid overtime for working on Stat holidays ( and another paid day off as well)
--paid medical insurance (both basic and extended which includes dental and drug doverage)
--pension plan (employee and employer contributions)
--life insurance (paid by employer)

Of course it is never enough, people always want more but when you list it all out like this it looks pretty good.

At this point on my life, I am reasonably happy with my salary. I had planned on working for another year, but with some of my retirement coming from a 401k, my plans have changed. I will have Social Security, and a retirement plan from the hospital, but it's not the best time to use my 401k.

The problem with working in a hospital means that when you retire, you have to start paying a lot more for medical care. Yes, there is Medicare-and Part B costs as much as I pay for my husband and myself. Then there are prescriptions, and Medicare Prescription Plans aren't cheap. Dental and Vision coverage is another expense. Now, my son is a police officer, my daughter-in-law is a school administrator. Both will retire with medical insurance. Why don't we have that same benefit? The only way to get it around here is to work at the prison, and that's not on my list.

Anyway, I'm glad I went into nursing. My husband has been retired for several years, and we can afford to take trips. We self-schedule, so I can usually get time off as needed. I just hope I can stay healthy and retire in the next couple of years!