Working Conditions, Wages and Benefits

Janet Barclay · Jul 19, 2001

Hi Mito,

Contract was recently settled here in Alberta. Up to 32$/Hr for the most experienced RNs. Medical, 80%dental (including some orthodontics), vision care 300$/family member /yr. 3 paid education days/ year. 1.50'hr for weekends, 1.75/hr fo shift

I can only speak to the working conditions in ICU - these are not contract regulated. 21 RNs for 24 patients. Unit manager rotating shift with groups.

Did I miss anything that you were really interested in?

I know there are some issues down east with them not offering full time regular positions. It is the opposite here, lots of full time positions open.

Janet:)

cdl1605 · Aug 25, 2006

I have been offered a post at Surrey Memorial Hospital near Vancouver. Could anyone let me know about pay scales and cost of living? :confused:

Pediatric Critical Care Columnist · Aug 25, 2006

for information about working conditions and to look at the collective agreement, go here:

http://www.bcnu.org/

the pay grid can be found here:

http://www.bcnu.org/bargaining2006/wages%20apr%201%202006%20and%20after.pdf

and a province by province comparison of cost of living can be found here:

http://www.gov.mb.ca/finance/budget06/advantage/appendix2a.html

i also had a look at the mls listings for the area nearest where you'd be working. the cost of housing in the fraser valley is exorbitant, i'll warn you. for $300k you won't get much more than a run-down, old, tiny little house in a less-than-desirable neighbourhood. i have a friend in surrey who lives in a high-rise condo; she and her husband paid $375k for it six years ago... two bedrooms, two baths, two parking spaces. hope this helps... sorry to be the bearer of ot-so-great news!

Fiona59 · Aug 25, 2006

Surrey is part of the GVRD and everything there is expensive. Having said that Calgary and Edmonton are getting up there with the house prices too...

epg_pei · Aug 25, 2006

I know there are some issues down east with them not offering full time regular positions.

:lol2: It makes me laugh to hear it put so diplomatically. Permanent full time is rarer than hens teeth here. Unless it's a brutal floor. Pretty much every position I see listed is a temp, lasting less than a year, usually less than %80. Makes it hard to plan a life.

noworries · Aug 26, 2006

the pay grid can be found here:
http://www.bcnu.org/bargaining2006/wages%20apr%201%202006%20and%20after.pdf

can someone please explain this grid to me? i just have problems understanding the columns and rows .. the rows say.. first year second year etc, are those yearly increments in wage up till 9 years? what about the levels that go down the column (one, ltc case manager, two, three, four)

thanks in advance

Pediatric Critical Care Columnist · Aug 26, 2006

I'm not sure exactly how the determine what designation to bestow upon a nurse on this grid. Nothing in their on-line documentation really helps with that either. CH = Community Health Activities, DC = Direct Patient/Client/Resident Care Activities, ED = Education Activities and PS = Program and Service Activities... but who rates a 1 or a 4 isn't spelled out. They do however recognize experience obtained elsewhere. THat invovles getting a record of employment from your employer that clearly spells out how long you worked for them.

The increments are as you say, the first one being the starting rate and the ninth being the highest level reached after eight years of work. Their increments are determined by anniversary of employment rather than by hours worked , as it is here in Alberta. Our method penalizes part-timers by making them work far more than a year before they see an increment, but full timers will get theirs in less than a year. (I've been employed here since September 9, 2002 and will only receive my third increment sometime toward the beginning of October, because I work a 0.7 FTE. Meanwhile, the new grads who started a few months before me who are working full time will be on their fifth.) In fact there are a lot of areas in our contract that discriminate against part time nurses. BC is much more balanced in that respect.

Does that help?

cdl1605 · Aug 28, 2006

Thanks Janfrn. You may have saved me from a big mistake!!!!!!!!!!

Pediatric Critical Care Columnist · Aug 28, 2006

If you're really interested in emigrating, there are lots of hospitals recruiting that are in cities that have lower costs of living and comparable wages, benefits and what-have-you. You may have to compromise a bit on location. Smaller hospitals in smaller cities or in rural areas have vacancies as well as those in bigger cities. Quebec might not be a good choice. They have almost the lowest pay and the most rigorous conditions of employment... like the need to be able to function totally in French. The Maritimes have lower pay scales too, but the cost of living there is much lower than out here. You have lots of options.

zolly786 · Aug 29, 2006

where i live, we're starving for nurses. there are a bunch of empty lines on my ward, as well as the internal med and surgery wards.

you'd be a DC1 more than likely, and i know when my friend moved here from australia, he didn't start at level 1.

i live in a town that is much cheaper than vancouver (i grew up in burnaby and miss it like crazy) because i can't justify spending half a million on a house. here you can get one for 180 no problem.

on the other hand, it's a fairly isolated town. the winters are longer than vancouver (where they don't get much of one), but it is sunnier, and outdoor activies abound.

why would you be making a mistake? SMH is a hopping place, but it's not a bad hospital.

cdl1605 · Aug 29, 2006

Does anybody out there work on NICU at either Surrey Memorial or Vancouver Childrens? Would like to know about life on the unit? Is it busy? Are there plenty of jobs.

Also what are decent areas to live within easy commuting distance of Surrey Memorial? :confused: