Potential pitfall of the CNA before or during nursing school?

[Streamline2010]

I have one comment about this movement toward getting a CNA license before or during nursing school. Please bear with me while I am laying out this case:

I have been a displaced worker, twice now. As such, I have potential WIA (Workforce Investment Act) retraining money of up to $8000 ($4000/year for up to two years). And that training can be full time or part time, and I can use my own funding sources to supplement it.

My ability to use WIA money depends on timing and whether or not there is actually any WIA money in the pool at that moment. It also depends on my skills and certifications and whether or not I can find a job with that.

Now, here is my point about having that CNA license: The state is going to look at my request for training money, look at my educational background, look at my skills, and then decide whether or not I can get a job with those or not. Or whether I should retrain / upgrade my skills.

And likely as not, a person with the CNA will be told that she or he has the skills to always find a job, and the request for training money is denied. Never mind that CNA is an $8 or $9 per hour job and McDonalds can pay $10. You will be denied funding for any higher education. So, if you happen to be ADN laid off and wanting to get RN, forget getting any gov't help. Ditto for RN wanting BSRN, or whatever.

It's like having a CDL commercial driver's license: If you have one of those, you are scr**ed, because you "have the skills to always find a job." As an over-the-road trucker.

If you have nothing lower than LPN or RN or BSRN or whatever, then you won't be obligated to accept a CNA job. If you have that CNA, you have just qualified yourself to stay on the lowest-paid rung, even though your skills are higher. And those semi-illiterate dopes who will just loaf in a training program as long as the government is paying might just be who is using that $8000 that you could have put to better use.