Any bedside nurses making over 100K ?

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Hi all,

I would like to know if there are any nurses who make at or over 100k per year just working as an RN - not CRNA, Advanced Practice etc., just bedside nursing... and how do you do it, overtime, premium pay etc. or any other combination that works for you and where are you located? I know east and west coasters tend to make more. I'm asking because I want to increase my income so that I can knock out some student loans before going back to school and piling more on. Thanks for any and all replies.

It's not as dramatic as flying from Seattle to San Francisco, but I worked with a nurse who commuted from Maine to Connecticut. She stayed with a friend and worked a block of time over a long weekend, and then would drive back home.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, PACU, ICU, CCU,ED,ENDO.

Hmmm... I should make about 90k straight pay if I want to see how good my stent is functioning I could do enough OT to top out at 100k or over. NY is an expensive place to live..I won't be seeing that Rolls anytime soon.

Paul

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Hi Everyone,

In Boston, in a union hospital (under our current contract), new grads. start at $26/hr

Remember though, it is EXPENSIVE to live in the Boston area (where studio apartments start around $1,200/month)

As part of our benefits though , our union has sucessfully negotiated a pension plan! Sweet!

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Specializes in ER/Trauma, Telemetry.

I have been a travel nurse for 3 years and have been a nurse for 13 years total. I have had have multiple contracts a year in sacramento, cal for 3 years and made 41/hr and worked 6 12/h shifts a week. There is all the overtime you can handle and nurse pt ratio is state mandated!! The money is fabulous!!!!!

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I have been a travel nurse for 3 years and have been a nurse for 13 years total. I have had have multiple contracts a year in sacramento, cal for 3 years and made 41/hr and worked 6 12/h shifts a week. There is all the overtime you can handle and nurse pt ratio is state mandated!! The money is fabulous!!!!!

6 shifts a week???? Doesn't sound fabulous to me. Sounds like no time to spend any of that money.

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6 shifts a week???? Doesn't sound fabulous to me. Sounds like no time to spend any of that money.

Sounds like she's willing to work like a dog in the higher paying areas so she can save, then use the money back home where life is cheaper. I doubt she's being forcd to work six shifts a week. Sounds like a smart plan to me. I wish I had her stamina.

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Specializes in Telemetry/Cardiac Floor.
No, wait....it was actually $15.25 they offered me lol! This was with having my license almost a year, and working at my previous job for 8 months. They offer such low pay here because they can. One company owns like a ton of hospitals here....so they know all the nurses are going to have to work there...so they can keep pay low. I did quit that job when I found out how much work it was and I was not getting paid for that much work and stress.

I'm glad you quit. I used to live in SE Tenn. and the wages their are AWFUL!! :angryfire I have since moved out of the state.;)

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Specializes in ER, trauma, education, military.

Hi, I made $100,000 gross in 2005. I have a salary job as a coordinator/educator that pays just over half of that. I then have a second postion where I work overtime in the critical care area which pays well and allows me to keep up my skills. However, as one person pointed out it translates to not much of a life. I am in graduate school so that I can make a comfortable salary and not work as much as I am now and contribute to the profession. You must also consider the tax increase as well. It is okay to do it through overtime if your goal is temporary like getting through school or paying off bills but for most is not a long-term option.

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Specializes in office, correctional, hospital.

Hi all, :idea:

The only way to make 100K as a staff nurse (besides selling yourself) is by traveling. I have been looking at different agencies and from what I can gather it is possible. Of course it depends on the department you select to work in and the location. If you like to travel and you get in with a good agency that offers relocation, incentives, variable length of stay contracts with the option to sign on longer, direct deposit and 24/7 availability to name a few, it might be worth considering.

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We recently had a few nurses that were working for the state in corrections who were making that much. In fact, it was reported that 1 or 2 nurses were making more than the governor!

They were doing a lot of overtime, though. I had thought about going into corrections (people have said it was great work, but hard to keep up your skills because it is mostly assessments).

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I was a bedside nurse as an independent contractor. I made $55 per hour, and at that rate if you work only 40 hours per week, the annual salary is $114,000.00 per year. I could have worked that much, but I chose to work only 72 hours (six days) per month. I completed the 6 consecutive days and then took the rest of the month off. It was a quick $4000.00 for the month, and a GREAT summer with my children! Independent contracting is the only way that I know of to make $100,000.00 per year as a bedside Med/Surg/Tele nurse. Most recently, I worked as an independent contractor in a small town ICU, and my rate was $42.50 per hour. I would work 32-40 hours per week by choice, and my salary at that rate at 40 hours per week would be approx. 88,000.00. It is possible without killing yourself as a bedside nurse. The only problem is that you have to pay for your own health insurance, and when you take time off you do not get paid for it. I didn't see this as a problem, because I was making so much money that I could just take time off with the money I have saved up in the bank. What I was tired of after doing this and travel nursing for 5 years is that I just wanted to belong somewhere and not be the "agency nurse" anymore. I just started a job as a Nursing Supervisor with all of the benefits and a salary of $60,000.00. I plan to do independent contracting again in a few years. I just needed a break from being the "outsider". Gloria Brent, R.N.

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Specializes in ICU/CCU/ER/CVICU.

Here's the way you do it. (And I'm doing as we write).

Find a GOOD travel agency, take a contract like I did at 38 an hour, work like mad for 8 weeks....then go home for two weeks or so...OR take a contract, take only a week off between and then stay home for two months a year and still gross about 135,000. My agency provides health insurance, 401, travel reimbursement, free housing (not the Nob Hill type but very adequate) and private too. I have traveled off and on for 16 years with a number of agencies and I'm happy. The wife stays home with the grandkids, I work enough hours to keep myself out of trouble and not much running around but when I'm home (3 months a year), I'M HOME. Not getting out of bed 5 days a week, not worrying about the hospital interfering with my plans, NOT FIGHTING THE POLITICS. Yeah, there's drawbacks but what job doesn't have problems. PS: I made 142,000 in 2005. What with a good accountant and good recordkeeping, I paid taxes on 75% of that.

I will not name the agency here but they post ALL their jobs and rates online for all to see.

18 days, then home for a month.

The wolf

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