I'm fuming right now. I had posted last week about if anyone gets an annual raise, as I was awaiting my re-commitment letter from HR. I finally got my letter and right away noticed that though the salary had increased from last year, the increase was pretty small, especially considering I was adding an additional 5 hours per week. After more precisely calculating out the salary offered, I noticed that not only was it not a raise (it was only accounting for the extra five hours), it was actually a DECREASE by .05 cents an hour!!
I immediately brought this to the attention of my principal who is great. She said she would contact HR and in the meantime asked me to let her know how many years RN experience I have. I gave her the number of actual physical years working (11, four of which I worked as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner, and not including last year and this year at my current position, so almost 13 if you count this job). She presented that to HR and they said "we have a totally different calculation". They have the same exact CV.
I am floored, she is totally stumped and her hands are tied. I LOVE my job here and do not want to leave, however HR is not even acknowledging the error of a DECREASE from last year, which obviously makes no sense. Nor was there a cost of living increase. The crazy thing is, if they had not made the error, and offered me enough to cover the increased hours and even a negligible increase to count as cost of living, I would have happily signed. Now I am prepared to leave in June and not come back because they are not even accepting their calculation error. I'm so sad right now.
The Principal copied me in an email to HR and suggested we talk to figure this all out. I just emailed them with my CV attached (the same one they have) asking them how they are getting anything less than 11 years of active nursing (not counting last year and this year). I am waiting to hear back from them.
This is added to the fact that they made a huge error with my W2 and that error could potentially cost me $3000 if they do not submit a new W2 to me and the IRS. That whole issue has been on-going for two weeks.
Anyone else have an awesome school, but is stuck under the umbrella of a much larger HR that doesn't even know the staff on a personal basis? I hate feeling like this is making me look like it is all about money. It isn't and like I said, I would happily stay if they just corrected the error and gave me a cost of living increase. We all know we would be making lots more in a different setting but we do this because we love what we do.
Hope they fix the mistake. Frustrating. I took this job knowing it was the lowest paying district in the state, but I wanted a schedule to match my daughter's. Now that she is graduating and going to college in the Fall, I am seriously reconsidering. We get step increases yearly, but no actual raise due to budget. (I'm told.) School nurses here start at 21.74/hour, then the next year it jumps to 22.40. etc....
Specializes in Pediatrics, Community Health, School Health.
Hope they fix the mistake. Frustrating. I took this job knowing it was the lowest paying district in the state, but I wanted a schedule to match my daughter's. Now that she is graduating and going to college in the Fall, I am seriously reconsidering. We get step increases yearly, but no actual raise due to budget. (I'm told.) School nurses here start at 21.74/hour, then the next year it jumps to 22.40. etc....
I think that is the problem with my school, there is no "Step" like the regular public schools have for their teachers. I can go onto any school district's website and the salaries based on steps are clearly posted there, but this being a charter school, they get to decide salaries for their teachers and support staff. So it is a big mystery.
I have applied at the school district in my area but because the pay is *so* little ($18,000/yr) I have had to turn them down before. My husband makes more than that & he has no degree or certification so I find that pay to be an insult.
It is absolutely an insult. Why do schools value a teaching license so much more than a nursing license?
are they serious?
Right? I was once offered about 17K for a school nurse job and I left the interview (respectfully). They were openly embarrassed by what they could offer.
Specializes in Pediatrics, Community Health, School Health.
UPDATE:
I met with HR yesterday and they realized that they indeed made a calculation error and that I was correct ! Yahoo!! They re-issued me an offer letter with the corrected salary this morning :) Very glad I persisted and sat down with them in person.
I met with HR yesterday and they realized that they indeed made a calculation error and that I was correct ! Yahoo!! They re-issued me an offer letter with the corrected salary this morning :) Very glad I persisted and sat down with them in person.
I met with HR yesterday and they realized that they indeed made a calculation error and that I was correct ! Yahoo!! They re-issued me an offer letter with the corrected salary this morning :) Very glad I persisted and sat down with them in person.
I know it's frustrating on an emotional level. In Texas public schools, school nurses are considered educators and on the same scale as teachers. So, however many years of nursing experience you have has no relevance to your pay scale. Teachers coming into the district with XYZ years of experience, however, are plugged into the scale with in mind; makes total non-sense.
In Minnesota every district seems to do it differently, but in mine I'm on the teacher's scale too, but they account for my experience. I entered with 1 year+ 7 months of experience, and they rounded up to 2 years of experience on the scale. Then, before I started, they bumped me up three more steps because they decided to pay nurses MORE than teachers because they had such a hard time hiring and retaining nurses. So, with 1yr7months of experience I am paid for 5. :)
It's amazing how different it is for school nurses everywhere.
I have applied at the school district in my area but because the pay is *so* little ($18,000/yr) I have had to turn them down before. My husband makes more than that & he has no degree or certification so I find that pay to be an insult.
I was initially a sub in my own kids' district. They offered me a full time position. It was hourly, LESS than $16/hr, 7.5 hrs a day. It came out to a tad over 20k for the school year. I had to turn it down, it was pretty insulting. I started out in the neighboring district making almost double, salary, year round pay.
I met with HR yesterday and they realized that they indeed made a calculation error and that I was correct ! Yahoo!! They re-issued me an offer letter with the corrected salary this morning :) Very glad I persisted and sat down with them in person.
I was initially a sub in my own kids' district. They offered me a full time position. It was hourly, LESS than $16/hr, 7.5 hrs a day. It came out to a tad over 20k for the school year. I had to turn it down, it was pretty insulting. I started out in the neighboring district making almost double, salary, year round pay.
I left an interview once because that's about what they were offering me. I was polite about it, but I told them that there was no way I could take that kind of pay cut (I was working in another district at the time). I asked them "How do you keep nurses?" and they said "We don't..." They have since increased the pay dramatically and now I work there :)
I left school nursing to get a full time job. The school nursing position was only part time and now I almost make double of what I did before. I miss summers off tho
I am signed up with an agency to try out Correctional Nursing in my summer off time. I too, am tired of making way below what my friends are making in the "real "world.
Then, before I started, they bumped me up three more steps because they decided to pay nurses MORE than teachers because they had such a hard time hiring and retaining nurses. So, with 1yr7months of experience I am paid for 5. :)
nursetlm, ADN
171 Posts
Hope they fix the mistake. Frustrating. I took this job knowing it was the lowest paying district in the state, but I wanted a schedule to match my daughter's. Now that she is graduating and going to college in the Fall, I am seriously reconsidering. We get step increases yearly, but no actual raise due to budget. (I'm told.) School nurses here start at 21.74/hour, then the next year it jumps to 22.40. etc....