Pay Scale

unney · May 19, 2004

hi everyone!

well, i live nw of los angeles. i have 17yrs. experience (16 of it in critical care). i make just shy of $40.00/hr. base pay. i must tell you i was quite surprised at the pay here. i personally know people in northern ca that are making close to $50.00/hr. base pay (and i don't mean in san francisco! they make about $60/hr) plus about $6.00/hr night shift diff. their col is about 10% less than down here, go figure! :uhoh3:

i must also tell you that i'm paying just about $2.30/gal for regular unleaded gas and i rent a 4br, 2000 sq.ft. home for $2100.00/mo. if we didn't make the wages we do, none of us could afford to live here.

it's hard, living near hollywood, seeing actors/actresses making millions of dollars per film. we care for people in their worst times, bring them through their disease process, as best we can, and make their stay in the hospital as good an experience as we can. i realize that hospitals can't afford to pay each of us millions of dollars per year, but it would be nice if over 1/3 of all nurses weren't near the poverty line.

i'm blessed that i have such a good job, and a husband who's also in the medical field. we make a good living between the two of us. i know that i will continue to do what i do, not because of the money, but because of how it makes me feel!:)

lady_jezebel · May 23, 2004

I was just so surprised of what I just learned! I think it's time for me to invite everybody to come here in Canada to work! I just started working in the ICU last year without previous experience on this area, came from another country, and yet...I am earning $24.00/hour. Not too bad eh? Please...we are desperate for nurses!

Yes, but those are CANADIAN dollars. Currently the exchange rate is 72%, so you are making 24 X .72 = $17.28/hr USA dollars.

Pedsnrs2003 · May 27, 2004

I am an LPN and I work in a Pediatrics department. I make $11.50 with three years experience. I live in SW Missouri. RN's here are making close to $17.00 and hour.

maddiecat · May 27, 2004

Hey Pegg,RN. Thanks for the reply! I don't know whether to jump or stay in the boat for both options! I love taking care of people!
I love Cardiac and I love geriatrics. But I don't love spending 1-2 hours with someone and saying goodbye! I don't like being talked down to by RNs, and other "more highly educated staff" because I'm just a tech.
On the flip side, I was really thinking all this intense school work was going to pay off financially! I keep hearing the field is DESPERATE for registered nurses! Is this not true? Or are they still not willing to pay?
Whether I go back to Echo/Cardiovascular or use my RN degree, I'll find a way to be back in health care. I love it and couldn't stay away for anything, not even money!
Again, thanks and God bless,
Steph:)

I just got a new job here in Houston (Rn for 13 years) for 27.50/hr w/ diff. for last 4 hours each day. New grad rate (I asked just for fun) is 20-21/hour.

critcarenurse16 · Jun 2, 2004

Northern Michigan new grads $15-$17. More experienced up to $22 . Then add differentials for shift, weekend. At my facility there are no diff for specialty units.

Ari RN, BSN, RN · Jun 2, 2004

here in nyc new rn grads make $39/hr (days) and $43/hr (nights). that's with no experience. pretty good i guess? :)

FiestaRed · Jun 3, 2004

Try this link for salary info at Kaiser Hospitals in California.

http://www.calnurse.org/cna/kaiser/fianlcnaksrsal.htm

-Mark

Anything can be a suppository if the proper amount of force is applied.

FiestaRed · Jun 3, 2004

Here's one for the University of California in Sacramento.

http://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/hr/cna_steps_04_05.htm

-Mark

angel337, MSN, RN · Jun 3, 2004

In Kentucky, RN pay ranges from $12 hr. up to around $30 hr. depending on where you work and the demand for nurses in that area.

can you tell me what is mortgage/rent like in KY. i am so surprised that there is such a big variation in RN salaries. no wonder people complain so much about the wages. also what do other professions make in KY? i can't imagine doing nursing for $12/hr.

ddc101 · Jul 16, 2004

hi i am an lpn and i work for a private duty agency here in louisiana.

i have worked for this company off and on for over 12 years while i had other jobs.now i am working here so i can finish my degree.i make 15 hr plus benefits including ten days paid vacation and ten sick days yearly.they pay a portion of my medical but i have to provide my own.they also give me 100.00 a pay period for milage.but for me this is good pay while going back to school.

i moved here from pensacola,florida and there i was making fifteen an hour doing home health visits for a large agency plus milage plus benefits and vested 100% after one year.it was a wonderful job until the dreaded

columbia bought us and ruined it for everyone.

i am amazed at the low pay i see some of the rn's getting.that is not fair wage for a college graduate.

teachers are getting better hours and better benefits here than some hard working floor nurses.hey floor work is taxing that was my first nursing job...med surg and telemetry.i feel for those of you who are not being apprieciated.

Kate2233 · Jul 16, 2004

Please let me know what your base pay is in your part of the country. I live in TN and where I work our base pay is 13.00/hr. And if you are a CVICU nurse, do you get paid more for what you can do. thanks

I live in Philadelphia and our nursing assistants make $13 - $17 per hour at the downtown unionized hospitals. $13 per hour has to be an all time low for RN's. Your nurses need to unionize. LPN's make around $20 and up. I am a critical care registered nurse. The payrate is always above $30 for experienced nurses and around $25 per hour for new graduates. Per diem rates at the downtown hospitals are over $40 and as high as $56 per hour. The agencies pay around $40 - $46 per hour and traveling assignments should pay no less than $30 an hour plus minimum of $1,200 per month housing allowance or free private housing.

Redman · Jul 27, 2004

Here in West Texas the hospital has a program called the Critical Care Conection. They start you out at 18 an hour while they send you to all of the critical care courses they require for working in a critical care area. Your not allowed overtime while in class so 80 hrs is it with no shift diff or anything. They also pay you for the time you are in class. When your not in class your working in a critical care area such as Telemetry/Cardiac Step Down, CCU, or ICU. When your done with your classes they will place you in one of those area.

Of course you start out on nights probably stuck there for a year or so and then you able to get a pay raise. I have seen the hospital pay 22 an hour for critical care nurses. Cost of living is very low here. 6 bedroom home I was thinking of having built is going to cost around 225,000 its 4000 sq feet or so. They make you sign a 2 yr contract to get into the program but, critical care is hard to get into without any of the proper training and if you want in as a new nurse its a good way I think.