City Job or Private?

[stillalice]

Hi all! As the title of the post suggests, I'm here to ask your opinion on whether it's better to have a nursing job in a city hospital or in a private one?

I currently work on a Med / Surg floor in an HHC hospital. For Tier 6 members like me, the vesting period now for pension is 10 years. Previous tiers have shorter vesting periods and larger pension pay outs. However, I'm very attracted to the health care benefits (free lifetime medical insurance for you and your spouse upon retirement) offered by HHC.

The reason I ask this question is because I'm still in the process of figuring out whether I want to stay in HHC for 8 more years. The burn-out is so real. I work the night shift, and most nights, there would only be 4 nurses working the floor with each nurse getting anywhere between 8-10 patients. Population served isn't the best and you get faced with so many social issues and behavioral problems that you can get very mentally fatigued. Plus, salary is much lower than private hospitals as I'm sure a lot of people know.

My question then is if it's worth staying in a city hospital vs private. Anyone care to share their experiences working in a private hospital, benefits etc? Nurse to patient ratio? I hear the 1199 union is good. I know the benefits offered by city hospitals are very good for long term security in retirement, but sometimes I'm left wondering if I really want to spend a decade of my life working for a lot of drug-seeking patients, verbally and sometimes physically abusive ones, and in a workplace where staffing is a serious issue.

Thank you to anyone willing to take a moment to share!

[karmax1]

HHC has a better benefits; and job security...but the overturn rate is always high. Good luck!

[Pyro]

Lifestyle is so different. Make sure you pick a hospital you want to settle at if it is for HHC. If you have more aspirations to do something else I say pick the private hospital and go for it further your education then settle into an HHC for the benefits.

[ga_super]

I also work at a HHC hospital and wonder the same thing. Some private hospitals in nyc offer better benefits such as shorter vesting time for the pension and higher pay to make up for not getting "free" health insurance. The main reason I think I might switch to private in the long run is because of the staffing at hhc facilities. It seems as if every department is understaffed which can make your job harder. The reasons why I may stay is because I like my co-workers and I can usually get the schedule I want without any problems.

[JWEMT]

Well private Hospital makes about 10k more as a base. That's an extra 350k over 35 years even if you ignore raises and interest. 1199 has healthcare benefits if you retire at 60 with 20 years. Tuition reimbursement is better. But seniority is hard to get. City hospitals have high turnover which allows you to get seniority faster. 1199 has pension. Better health benefits than the city imo.

[herowneulogy, BSN, RN]

Please lists the hospitals participating in 1199.

[herowneulogy, BSN, RN]

Well private Hospital makes about 10k more as a base. That's an extra 350k over 35 years even if you ignore raises and interest. 1199 has healthcare benefits if you retire at 60 with 20 years. Tuition reimbursement is better. But seniority is hard to get. City hospitals have high turnover which allows you to get seniority faster. 1199 has pension. Better health benefits than the city imo.

Please list hospitals participating in 1199 pension plan.