Comparing A Nurses' Salary

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According to Indeed, Registered Nurses (RNs) earn between $55,726 (< than 1 year experience) - $72,833 (10+ years of experience) per year in 2021.

Forbes reported back in 2019, that top hospital CEOs were making $1 million+. Payscale currently lists the average Hospital Chief Executive Officer salary at $153,479.

How do you feel about your salary compared to other professions?

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Specializes in Surgical.

You have to factor in cost of living in your area, cost of benefits and commuting costs.

You can make a lot of money as a nurse-it depends on how much you want to work, climbing the clinical ladder and pursuit of continuing education. As more hospitals strive to achieve magnet status, less ADN and diploma RN's are being hired despite experience in the work place.

I feel lucky to work about 36 hrs a week (3 shifts a week , I self schedule), work only days unless I want to work nights, every 3rd weekend, some holidays and get about 7 weeks of PTO a year. I average about 50k per year and that is enough. Working per diem, PRN and OT can get you a lot more money but then you have no time to spend it?

I think nursing is pretty great for time off and flexibilty of time to spend with my family and friends.

I love not going to work 5 days week!

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Specializes in LTC, Agency, HHC.
kht124 said:
New grads in my area starts at around 19.80. Pretty low and sad actually. New grads here are also having a hard time finding jobs. Having a job , anywhere, right out of school, is a blessing right now. Only the few and far actually manages to work in the unit "of their dreams".I will most likely move out of state after graduation. Colorado sounds decent, or Florida.

Colorado is fairly decent. However, jobs are limited, and few. You'd think we would have a lower unemployment rate, but we don't. It's sad.

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Specializes in Mental Health, Hospice Care.
lvn2bsoon said:
Colorado is fairly decent. However, jobs are limited, and few. You'd think we would have a lower unemployment rate, but we don't. It's sad.

Colorado is a tough place to land your first nursing job...it truly is "who you know" kinda thing.....LPN's are primarily restricted to LTC and clinics, which is fine as well....I am happy that in my job at the County Jail allows me to do sub-acute and acute care, I mean you never know what you will see from minute to minute....I love that, it is very much like a mini-ER....and it pay's very well...

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I am in St Louis, MO and will start as a new grad next month @ $21.00/hr working full time in acute care for the largest health system in the region. I also got an offer from the number 2 hospital system @ 20.80/hr. I am super excited to have a job (many of my classmates have not) but the pay is depressing. Listen, $21.00/hr is good money if you went to a community college and your whole nursing education cost you $5,000.00. But people like me who went to 4 year schools had to borrow 30-40K to pay for school tuition alone. Once those student loans payment start to kick in, plus rent, car payment and other expenses, $21.00/hr is going to be barely enough. The RN pay structure needs to be changed to reflect the reality of the BSN educated RN who enters the profession with tens of thousands in students loans versus the ADN nurse who starts almost debt free.

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RCBR said:
I am in St Louis, MO and will start as a new grad next month @ $21.00/hr working full time in acute care for the largest health system in the region. I also got an offer from the number 2 hospital system @ 20.80/hr. I am super excited to have a job (many of my classmates have not) but the pay is depressing. Listen, $21.00/hr is good money if you went to a community college and your whole nursing education cost you $5,000.00. But people like me who went to 4 year schools had to borrow 30-40K to pay for school tuition alone. Once those student loans payment start to kick in, plus rent, car payment and other expenses, $21.00/hr is going to be barely enough. The RN pay structure needs to be changed to reflect the reality of the BSN educated RN who enters the profession with tens of thousands in students loans versus the ADN nurse who starts almost debt free.

Why should you get paid more if you're doing the exact same job? If you think you deserve more, then go find a management position that actually utilizes all that extra school.

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Specializes in Travel, ICU, CCU, LTAC, Correctional,.

Make approx $70K working one full time and 2 part time as an RN in Kansas.

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"Why should you get paid more if you're doing the exact same job?"

Good point, if it was true. Pick any 10 staff nurses in any single hospital floor. They are all doing the exact same job but they are all the different pay rates.

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\ said:
Why should you get paid more if you're doing the exact same job? If you think you deserve more, then go find a management position that actually utilizes all that extra school.

I agree. Just because I went to community college and finished my BSN through an RN-BSN program with a total of 12k in loans (wpuld have been a total of that much if I lived in state but my RN-BSN program says one mile into next state means I pay almost triple! But it was my choice to go there) doesnt mean that at anytime during the time I've had my RN that I should be paid less. I worked hard and chose to save money. 12k for a BSN instead of the 100k I've heard from people. Same degree. Before graduation I had placed over 10 IV's, ran many cardiac drips, worked every department, and took a total of 4 patients and did complete cares so I don't feel my education suffered going the route I did.

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RCBR said:
"Why should you get paid more if you're doing the exact same job?"Good point, if it was true. Pick any 10 staff nurses in any single hospital floor. They are all doing the exact same job but they are all thedifferent pay rates.

I don't get your point. Of course the nurses all don't make the same amount. A nurse who's been working for 20 years deserves to make more than the new grad. You move up the pay scale with experience. But BSNs do not deserve a separate, higher pay scale than the ADNs.

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Specializes in ER - trauma/cardiac/burns. IV start spec.
RCBR said:
The RN pay structure needs to be changed to reflect the reality of the BSN educated RN who enters the profession with tens of thousands in students loans versus the ADN nurse who starts almost debt free.

I started nursing here in the deep south in 1993 my starting pay was 12.50/hr with 2.00/hr shift diff and .50/hr for ACLS and .50/hr for PALS. So I started at 15.00/hr - 9 years later I was making 22.00/hr plus shift diff but nothing for any certifications. I would have loved to start at 20+/hr. I was, within 2 years of starting, making more per hour than my husband who had been working for the PD for 20 years. That really irked him as he had a Bachelors in Criminal Justice.

I do not know what new grads around here make now but the statement that ADN's basically have no student loans? I graduated with my ASN (seems that ADN and ASN are used interchangeably)and my student loans were 18K and that is a fairly good chunk of change for anyone to have to pay back.

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Specializes in kids.

"The system is rigged so that those on the top get far more than they deserve, and while I resent that, it is how it is."

Maybe when you are 30 years into your career, you will re think your position....

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Specializes in Orthopedics.

30K??? That's shameful! I used to make that at my serving gig! Nurses are horribly underpaid for what they do.

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