Davita Employee referral cash bonus

[nurselambda]

Hello all,

2 months ago the clinic I work at hired this new part-time nurse. We became friendly instantly sharing our professional experiences and career prospects. I commented to her that I would be open to a move although I am not particularly dissatisfied with my current. I know she works at Davita. It happens that I had applied to in the past when I was fresh out of shool, and when I mentioned that to her, she immediately said she would be happy to refer me to a job there. "She's so nice! " I thought.
Few weeks later I submitted a general application on the company's website, just to test the waters, and a few days later I sent her a text message telling her about it. "Why didn't you tell me!" she said getting excited in what had been until then a lukewarm conversation. She immediately asked me for my email address and my resume to forward it to her boss. She even texted her to tell her about me. "She's so nice!" I thought again.
Today, I have been researching more about the job, the pay they offer, the company culture, just to make sure I wouldn't shoot myself in the foot by switching jobs. It turns out that the pay they offer isn't exactly stellar, but also I noticed that their "referral program" is very developed, and it seems like they offer staff members cash rewards for referring new hires. My interest for the job and respect for that girl instantly dropped. I saw 2 red flags in 1 sitting. Great workplaces do not need to pay their employees to help them find new employees, and that referral system really sounds like something ponzi schemes do. That company is having difficulty hiring and retaining staff. I also wasn't too happy to find out someone was about to make a few thousand dollars on my back.
What do you think?

[Hoosier_RN, MSN]

Most companies, both in and outside of dialysis, offer referral bonuses. Don't blame her too much for doing it. A little extra cash, plus getting a known on the team, is always good