Decline job offer and inquire about another one?

[shelw067]

Hello everyone,

I haven't posted in a while. I am having a dilemma regarding a full-time job offer I recently received. I have been trying to get into this area of nursing for a while now. Finally got the job offer at the facility I've always wanted to work at..the problem is the pay. I am already moving from night shift to days, which is a significant pay cut. With this job offer, I will then have to move from a critical care area (Level III) down to a level II. That is another pay cut. All together, I will be taking a $6-7 pay cut. To add to that, they offer no tuition reimbursement until employed at the facility for 12 months, and I am currently in school and do receive reimbursement at my currently facility and paying out of pocket, so I will be taking a loss with that as well. Losing money and putting out more money.

Apparently the salary is non-negotiable so there is nothing I can do about that as it is based off of years of experience. I have voiced my concern to the recruiter and she suggested that I try for a job in my current specialty (ICU) at this new facility to receive a better pay rate. Do you think it will look bad if I decline this current job offer and inquire about a PRN ICU position? What would you all do?

Thanks in advance.

[caliotter3]

I imagine that this action would not result in a new offer. Just my perception.

[ruby_jane, BSN, RN]

You've been trying to get into this area for a while? Accept what you're given. Or stay where you are, where you can (I assume) get tuition reimbursement.

[llg, PhD, RN]

Agree with the above posters. You sought a job and got the offer. It would look bad to start "playing games" now. Either accept the job you sought ... or decline it. If you really want to pursue another job at that hospital, I would decline the current offer, but wait at least a few months before applying to another unit.

[JKL33]

The problem is you can't really trust anything. If this place is known for being (or believes they represent) the best of everything, there's a very good chance that failing to accept their meager offerings will be taken as a rejection of their right and good ways and will be a federal offense. It seems increasingly common that regardless of what you bring to the arrangement, things are "take it or leave it;" they will call the next person. Hiring practices involve making sure that they don't take on anyone who is going to be too demanding or isn't going to be leaping with unabashed joy at what they have offered.

You could take the chance of carefully asking whether she thinks you would be a successful candidate for an ICU position, but that's quite a risk. Nothing at all stopping her from saying, "definitely" and then never hearing from them again.

Can you move to per diem status at your current place? I gotta say, I probably wouldn't leave a decent thing for a situation where people start out by telling me what they can't and won't do for me.

Tough decision. Good luck ~

ETA: Sorry, llg - finding out the details of carved-in-stone, non-negotiable, unfavorable terms of a job offer and making inquiries based on those is not "playing games." That any of us might think of it as such is part of what allows such unreasonable dealings with nurses to flourish.

[llg, PhD, RN]

ETA: Sorry, llg - finding out the details of carved-in-stone, non-negotiable, unfavorable terms of a job offer and making inquiries based on those is not "playing games." That any of us might think of it as such is part of what allows such unreasonable dealings with nurses to flourish.

Sorry ... I may have misinterpreted the original post. You're right. Finding out information about the job/pay/etc. and then making a decision is not "playing games" -- assuming it is done in an open, straightforward way. Maybe I was wrong, but I got the impression that the OP's situation was or was going to become more complicated than that.

And I don't see any "unreasonable dealings" that are flourishing in this case. I don't support "unreasonable dealings" either. What "unreasonable dealings" do you see here? Do you think all ICU differentials are "unreasonable dealings?"

[Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN]

Well, to turn down a job offer to try to solicit a PRN position is a gamble. It might pan out and you get it...or they may say, "sorry, but No" and you're stuck without an offer because they've just filled that FT position you turned down. Trust me, they're not going to hold that job offer open after you decline it in the hopes of getting a PRN offer.

So the question is, are you willing to take that gamble? Only you can decide that.

Whatever you decide, do NOT quit your current job until you accept the next one, be it this offer or a PRN one.

Best of luck.

[JKL33]

And I don't see any "unreasonable dealings" that are flourishing in this case. I don't support "unreasonable dealings" either. What "unreasonable dealings" do you see here? Do you think all ICU differentials are "unreasonable dealings?"

You are right, too; I shouldn't have worded it that way. I guess what I meant is that for the most part we take it as a given that the inquiry proposed in the OP is risky, and I find that unfortunate - - especially since there's no real risk involved in a(n) HCO making a "take it or leave it" offer to an RN.

But, it would be more proper to acknowledge that whether or not this particular organization's dealings are unreasonble (at least with regard to this topic) would have to be based on whether they would handle an inquiry like the OP's in stride or not. Which we don't know so I shouldn't have said that.

I confess I'm just sort of "blah" over the idea (in general) that at staff nurse level, there's often no great desire for this nurse, but rather a nurse - - and that affects all of this that we're talking about (if that makes sense)...if they're looking for a nurse, then there's no need/right for this nurse to even bother with any negotiation, and if they're looking for a nurse then this nurse who gets the offer better not do anything that might rock the boat...

ETA: To answer your other question, I don't have any strong feelings about care area differentials.

[shelw067]

Thanks for the responses. The recruiter did give me time to think about it, but after careful consideration I've decided to decline the job offer. I have attempted to call her a a few times within the last few days with no response, so I am going to send her an e-mail declining the offer.

Is it appropriate to reiterate why I'm declining the offer or keep it short and sweet?

[Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN]

Is it appropriate to reiterate why I'm declining the offer or keep it short and sweet?

I vote for short and sweet, especially if you are planning to ever apply for another position there.

If you do decide to mention why you're declining it, keep it to the point.

[llg, PhD, RN]

I don't know if this would be wise or not ... but I would probably say something like, "I'm sorry to have to decline your offer. I'm still very interested in working in that department, but I just can't afford to take such a big pay cut at this time. Maybe someday in the future, I'll be able to afford that."

It says that you WOULD take it and would LIKE to take it, but can't take it because of the low pay. If they hear enough people refusing their offers for that reason, maybe they will eventually raise the pay.

[KelRN215, BSN, RN]

Thanks for the responses. The recruiter did give me time to think about it, but after careful consideration I've decided to decline the job offer. I have attempted to call her a a few times within the last few days with no response, so I am going to send her an e-mail declining the offer.

Is it appropriate to reiterate why I'm declining the offer or keep it short and sweet?

I once declined a job offer by saying, "regrettably, I have to decline the offer. Unfortunately my situation is such that I cannot afford to have a tiered health insurance or high deductible plan. I do thank you for your time and consideration." That job was offering my only a minimal salary increase from my current job at the time but the benefits were significantly worse so it wasn't worth it. They did try to negotiate and offered a higher rate of pay ($1/hr more which would have covered the $2000 deductible in the high deductible plan) but, in the end, what they offered wasn't worth it and I received a better offer for another job while they were negotiating.