Do hospitals normally give annual raises?

TazziRN, RN · May 23, 2007

It's always been based on the union contract......usually 3% per year for three years until the next contract is due.

bill4745, RN · May 23, 2007

Wea always get cost of living (usually around 3%) plus merit (1-3%).

Larry77, RN · May 23, 2007

Yes we get two raises per year...one for cost-of-living and the other our "step" raise (seniority).

Tweety, BSN, RN · May 23, 2007

No cost of living. It's based on merit, usally 3-4% , which I perfer because it rewards the better workers. It would bother me if after busting my behind I got the same raise as a slacker just for showing up.

Ted · May 23, 2007

Our hospital gives both. There are the annunal raises because of union contract. We also receive merit raises that are tied to our yearly evaluation. This works for our hospital. Without a doubt, we're one of the highests paying hospitals in the area. But because we're such a small, rural hospital, we can't find interested nurses to work on our units. So, the annual raises at least helps us keep competative. The merit raises helps those who go the extra mile or two or three to keep our hospital open.

HappyNurse2005, RN · May 23, 2007

we get raises tied to our evals. its very objective. if you get xxx score on your eval, you get exactly this much raise, etc. so the better score is the better raise. around the 3 percent range if you meet the standards.

so yes, its yearly. then occasionally a across the board raise if they determine the RN's need to be paid more.

like this year, when the new grad start rate went up 75cents from last years new grad start rate, they bumped everyone else up too,so new grads wouldn't be getting more than anyone else.

mom2michael, MSN, RN, NP · May 23, 2007

We are supposed to see annual COL raises as well as merit raises but I have been with the facility for 2 years and the only increase in pay I've seen is when I graduated and went from a tech to an RN.

Someone told me once the COL and merit raise usually equals less than 1% each year....

DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN · May 23, 2007

I'm a nurse in the hospital in Southern Cali. I'm curious if most hospitals usually give there employees annual raises. Are they based on years of experience? Pay increases for inflation? Are they based on performance? Please share!

1-7% based on performance for full-time and part-time. PRN-no raise unless they feel pressured by other hospitals in the area going up on their PRN rate.

Crux1024 · May 23, 2007

My hospital gives raises based on Merit. that being said, the merit is determined by your peers with an peer review system. It SUCKS. If someone gets your eval. and they dont like you, there went your raise. They can write what they want, its not questioned. THe usual raise is 3%-5%. Also my hospital hasnt given a Cost Of Living Raise since 1983!!:angryfire

They say it isnt necessary. They also do a Market adjustment riase about once a year for nurses. Once every 3 years for everyone else. Needless to say, not being a nurse right now, I am not happy with this system.

ZippyGBR, BSN, RN · May 26, 2007

from the right -pondian viewpoint

there's two parts to pay rises - the cost of living aspect and a 'progression/ experience/ seniority' aspect

the two should be decoupled - i.e. the cost of living rise shoudl be there anyway as part ofthe contract and then progression depeneds of performance and 'space' within the current grade / banding ( e.g. must of our pay grades have 8 -10 increments for progression - with a little overlap between grades so experienced Staff Nurses will get more than fast progressing and rapidly promoted first line management roles)

llg, PhD, RN · May 26, 2007

My hospital gives 4 types of raises.

1. Each fall, we get a cost of living raise that is usually 2-3%

2. In the spring, they do a market survey and adjust pay rates again based on what our competitors are paying. Sometimes there is a raise, sometimes not -- depends on what the survey shows. In the 10 years I have worked here, that raise has ranged from 0% to 15%.

3. Once per year (usually in conjunction with one of the other 2 raises), they make sure that everyone is getting compensated for seniority. So they increase the raise slightly to put people at the right level for their senority. (About $0.30 per hour per year)

4. Every 2 or 3 years, they increase the differentials for evenings, nights, weekends, precepting, and charge -- based on the results of the yearly market survey.

Per diem rates generally see an adjustment every 1-2 years depending on the market survey.

The system is not very transparent and sometimes it seems like "magic and voodoo." However, over time, people end up at or near a reasonable pay level compared to their colleauges and the local market.