Just curious. Our Facility has, for years, offered extra pay for shifts; rather than paying an agency to fill staffing needs. Once a year we do this "dance" where they institute "NO MORE BONUS SHIFTS". Shifts that had been signed up for my staff are now scratched through. However a new sheet is hung on the door with a bold "NO MORE BONUS SHIFTS." It's frustrating for the staff as we watch this happen....we don't have any "bonus shifts", then they bring in agency nurses, then they fuss about the "budget."...then things get back to normal.
Why is it that hospitals that do enormous expansion, have more chiefs than indians, would begrudge their own staff a few morsels....when will they learn.
We are paid well for extra shifts, over $21 an hour on top of our regular pay, plus diffs. Of course, we are called off first, they try not to use us. Sometimes things change and they call us back or put us on call. I don't mind going in, even for four hours. We don't use registry staff, and don't usually take float pool nurses on my unit.
We get paid double time for any shifts over your regular scheduled shifts. So if you are part time plus..and have to work only 24 hrs a week, when you sign up for an extra shift you get paid for 2. Good deal huh? Well yea except you are the one with your head on the chopping block when it comes to cancelling. And they "overbook" in case a nurse calls off. So you don't always get that extra cash.
Another problem I've come across with working for the bonus is that its taxed very harshly. And after a shift of running around like a chicken with your head cut off, its just sometimes not worth it.
Do I feel obligated to "help out" by coming in when called at the last minute? Nope. My family is first. They have no second thoughts when they cancel Me and I've needed the shift.
We call this "incentive Pay" where I work. They pay RN's an extra $60 for every 4 hours block of time they work, which works out to an extra 15/hr on top of base pay, plus the shift differential. Currently people doing extra shifts is the only way we are able to somewhat staff our floor. They like having 8 people at nite...we have 5 people, sometimes 6 or 7 people scheduled.... and sometimes float pool people are not there to use....eeugh.
Specializes in CV Intermediate, M/S, tele, PCU, ortho.
Wow some of you get really good bonuses!
Where I work, our bonus shifts are
5 dolars an hour for RN
4 dollars an hour for LVN
1 dollar an hour for techs
Maybe I need to come to your hospitals because I always sign up for bonus shifts! We can't float on a bonus shift but are first to be cancelled.
Our bonus shifts are usually 8 hours, but sometimes you can swing more like earlier this week I noticed we were short on the schedule so I requested a bonus shift they said ok and I worked 12 hours bonus and charged, but our charge pay is only like 1.25
I remember when I worked for another facility they had a guy come in and tell us that nurses..."you are a commodity", you know, like orange juice and pork bellies, to be bought and sold..........
I'm taking it as a vacation... I think they have chosen to do this NOW because it's right before Christmas and they feel they can guilt folks into working...
They say "work more", I say, hook up with a local agency and work for a competitor while they are calling saying "OK, we'll give you premium pay..."
"NO, sorry, I'm working at X Hospital today...I would have signed up if premium pay was offered."
They dropped our bonus shifts this last year and refuse to bring them back. People did just like you, decided not to work any more OT, many said "I will come in for the bonus...". Now when we're short, we're short and it's too bad. Plenty of people still work extra though and I don't see the bonuses coming back, but it was nice while it lasted.
They dropped our bonus shifts this last year and refuse to bring them back. People did just like you, decided not to work any more OT, many said "I will come in for the bonus...". Now when we're short, we're short and it's too bad. Plenty of people still work extra though and I don't see the bonuses coming back, but it was nice while it lasted.
I'm sorry your bonuses didn't come back, I just get irritated with the song and dance. Also, we have sooooo many nurses with clipboards that don't produce anything. I think we would have plenty of staff if they cut down on the clipboard nurses (I know management is important but it seems we have 1 manager for every two beds at my hospital and that is just in the nursing division alone...and our hospital is less than a 160 bed hospital).
"Now when we're short, we're short and it's too bad" The first night that they began the song and dance, one of the charge nurses had 6 patients and one sustained a fall. she felt sooooo bad, but she was on two halls and she was running like a chicken with her head cut off. she said that the night supervisor said "we called everybody and even offered premium pay and no one would bite..." Then when customer satisfaction numbers are collected and tallied, in 3 months time management will come to us and ask "what happened?" well, we didn't have enough staff.
Mimi2RN, ASN, RN
1,142 Posts
We are paid well for extra shifts, over $21 an hour on top of our regular pay, plus diffs. Of course, we are called off first, they try not to use us. Sometimes things change and they call us back or put us on call. I don't mind going in, even for four hours. We don't use registry staff, and don't usually take float pool nurses on my unit.