Encouragement needed - Frustrated and insulted by hourly rates

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I am a new grad. I chose to pursue nursing as a second career based on all of the stories I have heard of nurses being valuable assets in a community/in demand etc. I did well in school. I passed my NCLEX a month ago and I have been searching for a god job. As an adult I have some real-world experience of what a salary needs to be to be "good." I knew I was going to have to step back a bit in terms of money as I launch my new career but I am feeling frustrated and frankly insulted by some of the hourly rates I have been quoted. I have spent a lot of time on this site reading people's complaints about treatment/hours/pay etc and I am very worried that I have made a mistake in investing in this career. Please, someone help me regain confidence that I will find a good job with opportunities for growth.

Great thought, except new grads don't really have any room to negotiate.

NOT true! The OP is actually in a very good position to negotiate being a new grad. But he needs to sell himself and be flexible. MANY hospitals across the country will hire new grads into ICU who are impressive during their interviews because of cost-effectiveness. This will not only place the OP in a position to quickly accelerate his earning capacity in short time. But it also opens doors for him to return to school and make a lot more money. OP YOU are in charge of your destiny and a hiring agent will not be able to help you.

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I am rather concerned with your attitude as a new nurse. Money seems to be your first focus and not caring for patients. Why did you go into nursing in the first place? Perhaps you need to ask yourself that.

I went in for the money and job security. Providing proper care for my patients is part of the job and goes without saying. But at the end of the day, money is the motivator.

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Specializes in Med Surg, Geriatrics, Rehab, Hospice.

Honey...have you really thought out the reason you went into nursing? Yes, money is important but it helps to have a vocation for it. I was a nurse for 24 years, you have no idea what nursing is all about. But, that is something you must find out on your own. Good luck to you. Most Southern states pay nurses very poorly, generally speaking of course.

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Hi Kemansha1... I am also a new grad (BSN) who thought a lot about the financial aspect of nursing because I live in the SF Bay Area where it's CRAZY EXPENSIVE to live and because I took out massive loans for nursing school. I COMPLETELY understand where you're coming from... AND... we baby RNs are facing the reality that will be starting at the bottom of the salary totem-pole and will have to work our way up! No new shoes for me! Hahah. I hope you DO love nursing and that you won't get discouraged by the initial pay. :) I love psych and plan on being a psych RN forever, so I'll get ANCC certified for Psych/Mental-Health nursing once I get my 2 years/2000 hours of experience in my speciality... that will definitely increase my pay rate once I'm eligible! Check out the ANCC's website to see what you might be able to do to negotiate a higher initial salary.

For some transparency about the California RN pay rates:

-I currently make $22/hr working full time as an acute psychiatric counselor/case manager in San Francisco. This pays the basic bills and gives me some fun money... and by "fun", I mean paying my student loans and not living in a closet-sized apartment.

-The first RN job offer I turned down was for a $26/hr New Grad Correctional/Psych RN position south of Monterey County.

-The second job offer I turned down was a $37/hr Psych RN position for Sacramento County.

-The two jobs I just accepted are a per diem position in SF at $50/hr (second to the lowest pay rate for per diem RNS) and a full time Psych RN position in SF at ~$55/hr (but this isn't set in stone because I have yet to get the formal offer so I'm going to try to negotiate for more when the time comes).

Location is KEY when it comes to pay rates because of the cost of living. If you need to compare/contrast pay rates for RN positions, poke around online and Google things like a county hospital's "RN union contract" or the MOU (memorandum of understanding) with the nurses' union... you might find the complete documents online which have pay rates listed. Government RN jobs (i.e.- your local Department of Public Health, state and Federal correctional facilities, etc) should have the salaries listed online.

What some of my experienced RN friends do is live in other states (like Texas, Utah, etc) and fly out to San Francisco to work for 2 weeks before returning home for 2-3 weeks. They're not travel RNs, technically, but just realized that even if $116K (or the $160+ they probably make since they've been working for a while) sounds like a lot, it's not going to allow them the kind of lifestyle they want for their families because it costs a bajillion dollars to live in SF now. With how cheap flights are nowadays and how much quicker it can be to take a plane than drive through crazy traffic, maybe you could be an unofficial travel nurse to increase your salary!

Don't be too discouraged... once we new grads develop our skills and show hospitals that we'll stick around and aren't walking death-traps, we'll be getting better job offers and increasing our salaries for sure! ;)

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Specializes in geriatrics.

Shift differentials and working OT will boost your income. Night shift and weekend differential adds up nicely.

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Well I guess the hospital job (with shift differential) is in line with what I hoped to make. Since I went to school in Massachusetts where the cost of living is astronomical it seemed to me like nurses made a lot of money (of course most of them have a lot of experience) so I was hoping that my step back from being a contractor (residential remodeling/carpentry) was going to be temporary. I think it still will be if I can make it through to NP or PA. I know I sound super ambitious and condescending and I don't mean to. I am really excited to start my career but I am (right at this exact moment) getting cold feet.

In order to go to PA school you need a tremendous amount of clinical hours. It is a very competitive program to get into.

Ya, in Mass $30 is a sorta starting point with differentials. But if you were a contractor used to making upwards of $75 dollars and hour, it can be an eye opener.

Lots of nurses work part time/per diem and do something else. Maybe don't give up the contractor gig, and work weekends at the hospital for the clinical hours......

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This is so true. As I posted above, I was arrogant enough to think that my 27 years "in the field" qualified me for what I wanted along with increased pay as a brand new RN. Ha! I learned very quickly that recruiters want to see you are willing to learn, remain humble and of course, are excited to take care of people and be part of the team. That doesn't equate to "settling" for lower wages or being a kiss a$$.. It shows that you have to EARN your place through hard work just like those before you did.

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Nursing was my second career as well. When I started my first nursing job my salary was cut by more than 1/2. That was over twenty years ago. I have done many things in nursing. You must understand, you got the basics in nursing school. It costs a huge amount to orient a brand new nurse. Having been a nurse manager I know this. I chose to go back to the bedside 4 years ago...another big pay cut. Additionally be careful what you wish for.. If you want to go on to Np that's great, but they are usually salaried and as such in acute care get the shifts the Docs don't want. Given the extended hours they don't make much more. Lastly, after all this time I remain passionate about nursing and I still love what I do. After-all where else can you get all this "respect, glamour & money" 😉

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Specializes in Infusion.

In my area, hospital nurses start at $34/hour. In the bigger metro areas, a little higher but the bigger city hospitals require a BSN. The local hospitals usually only hire new grads if they have been working as CNAs but will certainly hire someone with 1 year of experience and a great patient care attitude. It is interesting to note that nursing jobs in public health require the bachelor's degree but pay less than hospital jobs that only require an RN. I guess it is all about location and job type. Best wishes in your search for the best job in terms of enjoyment and pay.

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Specializes in Med/Surg/ICU/Stepdown.

I haven't read any of the prior posters' suggestions, but this is just my input:

Hourly wages, like every other salary/compensation, depends on a variety of factors. In nursing, much of it depends on your desired practice setting, as well as your location, particularly if you're a new grad as you may not necessarily bring any other related experience to the table. For example, I choose to work in a large, urban teaching hospital on a general Med/Surg floor. The hourly wage as compared to the previous hospital I came from (medium-sized, rural, teaching) is much, much less, but the types of patients and acuity levels I see are what keep me there. It's about perspective and what's important. If the hourly wage/salary is important to you, I'd advise Google searching locations and specialties that are the highest paying.

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Specializes in Dialysis.
NOT true! The OP is actually in a very good position to negotiate being a new grad. But he needs to sell himself and be flexible. MANY hospitals across the country will hire new grads into ICU who are impressive during their interviews because of cost-effectiveness. This will not only place the OP in a position to quickly accelerate his earning capacity in short time. But it also opens doors for him to return to school and make a lot more money. OP YOU are in charge of your destiny and a hiring agent will not be able to help you.

Apparently you haven't read many posts relating to this. Your entitled to your opinion and me to mine. But as someone who's done the hiring, a brand new grad has very little negotiating power. I've asked others in the same position and they say the same. If you want what's offered as a new grad, take it. If not, we'll move on to the next. When you get that golden year, then you can begin negotiating based on skills and knowledge. Again, everyone should do research before any career undertaking

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Np's don't make more than bedside nurses in all parts of the country. Often their yearly salary is less than what a bedside nurse brings home in a year and they don't get overtime pay. So if you figured out what NPs makes divided by the number of hours they work it might not make sense if money is your main driving force to go that route.

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