Extra Shift Bonuses

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I have been a traveler for five years and I recently received the following e-mail from my agency:

Cash in on the final days of your assignment this summer with this awesome new bonus opportunity! Earn a $250 bonus for every extra shift you work outside of your normal contracted hours now through the end of August.

I have worked for four different agencies in the past five years and I have never heard of anything like this. Any thoughts as to why they are offering these bonuses? Are there that many facilities with chronic staffing issues?

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Because the regular overtime rate is based on a low base rate. The shift bonus is just an alternative way to bring the OT rate up to normal. Otherwise, with a base pay of $20 but a total pay of $60 with housing, per diem and so on, you would actually be taking a pay cut to work overtime.

Some payroll systems are locked into time an a half so there has to be a workaround. In addition, this policy may help if the agency is audited by the IRS. Complicated underlying wage recharacterization issue.

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Specializes in ICU, and IR.

I have seen this before, back in January CC was offering bonus for working any extra shifts. The smarter thing to do is to get your OT rate higher, especially if they are offering lower base pay. For example I am working on negotiating a package right now base pay is $20 but I got them to agree to 58/hr for OT and its a 48 hour a week contract. However if you don't plan on working any OT it doesn't matter. Also higher stipends is the best way but hard to get that sometimes.

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To give you an oddly specific example- I know for certain my company was being paid $84 an hour for my time on a certain assignment (the vendor manager had me sign a paper that had the rate on there). This was normal hours AND OT hours. My base was $25 plus per diem. Many agencies would simply offer time and a half of base for OT, which would only have been $40. All of my contracts have offered a great deal more for OT (I got $68 that assignment), but let's say your agency doesn't. Every extra hour you work is more cash for them, too. If people aren't volunteering for more OT, they will offer more cash incentive to get you to want OT. Everyone makes more cash, and the facility gets more staffing. Yay:)

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I have found extra shift bonuses to be mostly baloney. For example my current contract in Cali has a 365 buck extra bonus for ot. But the ot rate is 30 bucks. No extra money there. I did NOT take a contract (which I should have) in another location in Cali that offered me 115.00/hr straight up for overtime. A way better deal. Maybe wouldn't have had any but still that's a good rate, even for Cali. I liken these to gimmicks trying to get you to buy a car. Free oil changes or a gas card etc.

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Do the math and negotiate if the "blended" overtime rate is not sufficient. Shop around before negotiating is the only way to go.

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