Frustrated...What would you do?

Nurses General Nursing

Published

Specializes in LTC.

I have been without a job since April and was terminated from that job (that is a long story) and I have been getting unemployment benefits. Nursing jobs around here are hard to find and there are a lot of unemployed nurses and medical assistants looking for jobs. The hospitals in my area do not hire nurses and about a year ago they laid off over 30 LPN's because they only want RN's. They said it was because they needed to cut back on staff. Anyhow, I got a call yesterday from a place I interviewed back in March for a home health care agency. They had given the position to another nurse who has over 30 years of experience but they are now needing to add a second nurse and wanted me to come in and interview for the position again. I was excited and went in yesterday and interviewed and they said they would get back with me within a day or two. About an hour later I got a call from them offering me the job and wanted to know if I could start today. I told them yes. I was told at the time of the interview that it would pay $17/hour. She brought it up, I didn't. I find out today part way through the day from the nurse that I am orientating with that it is only $17/hour per visit and every visit can't take more then an hour. We do not get paid for the travel time in between visits and about the most we could fit in a day would be 6 people. Ok so then at this rate I have two kids in daycare and one in school which is $5 for two in daycare and $7.50 when they are all at daycare. With all the extra travel time between the clients houses and the distance I have to travel to plus the time it takes to takes the kids to daycare and pick them up I am going to be making less then minimum wage. I am suppose to be working 2 1/2 to 3 days a week. I need to have something other then why did you leave your last job and having to say because I was terminated but at the same time this is really not worth it. I may have to use my van at times to travel with when the company car is not available and they only reimburse you for 26 cents a mile. This is low isn't it? My husband gets 51 cents for from this employer and he works for a hospital. On top of all of that the nurse told me today oh and you know you aren't getting paid your full amount of wages when you are orientating right....Ummm...No. She said you will find they don't tell you a lot of things when they hire you because then they would have a hard time finding someone to take the job.

I am frustrated and upset that I was mislead to think I was going to be paid $17/hour not per visit. I don't think it is worth my time but yet I need something else on my resume at the same time. My unemployment I was bringing home $774 every two weeks and now I will barely be able to gross $600 not taking away what I have to pay in taxes and daycare. Now my unemployment is going to be gone either way so now I am pretty much screwed. I have been applying for everything since April and get very few calls. What would you do stay until you found something else or just not even bother with it between their time and your time?

Thanks for your help.

Specializes in Oncology.

Thats kinda hard to say. Its definitely wrong for them not to tell you all the details AND on top of that, they lied. Is that illegal? Anyways, with that being said, I think I would take the job cause like you said, unemployment is not going to last long. I would take the job and also keep applying to other places and would definetly leave that job when a better oppurtunity arrives. That way you can have experience and other places would hire you. Good luck

Definitely low pay, intermittent visit low for LPNs is around $25 per visit. They are banking on the fact that you were terminated from last job and have been without work for so long that you will be eager to take a low ball offer. You can take it or leave it, based upon your need for work and what your chances are otherwise. Might be wise to take it and continue to look for something that is more practical.

I wouldn't take it. I'd call them back and say that you feel like you were mislead into thinking you would be receiving $17/hr. and that you cannot afford to work at that wage (because, really can you? Doesn't seem so when factoring in childcare and transportation) Sure, you risk extending your unemployment, but maybe they're just low-balling you. I wouldn't bring up the topic of your current unemployment benefits. I would keep it at, "After consideration, I believe I'm worth $17 per hour at minimum, and what you're offering now simply isn't acceptable." Worst case scenario, they'll say fine and move along to the next desperate applicant. On the other hand, maybe they'll change their offer. Don't work for less than you're worth.

i am currently inclined to agree with lorelei...

for me, i would likely resign.

of course you should first discuss concerns w/mgr, and if they won't budge, then get out.

because i'm thinking if you stayed, it would escalate to acute dissatisfaction in short time.

and i just don't know what is worse:

being a miserably, underpaid employee or being proactively unemployed...

i just don't know the answer for you.

no long term care facilities near you?

leslie

I don't know where you live, but where I live if you find a job but make less than you were making on unemployment benefits then unemployment will pay you the difference until your unemployment runs out or you start making the same. At least that is what I have heard from friends who needed to collect unemployment then started working but making less than their previous job. I would look into that and if that's the case I would stick it out for the experience until you can find somehting better. I do think it is shifty that they didn't disclose all the info when you got hired though, makes me wonder about the integrity of the company.

They have definitely mislead you and that is totally wrong. On the other I would stay. I know it will be difficult and discouraging do to the pay amount. But, you were terminated and without work for a while. Unemployment is temporary so I would work there and continue looking for something better. It seems to be easier to find a job when you already have one. Do not risk not accepting the job and having a larger employment gap on your record because you do not know when the next opportunity will come. If a offer comes in better than their offer, give your notice and leave. If the situation were different, where you constantly received employment offers I would say scream a big *** No in that phone. Good Luck

Specializes in Med/surg, telemetry, ICU.

I would take the job temporarily. Definitely keep looking for another job with more acceptable pay, but you will be much more marketable while employed, your resume will look better to the potential employers. Good luck!

i don't know what you should do, lpn&mom. i understand how you feel like something, anything might be better than nothing. if you do take the job, just keep your eyes open about other stuff they might try to pull....

I would take the job temporarily. Definitely keep looking for another job with more acceptable pay, but you will be much more marketable while employed, your resume will look better to the potential employers. Good luck!

Good advice here.

Specializes in LTC.

Thanks for everyones replies so far but this is what has happened so far. I was told the $17/hour in the interview so I didn't question it when she called me and offered me the job and I was starting the next day with orientation. Then when I got there yesterday (Tuesday) after interviewing and accepting the job Monday, she handed me two folders of information so take with me to fill out and bring back. This bring all the tax information, blood borne pathogens, and all their miscellaneous papers you have to sign. I didn't have time to look at it because the nurse was ready to nurse for her home visits and I was already keeping her and she was getting a late start so when I got home I looked at the folder and she gave me a folder for a home health aide. So I find out today that I am only getting paid $13.75 per visit for orientation visits and then any staff meetings or training will be paid at this rate also. Then if you want direct deposit they charge you $1 per week because they are paid weekly. Which that is what I wanted and I only found this out because the other nurse told me. It does not say anywhere in the papers work or handbook that they are going to charge you this amount. When I filled out the paper and gave it to the office administrator/payroll person she didn't even tell me about the $1 charge. Then I find out the background check they do on you they take that out of your pay also which they don't tell you and that isn't in the paperwork also. The other nurse thinks it was around $12 if she remembers right. I am due for a TB skin due because it has been a year now and if I have them do it they are going to charge me $6.50. She didn't tell me that one but that is actually in the papers she gave me. I will call my doctors office and see if it is covered under my insurance or I will call my insurance company first. I feel like this company just nickels and dimes you to death and don't care and don't care to tell you they are going to be doing it.

The nurse I am orientating with and their only other nurse that does home care is very nice and straight forward and she came right out and told me what she is making. She makes the same thing that I am making $17/hour and she has been a nurse for over 30 years. She said with most of the clients being Medicare/Medicaid clients this is all they are going to pay per visit. She said they only make about $32/hour per visit and we are getting $17 of that. I had already started and was working before I found out most of this information otherwise I would not have taken the job especially if I had known it was per visit. I have a lot of travel time involved in my clients so it's not something that would be done with little travel time in between. The past two days, from the time we have left in the morning to the time we get back to the office we have been gone for 8 1/2 hours and have done 6 visits in that amount of time. If I was making the full $17 I would have made $102 and then take away daycare of around $45 for the day and then I still have to take taxes out of the $102. I am pretty much working for nothing. I have a hard time even thinking about working for this kind of money.

Yes we have plenty of nursing homes in my area. I have worked at a few and I don't care to go back to them. I am tired of the back stabbing and gossip that is constantly going on. The communication is awful in all of them that I have worked in. They tell one shift something and then don't tell the other shifts. The overall attitude of the staff in all of the have been negative and no one is happy. I am just tired of this kind of environment and need something different. I was terminated from my last place which was a nursing home which an unemployment judge found and told them they had no justifiable reason to fire me. It's a long story but the short version is they were simply discriminating against me and wanted a reason to fire me and that thought they found a good reason and they didn't. I plan on calling the unemployment office and seeing what my options are now since I am toward the end of my benefits and would need to file for my first extension. The unemployment handbook says you only have to accept a job if it is making 75% of what you were making at your last job and I thought I would have been but I'm definitely not making that.

Just when I thought things were turning around for me.

That's a scam bordering on extortion. Better to be collecting unemployment pounding the pavement and sending out resumes than submitting to such an insult. In the end, you're essentially paying them. I'm floored that anyone (other than maybe someone who wasn't legal to work in the US) would say yes to that. If they have any adverts out there claiming $17/hr I'd turn them into the Attorney General.:angryfire

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