Glassdoor vs Salary.com real market value-have to let them know by the end of the day!

[googs]

I need to get back to an employer today about a job offer. I currently have been working in internal medicine and urgent care as well as ED for 3 years as an NP with 5 years of ED RN experience prior to that. I started at 109,000 as an NP and haven't received a raise in 3 years due to budget issues at the hospital (a large Catholic health organization). I recently found a job closer to home in internal medicine and have been made an offer. Benefits are similar since it is another large Catholic health organization. The offer was $115,000 and the hiring manager knows I'm making $110,000 now. I received an offer of $125,000 at a private office with worse benefits.

Salary.com says my fair market value is $115,000 up to $120,000 at the high end. Glassdoor's new "Know your Worth tool" says I'm worth $122,000 base salary and that salaries of FNPs in the city range from $122,000 to $155,000.

I don't want to counteroffer today that makes them rescind the offer because I like the location and the office, but if I ask for $125,000 and mention that I was offered that in another office and the fact that I speak 3 languages is it likely that I will have that offer accepted? I don't want to lose this opportunity but I want to make at least $120,000 since I've been stuck around $110,000 for 3 years.

Any advice? I have to let her know by the end of the day.

[googs]

Thanks for the 100 views and no votes or comments! Almost at the end of the day.

[Jules A, MSN]

Ok since you put it out there I have never been in a position where I had to make a decision by the end of a day and suddenly started scrambling for advice so that put me off from answering when I first read it.

That said what I would do is #1 not ever be pressured into answering in an unreasonable time frame #2 Not depend on internet sites for salary estimates, you really need to know first hand what other NPs are making. In my experience both those sites are thousands of dollars less, like 20k, than what I make #3 If you have a solid offer, in writing, that you can put out there to support your salary request use it

OR

#4 If you are really that scared of them rescinding then just take it.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

[traumaRUs, MSN, APRN]

I go with Jules: Don't give in to their pressure - tell you need to take a little more time.

I use my states APRN organization and personal knowledge of friends' salaries. I live in IL but in a rural area and I can tell you that I don't make what they make in Chicago - however, my cost of living is much less too.

Best wishes with your decision

[caliotter3]

The only comment I have is that the relatively recent time I turned down an insulting offer, I drove away without a job. I wish they had said something at the beginning instead of allowing me to waste my time as well as theirs. I'm at the point now that I will no longer accept the lowest of wages out of desperation. Only you know how low you are willing to go, why, and for how long. It is better to value yourself, no one else will. Do your research and come to your personal set point before this happens again.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

Thanks for the 100 views and no votes or comments! Almost at the end of the day.

How long have you had the offer in hand? If you just got it today, it seems like you're being rushed. If you've had it for three days, it seems as though you waited until the last moment to post your question here. Neither is a reason for you to get snarky with the allnurses membership.

[yogagal]

Curious how everything turned out? Hope you got what you wanted. I think you should have asked for 125 from the job you want. NPs need to get paid more across the board for what we do...we ALL need to be in this together and ask for more!

[googs]

Yogagal. I totally agree with you! I'm a firm believer that we should receive 85% of physician pay, since that is what we bill for, but if we aren't all in this together, we will never get this. We have a huge, powerful lobbying presence and we need to use it to get what we deserve! Physician wages are elevated because of how selective medical schools are and they artificially limit the amount of graduates and residency spots to skyrocket the salaries. NP schools need to have more stringent entrance requirements so that not just anyone can become an NP. The curriculum needs to be more rigorous with less fluff such as "nursing theory" and more medicine.

In terms of the job-they countered and I accepted the offer of $120k/yr plus productivity. The benefit package is very attractive compared to the private office that was only offering $125k with poor benefits. I'll have over 6 weeks of PTO, 2% automatic 403b contribution plus another 2.5% matched if I contribute 5%, good, reasonably priced health insurance, disability, etc. While I agree that the salary is not as high as I would have liked, I plan on looking around continually. I think that if an internal medicine physician earns $225k/year, we should get something like $180k, especially seeing that we often see the same number of patients. Also, I hate the "consultation" argument...that we have to have the doctor there to ask questions. The doctors ask each other questions all the time and are not penalized in their salaries for that. And I wouldn't say we ask more questions than we do.

[yogagal]

Agreed on all points. And not only do the docs ask each other, they ask ME! I work in family practice at an FQHC and we have a lot of retired docs that were specialists who now work in primary care part time as their retirement job. They ask my advice ALL THE TIME, and it's fine I can ask them about specialty stuff that they are experts in it's great, but yeah one of them was at a loss of what to do when his patient had a roach in his ear lol. Everyone consults that's what we're SUPPOSED to do!

Congrats on the new position, sounds like a pretty good deal, especially 6 weeks PTO, that's great!