How did you get the big pay raise?

Nurses General Nursing

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So don't get me wrong, I certainly am not a nurse for the money. I love bedside nursing and I chose this career because I love it.

I have been a nurse on the same unit for 2.5 years and make just a little more than I did when I began as a nurse in my facility and was wondering when things "broke" for you, like when did you get your first big pay raise or your first job that payed more than your starting salary? When were you promoted within your hospital? Within bedside nursing, I feel like there isn't much career mobility and was wondering when others "caught their break"?

Specializes in ICU, trauma.

i had to move from iowa to Minnesota because of pay. Same job title as an ICU nurse....$15 an hour pay raise

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Job hopping does seem to be common.

I work in the OR, and at least in my area, we're the highest paid nurses in the hospital. I should clarify - that is for the nurses who work in our trauma center OR. Our surgery center and community hospital pay less base pay because those staff don't have to run trauma cases.

From the salary I was quoted when I accepted my first position I've increased my hourly rate $14 over six years - same employer. They adjusted my salary initially when I started because I had experience. $2-3 increase when we finished the orientation and residency program. Several market and merit adjustments, then roughly $3 an hour more as a CNIII when I started that. More market and merit adjustments. My current job is salaried but the hourly equivalent is almost $4 more an hour than my CNIII rate, and I got my market/merit adjustment last fall. Not having call pay and overtime pay kind of sucks but there are other benefits too.

The salaries I've been quoted elsewhere or to travel are amazing really. I don't know if I'd just leave for fun though - for the most part my employer is awesome and I have very few complaints. Compared to other places, we're relatively well taken care of...

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Specializes in ICU, CVICU, E.R..

After working Tele/Medsurg for 2 years, I worked Agency RN for another 2 years which almost doubled my rate from my starting rate. But after bouncing around different hospitals, I went full time ICU to get critical care experience from a hospital that was giving a $35k bonus for 3 years full time job. After that I went CVICU at a cardiac hospital which also had a sign in bonus of $5 grand for 2 years and a higher starting salary. I also did agency RN on the side. Took CCRN which added $2/hr to base rate. Our hospital increased the ICU differential from $3/hr to $6/hr. So all in all our total differentials including night differential, weekend differential totaled $12/hr extra on top of the base rate.

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When I graduated there were too many nurses where I lived and you had to beg for work and take what you could get, with terrible pay. I worked there for about 2 years and moved out of state & got some step down/tele/ ICU experience under the belt. When I moved back to the area --about 6 years after I graduated--there was a nursing shortage and I went from my initial $13/hr to $40/hr. That was a pretty good raise. lol. Admittedly that was a contract, non benefit job. Once I signed on as regular staff I made 30-something, can't quite remember.

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Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.
Pay raises come with changing jobs. For ideal salary, you should consider changing employers every 2-3 years.

This. It is pretty well known in nursing that usually the only way to get into better money is to change employers. There are a few good employers out there who take good care of their experienced nurses, but it isn't the norm.

Until employers start to value the nurses they already have as much as they do hiring in an experienced nurse, people are going to have to continue to jump ship to get what they are worth in the market. It is stupid but it is what it is. Forest and trees and all that. I cannot figure out why they are willing to hire in an unknown for more than the valuable employee they already know, who has experience and fits with their culture. Stupid stupid stupid.

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Specializes in Psych, Addictions, SOL (Student of Life).

Well I've been at my facility for 15 years and can count on one hand the times I got more than a cost of living raise! Mostly when I got a new certification or educational achievement.

I have heard the best way to get a big jump in pay is to go after a new position in a new facility.

Hppy

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So don't get me wrong, I certainly am not a nurse for the money. I love bedside nursing and I chose this career because I love it.

I have been a nurse on the same unit for 2.5 years and make just a little more than I did when I began as a nurse in my facility and was wondering when things "broke" for you, like when did you get your first big pay raise or your first job that payed more than your starting salary? When were you promoted within your hospital? Within bedside nursing, I feel like there isn't much career mobility and was wondering when others "caught their break"?

What is wrong with working for money?

Mine was a management position. Hated it.

Now I make less, and I'm happy.

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3 year of nursing experience and I've only gotten literal cents added to my pay check. Nursing isn't an occupation where you expect to be paid well

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Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.
3 year of nursing experience and I've only gotten literal cents added to my pay check. Nursing isn't an occupation where you expect to be paid well

Hmm. Well, I DO expect to be paid well. And I am. But if my current employer won't pay me well then I will go to someone who will.

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.
Nursing isn't an occupation where you expect to be paid well

Oh? Why is that?

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Specializes in Geriatrics, Dialysis.

Job hopping and /or relocating seems to be the best way to get more money. The job market in my area is pretty favorable to new hires now and most non-union places which is every place not run by the two big medical systems has increased their starting pay to get nurses in the door. What they haven't done is increase the pay for their experienced nurses even close to the same amount. So new nurses are making maybe a dollar or two an hour less than nurses with several years experience. It's not OK but since every place is doing this the experienced nurse wouldn't make enough more hourly to make it worth jumping ship and starting over with accruing benefits like vacation/PTO so unless there's reason to leave other than increased pay lateral moves to other facilities aren't that common.

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Specializes in Emergency/Cath Lab.
3 year of nursing experience and I've only gotten literal cents added to my pay check. Nursing isn't an occupation where you expect to be paid well

Then you are doing it wrong.

Job hopping is seriously the best way to get pay increases. To meet market demand they scale it up way faster and more often than the 11-2% ( if you are lucky ) a year.

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