50k sign-on bonus

U.S.A. Texas

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I received an invitation letter from one of the hosp in Mc Allen, Texas offering a $50k sign-on bonus in exchage of working there for 4 years. It sounds like a good deal, a very good one, indeed. I emailed the HR dept and they confirmed the authenticity of the letter. But, I wonder if there is a catch with that. Have you heard of this? Any nurses out there who took this offer? I want to know your side of the story.

With my husband and me, we'll be having a 100k in our bank account, isn't that tempting?

I Wouldn't Toucht That Offer Even If The Existance Of The Entire Human Race Depended On It!!!!

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Specializes in LTC, MDS/careplans, Unit Manager.

i lived in corpus christi for 2 years. my grandma was a "winter texan" in harlingen, not far from mcallen. i have spent a good amount of time in the area. it is a very beautiful place, lush and green, palm trees and the ocean. but, if you consider this offer, you need to think about taking spanish classes. when walking through the local wal-mart, most of the overhead announcements are in spanish. the majority of the population is either elderly caucasions, or spanish only speaking hispanics. i am definately not teying to be prejudiced, so please don't take this reply that way, i am only stating the facts. this is not an area i would feel comfortable raising children either. it can be very rough, with crime/drugs.

anyway, a family member of mine worked there for awhile while her mom was ill, so she could be close to her (winter texan). i will talk to her and see if she has any further insight.

best of luck to you whatever you decide!

p.s. south padre island is alot of fun...very busy during spring break though!

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my grandma was a "winter texan" in harlingen, not far from mcallen. i have spent a good amount of time in the area. it is a very beautiful place, lush and green, palm trees and the ocean. but, if you consider this offer, you need to think about taking spanish classes. when walking through the local wal-mart, most of the overhead announcements are in spanish. the majority of the population is either elderly caucasions, or spanish only speaking hispanics. i am definately not teying to be prejudiced, so please don't take this reply that way, i am only stating the facts. this is not an area i would feel comfortable raising children either. it can be very rough, with crime/drugs.

anyway, a family member of mine worked there for awhile while her mom was ill, so she could be close to her (winter texan). i will talk to her and see if she has any further insight.

best of luck to you whatever you decide!

p.s. south padre island is alot of fun...very busy during spring break though!

there is a lot of crime. i live in a gated community, with actual people manning the gate, and we have still been the victim of 2 crimes over a 3 month time frame. drugs are easily accessible d/t close proximity to the border, etc. definately not a place i plan to raise my children.

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I am a native Texan and know that there is a big shortage of nurses in the southern part of Texas. McAllen is at the border of Texas and Mexico. As I recall, this is not a big city like Houston, Austin, or Dallas. I would go down and check it out, see if they would pay for it too. If they are offering $50k, they would definetly fly you in to meet them. Definetly find out the specifics on the bonus and the hourly wage. It is probably alot lower than in a metropolitan area but your living expenses would not be as much either. Brush up on your Spanish, if you are really considering this... Most of your patients will not be bilingual.

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Looks like it will be hot and dry--given how far south it is. (Can't get much further south.)

I could tolerate a lot if the money was right, but I'm also a little suspicious of this. If they will fly you down, I'd go see it, and ask them point blank why they are having staffing difficulties. And most definitely find out how they pay the money.

Maybe while you are there you can meet some of the staff nurses and find out "what the skinny is." (Not a Texas expression, probably a throwback to my Michigander days. Been a while. I think I'm tired.....)

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I would be very afraid of an offer like this one. From what some of the posters who are familiar with the area are writing, it is an area that has many problems and not much to offer you when you are not working. I have always been afraid to work in Texas, it seems that you can spend a lot of time with a company and then get fired for no reason. I know this can happen everywhere, but some of the stories I have heard are just awful. Like my old grannie used to say"if it sounds too good to be true, then it isn't true and you are in trouble."

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Specializes in ICU, CM, Geriatrics, Management.
... any place that desperate may be a true pit...

My first thought.

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Specializes in ICU, CM, Geriatrics, Management.
... if you were paid the $50K up front...

Very much doubt that is the case.

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I called HR at Mcallen Medical and this is the deal:

None of the hospitals in McAllen pay holiday pay and most all units require you to work every other weekend. Weekend differential is either non-existant or $1.00 Nights will get you all of $3/ hr differential. The $50k sign on bonus is paid out over the 4 years, you don't see a cent until your 1 year anniversary. The wages are a LOT lower than in the northern parts of the state. ANd the vast majority of the patients will speak spanish, not english. There are a few who speak english, but they are not the majority.

McAllen has a culture all of it's own. If you move from outside the state, and even northern parts of the state, I would say it is going to be a HUGE culture shock. 60% of all the nurses in the valley are filipino, and the patients are majority spanish speaking. This can be somewhat surprising to new immigrants to the valley.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

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Specializes in ER.

Thanks for checking that out Nekhismom. It makes sence now. So the bottom line is unless you really want to live in McAllen it is probably not worth it. Supplementing a good regular paycheck with good benefits and diffs would probably net you more money in the long run anyway. Guess I'll keep my travel job!

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I called HR at Mcallen Medical and this is the deal:

None of the hospitals in McAllen pay holiday pay and most all units require you to work every other weekend. Weekend differential is either non-existant or $1.00 Nights will get you all of $3/ hr differential. The $50k sign on bonus is paid out over the 4 years, you don't see a cent until your 1 year anniversary.

Thanks a lot for checking that out! As always, sounded too good to be true.

No holiday pay or weekend differential? No bonus pay until the first year?

Forget it!

:chuckle

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Thanks for checking that out Nekhismom. It makes sence now. So the bottom line is unless you really want to live in McAllen it is probably not worth it. Supplementing a good regular paycheck with good benefits and diffs would probably net you more money in the long run anyway. Guess I'll keep my travel job!

I would agree with that. I mean, for a new grad, it might be ok, depending on what you would get offered elsewhere. But I would rather have a GOOD solid, steady paycheck q2weeks than a big, fat shiny bonus that I can't touch for an entire year.

I TOTALLY agree with you and LIZZ here!

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