Letting off Steam, hope my extinguisher is ready

[BuckyBadgerRN]

OK, this is just my personal rant for the day (maybe week, we'll see) and even though I am probably going to come across as looking petty/catty, I'm going to let it fly anyway. Even if noone is willing to agree with me here, I think SOME nurses out there, if not on this forum may nod their heads in agreement.

I am an RN, 18 mos out of school. I am gainfully employed as an RN, and for that I am grateful, please do not think otherwise. It is NOT in my "dream" area of nursing, but with the employment opportunities as they are, I am happy to have it.

I also have stayed, in a limited schedule, the position in healthcare that I have done for the previous 24 years. It is in this position that I had the duty of making several phone calls today, to a variety of entities. The first FOUR calls that I made today, after pushing 9 different prompts, all got me to various phone centers in the Philipines. All US companies that have outsourced jobs that were once done in the States to laborers in the Philapines. And then, as I bop around AN, I see post after post started by nurses who have been educated in the Philipines wanting to know the US state that will license them the fastest once they have failed the NCLEX 3 times in their first State of choice, or which ones will overlook that they have not been educated to the standard that most US nurses are. This frustrates the bejeebers out of me that not only are American jobs being sent overseas, overseas nurses are trying desperately to fill the nursing jobs here that so many of us would like to fill.

Yes, I realize that this makes me the meanie in the sandbox and that is certainly anyone's right to think that. But it is my right to feel aggravated as heck that this goes on and if I'm the only one bothered by it, so be it, but somehow I doubt that I am.

[lckrn2pa]

I will not talk to an out-sourced employee. I request that my call be routed BACK to the US, where my call originated from. By law, if you ask where the employee is physically located, they must tell you. I will always ask "are you in the US?". Most times I get "no Ma'am" and they move right along. I will interrupt and ask where specifically they are.

Do you really even need to ask? lol, most of the time I can't understand anything they are saying to me but they understand when I tell them to send me to a US based call center.

[purplerose3]

I understand. It's hard. I was born in my city and have lived my whole life in my city and worked hard to gain knowledge and experience in nursing. I'm struggling trying to make ends meet with a part-time position and a per diem. I have a family. Every organization when filling out an application asks what race. I know they have to try to meet hiring so many minorities. I know for a fact that they've given jobs to minorities over me becuase they need to meet certain amount for regulation/government. That is racist toward me. Anybody would feel the same if your home country was giving away jobs to those coming from another country before their own citizens. It's like okay then I guess for every new college grad that immigrates to US one citizen from US shouldn't have to move to another country because we're being displaced.

[dirtyhippiegirl, BSN, RN]

I guess what I am trying to say is that not all foreign nurses are in the US after failing multiple times, looking for the easiest route, or being sponsored for work for jobs stolen from American nurses. And I am more scared than ever with the current political situations about my nursing future here in the US when I need to be here to be with my fiance.

I don't think that you have anything to apologize for. People who live in different countries do fall in love. You're here because you happened to fall in love with a US citizen. That's just how life happens.

Although I'd suggest marrying and adjusting status if you're truly worried about the security of your work visa!

[PRICHARILLAisMISSED]

Hello all :) I just read the other posts and thought I'd share my 2cents (if it's worth that much :)

To start, I do not believe that you are "The meanie in the sandbox." Many people feel exactly as you do, though I believe they feel that way because they do not see the big picture-no offense to anyone. This outsourcing problem is simply a reflection of sum of the political (and not just economically political either) climate in this country. I mean, a company goes into business to make a profit-period. They do not go into business to "Put Americans or anyone else to work." It would be nice if they did, but that is just not the reality we live in. And to make a profit, things must be done as cheaply as possible. Here's where the politics come in- Amercan workers BY LAW have a minimum wage that MUST be paid for their time. On top of this, 7 percent extra (over their gross income) MUST go to unemployment insurance for a legal American worker. Also, the employer must also pay to the Government 7.65 percent extra (Again, over the employees GROSS, not NET earnings) for FICA ( 6.2 for ss and 1.45 for Medicare). And for anything other than a minimum wage earner, meaning a job where some education and training is required, a matching retirement plan must be offered or the company will lose an employer to a company who does offer a matching retirement plan. One more thing, at least in my state anyway, if an employer does not offer a health insurance plan, they are required to pay the employee an additional $1 an hour over minimum wage (which all those "extras" above are added to). This may not seem like much, but for some companies this makes the difference between being in the red or in the black. I don't know the federal minimum wage rate, but in my state (Nevada) it is 7.25/hr with health insurance offered, or 8.25/hr without. let's use the 7.25/hr rate for benefit of doubt purposes-7.25*40hrs a week = $290.00 per week. Plus ( 7percent for unemployment, and 7.65percent for fica) 14.65 percent ($42.48) =$332.48 per week*52 wks per year = $17,288.96 per year MINIMUM per 40/hr employee in the United States. Now let's compare this to a worker in the Philippines who is paid roughly $4/hr (and no, despite what cynics constantly say, no one is paid .40/hr. I hate when people say things like that lol ) with NONE of those extras that are forced on an employer in the US. We have $4*40= $160.00/wk*52wk=$8320.00/yr, for a yearly savings of $8968.96 PER EMPLOYEE. This is a lot of money and can absolutely mean the difference between a business failing of not. Imagine having 15 employees out sourced at nearly $9k in savings each. Yes it is somewhat less than this due to the company not getting the tax breaks, but it's close. Now consider this-If outsourcing several jobs kept the company in the black, then it also keeps the employees of the company over here employed. Remember, 100 percent outsourcing is a very rare thing for a company. In fact I don't know of a single American company that is 100 percent out sourced. So in many instances, outsourcing can actually KEEP some Americans employed.

Just my 2 cents...

[nursel56]

We have a unique situation in California. The state has started to enforce concurrency rules that have been on the books for decades most likely due to the high numbers of homegrown nurses who can't find jobs.

This has resulted in many foreign-educated new grads discovering their plan to work in California is no longer viable. Their reactions run the spectrum, but it's this new reality we're discussing here if anyone would like to read the fallout for themselves there are threads in the International, Phillipine and brand new Nurse Registration forum to deal specifically with that issue.

[dirtyhippiegirl, BSN, RN]

This has resulted in many foreign-educated new grads discovering their plan to work in California is no longer viable.

But it's next to impossible for a foreign person to just decide that they want to work in the US -- especially a nurse. You can apply for a H1 visa but must be sponsored by the job that will hire you. This was fairly common when the nursing shortage was acute and the economy thriving. Most hospitals won't do this anymore because of cost, since there are plenty of citizens clamoring for jobs.

If I were an overseas nurse who happened to move to the US to be with a loved one, and found that in the process that I could not get a job, I'd be pretty upset, too.

[nursel56]

But it's next to impossible for a foreign person to just decide that they want to work in the US -- especially a nurse. You can apply for a H1 visa but must be sponsored by the job that will hire you. This was fairly common when the nursing shortage was acute and the economy thriving. Most hospitals won't do this anymore because of cost, since there are plenty of citizens clamoring for jobs.

If I were an overseas nurse who happened to move to the US to be with a loved one, and found that in the process that I could not get a job, I'd be pretty upset, too.

I'm only telling you what I've read in the hundreds of posts in the forums I linked to, so maybe reading those will make it clearer to you. I don't recall any that just happened to move in with a relative, though. Here are a few:

CA BRN new requirements for NCLEX RN international students by jamalang

Meeting APHRA requirements as a International Trained Nurse from the Philippines by Silverdragon102

Denied by CABON now to take LVN.. by kayakoto

[dirtyhippiegirl, BSN, RN]

I'm only telling you what I've read in the hundreds of posts in the forums I linked to, so maybe reading those will make it clearer to you. I don't recall any that just happened to move in with a relative, though. Here are a few:

CA BRN new requirements for NCLEX RN international students by jamalang

Meeting APHRA requirements as a International Trained Nurse from the Philippines by Silverdragon102

Denied by CABON now to take LVN.. by kayakoto

Yes, and what I'm trying to say is that I could post just as many links to posts from an immigration forum that I'm a member of r/t foreign RNs who end up in the US and need help figuring our licensing etc. because they happened to marry an American citizen. None of your links would suggest otherwise -- that the OPs somehow managed to secure a non-existent visa pathway into the US solely in order to secure a job that would otherwise have been given to an American citizen.

[nurseprnRN, BSN, RN]

And Jeweles26 also gives evidence that some immigrants have a much better mastery of English than some native US citizens. Welcome. Glad you're here.

[Nurserton]

I understand. It's hard. I was born in my city and have lived my whole life in my city and worked hard to gain knowledge and experience in nursing. I'm struggling trying to make ends meet with a part-time position and a per diem. I have a family. Every organization when filling out an application asks what race. I know they have to try to meet hiring so many minorities. I know for a fact that they've given jobs to minorities over me becuase they need to meet certain amount for regulation/government. That is racist toward me. Anybody would feel the same if your home country was giving away jobs to those coming from another country before their own citizens. It's like okay then I guess for every new college grad that immigrates to US one citizen from US shouldn't have to move to another country because we're being displaced.

It actually does not ask your race on the application, that's illegal. It's in the post-hire paperwork, "for reporting purposes," and you can choose not to answer it. There are American citizens who were born in this country and whose families have been here for hundreds of years who are not of the Caucasian race, who are considered "minorities" as well. Be careful assuming that every or even most brown-skinned people are immigrants taking a job from a Caucasian American.

That being said, I agree with the OP. It's ridiculous that you can come on allnurses.com and read all kinds of stories about nurses being 1,2 years out of school and not getting jobs, and then you have places like a certain hospital in Atlanta that has an old dorm that has since become a dedicated housing unit for imported nurses. But, the others are right, most hospitals aren't doing this in the current economic climate.

And I hate the customer service center calls!! Comcast lady in the Philippines never even submitted my dispute claim, couldn't understand me, agghhh! I didn't know I had a choice, I will definitely request to be re-routed next time.

[uRNmyway, ASN, RN]

And Jeweles26 also gives evidence that some immigrants have a much better mastery of English than some native US citizens. Welcome. Glad you're here.

Thanks very much! However, I am here on a TN status, which is a non-immigration work status. One of the requirements for this is proving I don't intend to permanently immigrate to the US. It was simpler and much less expensive than the H1b route, especially since H1b requires sponsorship and no one wants to sponsor anymore. But I do appreciate the welcome!

[Novo]

It's pretty ignorant of you to think that the people you're complaining about haven't been through the level of adversity as you have. Some of them arrive with nothing but a bag of clothes. I'm Canadian but isn't America a place where one can come with a single penny and through hard work and dedication become successful? What do you guys call it the American dream? Anyways much of the anger in this thread is directed at the wrong people. You should take this up with your member of congress (or whatever you call it down there) as they're the ones who allow it, no sense in blaming people who are just looking for a better life (legally).