Low pay in Seattle

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I recently got my RN license and I am in Seattle metro area. The nursing pay in Seattle is rock bottom compared to other metro cities and the living cost is as high as bay area in California. The starting pay at children's hospital in Seattle is $22.72, Evergreen in Kirkland is 23.98, Harborview/Swedish is $24. The living expense is sky high and the pay is so low. Outside Seattle area is pretty low...starts from $22 and up to $23.84 the max like in Spokane, Tricities, South Puget...I have called a lot of hospitals and talked with their HR and pretty disappointing pay scale. My friend in bay area starts minimum from $35 for new grad. The living expense is as same. Right now for 1 bedroom apartment in downtown Seattle, I am paying $1400 for rent + I have to pay utilities. If I stay in suburb of Seattle, the traffic is so bad...it is like stop and go...action throughout the freeway. I just feel WA state hospitals need to learn from California and even Oregon.

Why doesn't the nurses union aggressively protest against these low paying jobs in WA state. Why are nurses so mum??? We need more proactive nurses against this type of negligence against nurses. I am pulling my head because I have to pay $55000 of student loan + oter credit card bills and that low minimum wage supporting my family. Forget about saving!!!:sasq:

Well, I start my Pre-prerequisites next quarter, wish me luck!

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I never said Independent contract and never said all.

Only $35 as an EMPLOYEE of an agency with benefits is better than $22 at the same hospital, same for the $50 rate.

As for the rate for independent contractor in Seattle, no those numbers are way too low......

Just out of idle curiosity, what would the going rate for an Independant Contractor in Seattle be? Just curious.

Lindarn, RN, BSN, CCRN

Spokane, Washington

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Sorry but that I don't know.

As agency travel, I just finished one for $38 hr/ (9.00 of it untaxed under tax advantage) and a $2000 housing stipend. Agency paid HC bennies.

Some of the per diem agency I worked with make anything from $40 to $50 per hour per diem.

I would suppose that to be IC you'd have to be in excess of $60/hr to be worthwhile.

I'm actually trying to compare the value of being employee vs IC myself and whether the difference in take home pay will be enough to matter.

Open to suggestions......

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Specializes in Hospice.

Just curious, but does anyone know how Hospice Nurses do out there?

It appears as though Providence Hospice is pretty big, but how's their pay? Does anyone know if there are Hospice RNs in travel nursing or agency nursing out there?

Thanks in advance!

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Specializes in Trauma/ED.

Wow makes me feel good about my area, we have a very low cost-of-living for the state and our hospital starts out at 26$/hr for new grads and I make 55$/hr when I work agency per diem. I'm sorry Seattle, I wouldn't live there for any amount of money though...great place to VISIT.

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it's a sad situation for sure, same situation for ARNP and yeah in CA they def make more, as RN or NP. :o A whole lot more. And we're getting as expensive as CA in cost of living.

What is behind this? Are other healthcare workers comparatively so underpaid here in WA or just nurses of all stripes?

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Wow makes me feel good about my area, we have a very low cost-of-living for the state and our hospital starts out at 26$/hr for new grads and I make 55$/hr when I work agency per diem. I'm sorry Seattle, I wouldn't live there for any amount of money though...great place to VISIT.

I didn't think it was that great of a place to visit either. The park near where I was staying closed every day at 4pm. There were no pets allowed, no skateboarding, no bicycles and no fun allowed. Ok maybe they allowed fun if you could find it. But no throwing of objects, no catch.... heck the regulation sign was so long I only got to chapter 3....

Heck they didn't even let you walk along the waters edge. If you were in the park after dark the city had parols out to get you find and arrested for trespassing.

Pike Place was incredibly dirty and smelled like a porta-john and in Gas Works park the "homeless" treated it like a camp and latrine too.

Time to get back away from the wet coast.

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Specializes in Hospice.
I didn't think it was that great of a place to visit either. The park near where I was staying closed every day at 4pm. There were no pets allowed, no skateboarding, no bicycles and no fun allowed. Ok maybe they allowed fun if you could find it. But no throwing of objects, no catch.... heck the regulation sign was so long I only got to chapter 3....

Heck they didn't even let you walk along the waters edge. If you were in the park after dark the city had parols out to get you find and arrested for trespassing.

Pike Place was incredibly dirty and smelled like a porta-john and in Gas Works park the "homeless" treated it like a camp and latrine too.

Time to get back away from the wet coast.

My husband lost his automotive job in Detroit 2 yrs ago and has been working for Boeing in Seattle. I visit often and have to say I love it there!

I love the culture of Pike Place. I enjoy Whidbey Island. camping and hiking at Mt Ranier is awesome, and I have to say I've definitely noticed people just seem friendlier there. BUT... the cost of living sucks, and the pay for RNs there is tragic! Won't ever move there.

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Specializes in Hospice.

Oh my gosh Washington Nurses!!! Go on line and look at today's article in "Crain's Detroit". It talks about a class action law suit being filed in several cities citing several hospitals for holding pay scales down for nurses. In memphis alone, nurses on average were paid almost 14,000 less anually than other areas!!

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Oh my gosh Washington Nurses!!! Go on line and look at today's article in "Crain's Detroit". It talks about a class action law suit being filed in several cities citing several hospitals for holding pay scales down for nurses. In memphis alone, nurses on average were paid almost 14,000 less anually than other areas!!

The corporate world of healthcare is exploiting nurses for sure because we have so many nurses here, locally produced and hospital sponsored foreign nurses esp. filipinas.

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Specializes in NICU.
I recently got my RN license and I am in Seattle metro area. The nursing pay in Seattle is rock bottom compared to other metro cities and the living cost is as high as bay area in California. The starting pay at children's hospital in Seattle is $22.72, Evergreen in Kirkland is 23.98, Harborview/Swedish is $24. The living expense is sky high and the pay is so low. Outside Seattle area is pretty low...starts from $22 and up to $23.84 the max like in Spokane, Tricities, South Puget...I have called a lot of hospitals and talked with their HR and pretty disappointing pay scale. My friend in bay area starts minimum from $35 for new grad. The living expense is as same. Right now for 1 bedroom apartment in downtown Seattle, I am paying $1400 for rent + I have to pay utilities. If I stay in suburb of Seattle, the traffic is so bad...it is like stop and go...action throughout the freeway. I just feel WA state hospitals need to learn from California and even Oregon.

Why doesn't the nurses union aggressively protest against these low paying jobs in WA state. Why are nurses so mum??? We need more proactive nurses against this type of negligence against nurses. I am pulling my head because I have to pay $55000 of student loan + oter credit card bills and that low minimum wage supporting my family. Forget about saving!!!:sasq:

Um...why are you living downtown? I would NEVER pay that much for a 1-bedroom apartment. Are you sure you're looking in the right places? I have lived in $550, $350, and $700 places in Capitol hill and the Central district (which is actually where the hospitals are). My cost of living expenses come out to be less than $800 a month, including food.

And, um, bus transportation? And if you're living downtown, why the heck are you driving your car? You could walk to the hospitals pretty quickly.

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The corporate world of healthcare is exploiting nurses for sure because we have so many nurses here, locally produced and hospital sponsored foreign nurses esp. filipinas.

Without a doubt in my mind, there is wage fixing here in Spokane, and if wages are not rising in Seattle/Olympia, there as well. We need to dumb WSNA as an organizing body and vote in teh NNOC. If anyone is interested in starting a movement, PM me and we can talk.

Lindarn, RN, BSN, CCRN

Spokane, Washington

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