Merit Raises? What is your annual raise?

[geekgolightly]

Some of the nurses on my floor asked management for a cost of living raise as we havent had one at our hospital in fifteen years or so, and the answer we received was that cost of living was included in our annual merit raise.

Most merit raises are 3%

Last years cost of living went up by 2.97%

that leaves a 0.03% merit raise. for all of our dedication and flexibility with taking on new responsibilities .

0.03 percent is 0.0006 of a cent if we make 20 bucks an hour.20 * (0.03%) = 0.006

I was wondering just how outraged we should be. I want to compare it with what the rest of the hospitals grant their nurses. Please list what your hospital gives you in annual raises and if your hospital is a magnet or for profit or not for profit. Could be interesting.

Thanks

Kathy

P.S. Our hospital is a magnet hospital and is a teaching not-for-profit hospital as well.

[galenight, BSN, RN]

I work in a small rural hospital, not for profit. We have a clinical ladder and once you are at the top and have worked there 5 years, your salary caps. That stinks! I was at the top of the ladder within a year of becoming an RN and then after 4 more I topped out. Usually about every 2-3.5 years we get a cost of living increase, or more specifically, a increase to stay competitive with nearby larger facilities. It's usually about 3%. Our rate isn't too bad if you are at the top of the ladder, but it stinks when you don't have a raise to look forward to at some specific point in time.

[sunnysideup09]

Our merit raises are based on our clinical ladder status. Most nurses don't advance through the clinical ladder because of the time requirements. Our merit raise is 4%. This past year our market adjustment and cost of living raise was 8%.

Christine, RNC, BSN

[mar326]

Merit Raise,what's that? Where I work everyone gets the same percentage. It was 5% up until this year when it dropped to 4%. They also give the starting wage a 5% increase. There sure is a difference in 4% for a CNA and a RN.Merit raise no. So if you goff off and don't do your job it is not reflected in your annual raise. I have been there for 9 years now and have only heard of once someone getting a 25cent merit raise.(everyone thinks it was given out of sympathy for the CNA,she was going through some rough time) So no matter how efficient or reliable you are we are treated the same.

[Q.]

Ours can go up to 5% but you must be walking on water for that to happen. Average is 3.5% and cost of living is apparently included in the merit raise.

[DutchgirlRN, ASN, RN]

My last "merit" raise was 2%, which is average. There is no such creature as a cost of living raise here. We do occasionally get raises all around when they compare our wages to all the other local hospitals (I live in a metroplex with probabably 20 hospitals or more in a 50 mile radius). The only way to get a decent raise is to quit and go to another hospital, but I'm trying to stay with this position for a while now.

2%-6.5%. If you're over 4% it gets split up and you get 1/4 of it every 3 months until you have it all (happened to me once, must have been very good that year!) Under 4% you get it all starting Jan 1st.

P.S. Tiff, Is that an Iggy in your Avatar??????

[tlhubbard]

Dutchgirl RN mentioned that if it is >4% that it is split up throughout the year. They should give you the 4% that every one else is getting on January 1 and then make up the rest later. You kind of get the once over for deserving a higher increase by not getting all of what the other people got who didn't do as well on their review. Seems a bit unfair.

I work for a corporation and there are only 2 nurses here and we do completely different jobs. We have no cap on our salary. Another reason I left the hospital. I get much better company contributions to my retirement ( our local hospitals--one group offers NOTHING and the other gives 25 cents to your dollar invested) Here I start out with 20 cents on the dollar, but then each year it increases by 20 cents until it is dollar for dollar matching contribution. Plus my rate of pay is higher here starting out and it has WAY more potential since the hospitals do have caps here. Won't catch this nurse complaining.