Need advice about asking for higher pay as a resident

Nurses Career Support

Published

I graduated in May of this year. I have been working for a year as a patient care tech or "nurse intern", as my hospital likes to call it, on a med-surge floor that has since been converted into the official Covid-19 unit. My residency starts next week and I have to accept my official offer in a few days. Unlike many others in my cohort, I will be doing my entire 12 week orientation on my unit instead of rotating and will be there the entire year.

I was going to accept the starting salary without a fuss because I figured even though I have been working there a year and have experience with covid patients, I still am brand new and need training. However, I found out that one of my class-mates who has also been working at this hospital as a PCT on a different floor, negotiated her starting salary months ago to something many dollars higher per hour by explaining to them that she was valuable since she already knew her floor and how it worked. I didn't even realize negotiation was an option for new residents. I am stressing out now because I want to also ask for a raise, yet sort of feel like it would be in bad taste doing it the week before residency starts. I also am not sure what to do if they say they don't negotiate residency rates - do I bring up my class-mate? I'm not sure what to do, but as it stands I will be working overtime every week after orientation to make enough money and also be isolated from my family who are already afraid to be around me because I'm exposed to covid patients.

What should I do? And if you think it would be okay to ask, how would I do so without sounding demanding and ungrateful?

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.

Proceed with extreme caution. In general, nurse residency salaries are fixed. What you have done as a PCT isn't seen as "experience". You do know the hospital system/culture, but you still have to learn the EMR from a nursing perspective and all the other nursing things you didn't have access to when you were a PCT.

NO you don't bring up your classmate. You don't even know if they are telling the truth. There is a very good chance they aren't based on the "several more dollars per hour" claim. That would represent more than a 10% increase. Average increase is 3% these days.

What you CAN do is ask if there is any wiggle room. Express how excited you are, that you want the job, but that you were hoping it would come in a little closer to $2X.00 given your experience here since 2010 (or however long). They may tell you they would be willing to look at it. They will likely tell you no.

Congratulations on your new job. Stop looking at others for validation. It will kill you before you even get started. Your coworker is likely not telling the truth or greatly embellishing it.

2
Up Vote Up Vote ×

It will not get you dollars but any college level degree or certificate will get you something. Any Specialized certification or licensing like cosmetology, food handlers or even having a CDL although you will have to sell or push for it get you more money. Any medical, clinical related jobs not with that hospital will count as experience just make sure they know about it.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care; Cardiac; Professional Development.
10 hours ago, Red Shirt 6 said:

It will not get you dollars but any college level degree or certificate will get you something. Any Specialized certification or licensing like cosmetology, food handlers or even having a CDL although you will have to sell or push for it get you more money. Any medical, clinical related jobs not with that hospital will count as experience just make sure they know about it.

Unfortunately none of this is accurate at the RN level.

2
Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in NICU.
16 hours ago, Nurse SMS said:

NO you don't bring up your classmate. You don't even know if they are telling the truth. There is a very good chance they aren't based on the "several more dollars per hour" claim. That would represent more than a 10% increase. Average increase is 3% these days.

^^^^THIS^^^

Wages are set based on previous nursing experience. The difference in pay between 0 yrs experience and 1 yr experience is a dollar per hour or less, definitely not several dollars per hour. I am sure that her coworkers would be pissed to learn that she was making more money then they are with several years of nursing experience, if what she said was true.

2
Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in NICU.
14 hours ago, Red Shirt 6 said:

Any Specialized certification or licensing like cosmetology, food handlers or even having a CDL although you will have to sell or push for it get you more money

Unless you have previous nursing experience, you will not get a higher pay. A coworker of mine was an LPN before her BSN. The hospital gave her .5 yrs credit for RN pay every year as an LPN. I work 14 yrs as a Registered Sleep Technologist and did not get anything for that experience. CNA and PCA experience will not give you a bump in RN pay as a new grad.

In some hospitals, getting your BSN or Specialty Certifications (CCRN, CEN, CNOR, etc) will get you a small bump in pay/hr.

3
Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Add a Comment