New Grads We Have Hit A New Low...Work For FREE

giftedRN · Jul 6, 2010

I will not work for free. I have worked hard in school to reach this far and no one is going to make me work for free. These stupid people are using the recession to exploit students. I am so fed-up of them!

sheronep, MSN, RN · Jul 10, 2010

UMass has a "New Grad Residency" program. This is what they state in the "job" posting.

This is a 22 week temporary position. Acceptance into the New Grad Residency program does not guarantee a permanent position. This residency does not currently include benefits or payment of differentials. If you are a current benefits eligible employee are selected for this program, UMass Memorial will work with you to find other options.

Ummmm no guarantee of a position? No shift differential, and if you are a current employee you lose your benefits......

opinions?

Multicollinearity, BSN, RN · Jul 10, 2010

The Arizona Board of Nursing recently put out a white paper recommending that hospitals create unpaid positions or low-paid positions for new grads due to "the crisis of unemployed new graduate RNs" in the state. To my knowledge, all of the hospitals in the state are ignoring the recommendation and mostly having little to do with hiring new grads (scant hiring here and there).

HeartsOpenWide, RN · Jul 10, 2010

I would say look at it as free training and keeping yourself hire-able because you have experience after a year when jobs do come around compared to those who sat around after graduated without any experience at all; but it does not sound like you even do nursing skills "Indirect patient care" ? And what happens if your in it 5 months and you get offered a real job that pays? What are the ramifications for "quitting" a volunteer position? Oh come here, help out the nursing staff, be degraded because we wont even let you do direct patient care, no benefits, not even a free meal on the days you volunteer, and if you quit your in trouble?

happy2learn · Jul 10, 2010

It's VOLUNTEERING people. Calm down. Did anyone read it? It's only once a week for 3 hours. I don't really consider that work. Which is why it's called a "volunteer" position.

I volunteer once a week for 5 hours in a hospital. I'm not guaranteed a job when I get out of school, and I don't care. I volunteer for the experience. It's a choice I made.

Why wouldn't a person who can't find a job volunteer for 3 hours a week to get a little bit of experience? That is better than having nothing for 6 months.

It's a shame some of you think that because of your education you are "above" volunteer positions.

Bobbkat · Jul 11, 2010

Im my opinion that's what makes it so laughable. It's volunteering, which is well and fine in and of itself, however it's a bit insulting to label it as a 'new grad residency'. I can just imagine some gullible person taking part and then trying to pass it off as nursing experience. There is pretty much zero content in the description that identifies it as a new grad residency, let alone requiring the use of any nursing skills.

I have mixed feelings about minimum-wage new grad programs. On one hand....it really lowers the wage standard for nursing. On the other hand.....if the alternative is doing absolutely nothing for months on end I think I'd rather make minimum wage if I knew it was only for a limited time, would help me get into a 'real' position, and it was financially viable for my family situation (could I even afford daycare if I was being paid minimum wage?? prob not). I wish I had a solution. Instead all I have is major, major frustration at the situation.

Intern67 · Jul 11, 2010

They want you to work for free for 6 months with no guarantee of a job offer. This is outrageous!
Yeah, but that's capitalism.
When the economy comes around, they will stop offering these outrageous propositions.

AtomicWoman · Jul 15, 2010

I've been waiting for this. I figured it was only a matter of time before hospitals began "offering" free or low-wage jobs to new grads. Because they can. Ugh.

soccer25 · Jul 21, 2010

I too have seen many positions for these free labor new grad positions, and in my opinion it is an insult to the Nursing profession. Our profession has come a long way and seeing this just saddens me. I truly hope that no GN would even consider something like this. As of this moment I do not have a nursing job, but I know that my knowledge and skills as a nurse are worth more than working for free with no guarantee of employment after finishing.

caliotter3 · Jul 21, 2010

I too have seen many positions for these free labor new grad positions, and in my opinion it is an insult to the Nursing profession. Our profession has come a long way and seeing this just saddens me. I truly hope that no GN would even consider something like this. As of this moment I do not have a nursing job, but I know that my knowledge and skills as a nurse are worth more than working for free with no guarantee of employment after finishing.

Agree. Buy into this and all you are accomplishing is to perpetrate this poorly considered idea. No professional works for free. Apprentices in union apprenticeship programs are paid well. There is a reason for that.

dannibee · Jul 21, 2010

It's VOLUNTEERING people. Calm down. Did anyone read it? It's only once a week for 3 hours. I don't really consider that work. Which is why it's called a "volunteer" position.
I volunteer once a week for 5 hours in a hospital. I'm not guaranteed a job when I get out of school, and I don't care. I volunteer for the experience. It's a choice I made.
Why wouldn't a person who can't find a job volunteer for 3 hours a week to get a little bit of experience? That is better than having nothing for 6 months.
It's a shame some of you think that because of your education you are "above" volunteer positions.

If this works for you then do it! Most of us who went to nursing school and graduated did NOT go to school to end up volunteering afterwards. I don't know about you but I put a lot of hard work into getting my license and for this company to even suggest that I work for free is obsurd! I live in the same area as this hospital and I even had my clinicals there. How would it look if I was volunteering (with no direct patient care) at that hospital and the class under me gets to do almost total patient care and they're still students at that same hospital. Plus some of my classmates have gotten hired at this hospital (through a new grad program that only had about 10 spots for 700 applicants) so I would feel pretty stupid volunteering my time there when they are getting paid to do the REAL job of an RN. The whole set up is bad. Plus, I also don't see how this qualifies as "experience" when you can't even touch the patient. I have 5 years experience as a CNA and I think that contained more direct patient care than this volunteer opportunity does. It's pretty insane and unfortunately there were a lot of applicants from what I've heard.

CrunchRN, ADN, RN · Jul 21, 2010

And yet the nursing schools are pumping out ever growing numbers of graduate nurses and no one is doing anything about it.

We will all see our pay and benefits decline if it continues.