NG salary for non-NG nurse

[loving2]

Ok, let me say that I am THRILLED to have landed my dream job! I'm pleased to even land a job, period. Especially in L&D, as I've heard it is very difficult to get a job in L&D where I live. I know how tough the market is for any nursing specialty. I have been a RN for 5 years, all community nursing. Health Educator for 6 years prior. No acute care experience. I have a BS in Health Education. Strong background in teaching. My new job is in L&D where there is a lot of teaching. Perfect! Now, here's my issue. My base pay is that of a NG. The hospital states I have no acute care exp. so they have to pay me as a NG. I agree with that to a point, but I feel that I should receive a little more compensation for 1)being a nurse for 5 yrs. I still have other nursing skills, maybe not all the *clinical* skills you have in a hospital; and 2)I have a bachelor's in a health-related field. After my night differiental, I am somewhat comparable (well, $1-$2 less) than the other local hospitals. I spoke with the HR manager about negotiating my salary and she said I would have to discuss that with the DON and my nurse manager. I don't want to rock the boat too much, but I thought I could ask for an evaluation in 6 months or 1 yr. At that time we could consider increasing my salary. Of course I would need that in writing. Do you think that is fair? Should I leave it alone and count my blessings? I guess I could ask how they typically handle pay increases (what determines an increase, when, how often, etc).

[netglow, ASN, RN]

I totally understand your point.

But I have heard many times what you mentioned as a possibility being the actual reason -- No acute care experience. I suspect you will go through pretty much the same ground floor orientation as a new grad. You would need to, it's a totally different deal in hospital as you know, and L&D is a very techinical specialty after all. I have a friend who was lucky to land a job recently and she is barely keeping her head above water. I think that maybe you should just count your chickens for now as some people actually believe you have no transferable skills which, is so not true. You have confidence, and proven ability to build on. But your management sees you as someone who is going to cost them lots of money to train.

[roser13, ASN, RN]

In addition to the above poster, I would mention that "2)I have a bachelor's in a health-related field" truly would not increase your pay rate on any scale that I have seen.

Congratulations on landing your L&D job!

[GM2RN]

I have to agree with both previous posts. And to further clarify regarding your other degree, if most employers won't pay more for a BSN, there's no reason to expect that any degree in a related field will be considered with respect to compensation. Maybe if you were going into management, but not bedside nursing.