NP pay, less money, more work?

[simbaman]

Did any of you NPs take a pay cut when switching from floor/unit RN to NP? I work for a large hospital system that posts our wages and salaries online. I make 5k-20k a year more than most of the NPs. I work an average of 48 hours a week over 4 days. meaning I still get 3 day weekends every week. Most of our NPs average 45-50 hours a week over 5 days and are salaried employees without overtime and weekend pay bumps. These NPs are doing real work, putting in A-lines and central lines, procedures that have some risk associated with them. These are ICU NPs that have to do night and weekend time. They have all this responsibility to guide care and still make less than I do. I want to be an NP so I can work on a mercy ship when I retire (20 years from now..lol) but I am in complete disbelief I have to get a doctorate and do three years of intensive study to take a pay cut. In my area its almost comparable to how waiters and waitresses sometimes make more money than the general manager and head cooks at restaurants. The float ICU/ER nurses are literally making 25-35% more than the NPs. I know its not all about the money and I suspect I will end up in NP school someday regardless of the pay. Are there any NPs or hospital admins who can explain this discrepancy to me? Thanks in advance for the advice.....

[Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN]

I don't consider my work to be all about $$$, but there's a reason we call it "working for a living." That's significantly less $$$ for a significant amount of time, effort, and additional responsibility.

Do Mercy Ships not need bedside RNs?

[LovingLife123]

I think that's crazy. I would guess though that with float pool pay, plus getting OT every week, that would be about right.

Many people do not realize that even though you do in a sense get a raise with each ring you climb up the ladder, becoming salaried can be a very bad thing.

Now, I'm guessing if you took your weekly OT out, the NP would make more. Overtime is probably your bed and butter pay right now. If that were to end.......... Overtime is never guaranteed, where a salary is.

[Skippingtowork]

I have always known NPs to make less money than experienced bedside nurses, with some exceptions. Remember, most NPs are hired by physician groups and do not have the protections that hospital nurses have. Salaried positions are a great way for an employer to get free labor. There is no incentive for a physician to provide higher wages, overtime, appropriate time off, etc. There are some who are very good, but this is not ususal. If you are a young or inexperienced nurse who then becomes an NP, your salary will be higher than what you currently make. But with years of experience, it really can go down. Productivity bonuses can increase wages, but that is dependent on your employers ethics when calculating your worth. Just check out salaries offered for NP jobs. The range is tremendous.

[simbaman]

Thanks for all the replies and survey submissions. I was beginning to think i was the only one who was watching this phenomena unfold.