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Discussion

Nursing pay

I mentioned to a guy I work with that I am going to (start) nursing school, and he told me his wife had just passed her NCLEX a year before and has been working for a non-profit ever since. When I asked if he minded telling me about what she made, he said 24k a year....

I live in TN where the cost of living is lower, and I expect to make lower than the national average because of that; but 24k??? I can make that being a manager at a McDonalds. Skimming through sites like Monster.com I have never seen a nurse making anywhere near that little money, even just starting out.

He may be mistaken, or his wife is hiding money on him or something... but if nursing school is 1/2 as hard as people say it is I want to be compensated for all of the hard work I put in to become an RN.

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    Most bedside nursing jobs I've seen start at around 60 k per year. She probably wasn't working as a bedside nurse.

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    Actually some southern states can pay a new grad around $18/hr starting for an RN. It's terrible. I only make $40K per year as a new grad in the Intermountain west region.

    It all depends on your location. Union states pay much more. Unfortunately unions don't exist in the south, nor Tennessee. But those regions also have much cheaper COL compared to other areas of the nation.

    Want big bucks? Try west coast (mostly Nor. Cal.), or Boston. Las Vegas pays a lot. I was offered 38/hr as a new grad but declined.

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    • Author
    Actually some southern states can pay a new grad around $18/hr starting for an RN. It's terrible. I only make $40K per year as a new grad in the Intermountain west region.

    It all depends on your location. Union states pay much more. Unfortunately unions don't exist in the south, nor Tennessee. But those regions also have much cheaper COL compared to other areas of the nation.

    Want big bucks? Try west coast (mostly Nor. Cal.), or Boston. Las Vegas pays a lot. I was offered 38/hr as a new grad but declined.

    "Big Bucks" is relative. Cost of living is huge when you make decisions like that. My best friend lives in the Chicago land area and has a 2 bed 1 bath house with no AC that he owes 150k on (and the house is about 40 years old), and he makes about 60k a year. My previous job I made 35k a year, but live in TN and live in a brand new 3 bedroom, 2 bath house that I paid 108k for. 108k in Cali might get me a very nice card board box.

    Thanks for the info though. I don't know why he says his wife is making the same as a burger flipper, but it can't be accurate.

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    What do you know about this "non-profit" your friend's wife is working for, and what her role is there? If it is a charitable organization, she may be in a "semi-volunteer" type of position (that is, making less than market wages because of her commitment to the cause that the organization promotes).

    Also, this may be a dumb question, but are you certain that his wife is an RN, and not an LPN? Lots of people in the public use the term "nurse" without understanding that there is a clear distinction.

    When I was working in East Tennessee several years ago, RNs were making significantly more than $24k/yr. More like ~$60k.

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    Maybe he misunderstood his wife and it was $24/hr. Or it could be possible he just didn't want to tell you. I don't talk about how much my salary is with people. I don't talk about money period. I personally feel it's tacky. Some people are ok with it and broadcast it, others don't and feel like me.

    New grads around here and my area in similar to yours start around $24, but then you get shift differentials which bring it up. I would look at hospitals websites to see what they are paying.

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    She may just work part time

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    In the southernmost part of GA I was offered $18.50 with a year of experience. That translates to about 31k a year before taxes if working full time.

    I make ridiculous money now working for an agency.

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    I'm in Tennessee and in my area LPNs make $15-$20ish an hour and RNs $18-23ish, possibly more with differentials and incentives. The last I heard the hospitals in my town started RNs out around $18-19 an hour base pay.

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    You can check wages people have posted out on indeed or glassdoor, that might give you a better idea of what you'll be looking at.

    Idk if this will help you but, here's some posted wages from Knoxville.

    Salary: RN NURSE in Knoxville, TN | Glassdoor

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    Starting rate for new grad on the east coast of Florida is about 34k if you get 40 hours a week full time but full time is considered 36 hours (three 12hr shifts) which only makes it about 31k.. So not that far off

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    Completely different depending on where you are. San Francisco, starting pay for hospital bedside nurses is around 130k.

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    Completely different depending on where you are. San Francisco, starting pay for hospital bedside nurses is around 130k.

    How does that balance out with the high cost of living there?

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