I know we are "not supposed to talk about pay"... but we all do. That being said, my hospital recently did a market analysis and raised base pay for all hospital employees. I got a small increase (50 cents I think)... However- the base pay for new grads (BSN) was also raised.
I have been at the hospital for 6 years, 3 of those an a BSN prepared nurse. I have med surg and peds experience, and currently work in ICU as charge nurse/preceptor (and have done extensive training since I started there 2 years ago). I am also pursuing my master's degree. I've always rated the highest level on my yearly evals, have never been wrote up and have called off 4 times in six years.
I recently found out that new grads are now starting out making a wage that is only 50 cents less than what I make per hour.
The big question: Am I wrong for being slightly upset about this?
I realize I will be done with school in a few years and be making double what I make now anyways.. But I cannot help but to feel like I'm getting jipped. Don't get me wrong- I do not think the new grads should be making less.. but I also have a hard time justifying that I have all this experience and am basically getting the same wage as someone who doesn't even know how to start an IV or complete an admission history assessment.
Thoughts on this? Am I just being a negative Nancy? Should I just suck it up? Or do I have a valid point here?
You have a valid point, but unfortunately nobody in hospital admin cares.
I've never worked anywhere that the experienced nurses made significantly more than the new grads. Hospitals will periodically raise new grad compensation to be competitive, and when you pair that with $0.50/hr being considered a good raise, it's inevitable that experienced nurses aren't going to make much more than new grads.
I crunched some numbers for fun one day just to be a pessimist, because this gets even more fun when you take inflation into account. Say you started at your current job in 2005 at $20.00/hr and did really well, and you get the max raise of $0.50/hr/year, and there were no pay freezes so you did in fact get a raise every year. Now, say you worked until 2015. You will have gotten $5.00/hr in raises to bring you up to $25.00/hr, but using the inflation calculator at BLS.gov, $20.00 in 2005 is the same thing as $24.23 today. So, in essence, you will never make any more money than you did as a new grad once you take inflation into account. You may make cents on the dollar more if you are lucky.
Although, when you get older, your health insurance gets more expensive, you possibly have more kids, you have house maintenance, etc... so the argument can definitely be made that for many nurses, the most money you will ever have in your entire life is the pay that you made as a new grad right out of nursing school. And people wonder why nurses switch careers so soon... I don't think it takes long for most people to figure these numbers out.
Pretty common and it stinks. As others have said companies keep raising base pay to get new people in the door without raising the pay for those above the entry level so pretty soon the new hires are not far behind the nurse that's been there for years.
I used to get annual raises, and pretty decent ones at that. In the last five years I've had one measly raise and with the cost of insurance going up and the taxes that come out of my check going up I actually make less now than I did five years ago. This doesn't even factor in the increase in prices for everything from food to gas that makes my actual income even less.
Interest rates on credit have also increased while interest rates on dividends have greatly lessened. For instance my student loans had a ridiculously low 1.025% interest rate. The lowest interest rate on my kid's loans is over 6%. It also doesn't pay to keep money in a savings account anymore with an eye toward earning some interest because you won't. No wonder younger people don't bother saving anymore, there's little to no incentive to keep a personal savings account. Much better off to move those savings into a retirement account that might actually get a decent return.
So does it bother me that new employees are making only a few dollars less an hour than I am? Since I am actually worse off now financially than I was when I started working there years ago you bet it does!
Gets under my skin..but I agree with BTDT...go to HR. I'm sure they will tell you they cannot discuss another person's pay with you but they should be able to tell you starting salary for new grads and you can plead your case their. It probably won't get you far but maybe a new job search will...
@rehric00 what shift do you work? If you you think abt it a new grad on nights would make more then a day shift charge nurse with 6 years experience... that doesn't compute.
Be assertive and go get your raise. I had a 20-30 minute polite "argument" with my nursing manager when I found out how much some other nurses were making. Eventually, she broke down and gave me what I was asking for.
there is a lot behind this practice. For one thing, the facility may have how to raise entry level pay to attract new nurses and maintain staffing levels. I would ask HR if there is a guide they use and where you are on that matrix. If you are lower than most nurses with your education and experience, ask how you can improve the pay. If not satisfied you may have to look elsewhere, transfer, learn how to use the system (per diems, bonuses, etc) or suck it up. Good luck
BrnEyedGirl, BSN, MSN, RN, APRN
1,236 Posts
Our pay schedule isn't much better. I am getting ready to graduate with my MSN/FNP and will not make much more than I'm making now