Pay grade: experienced nurse vs new grad

[rehric00]

Guys & Gals...

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?

[QuietRiot]

I would be pissed too!

Maybe you should test the market and see what's the pay range for someone with your qualifications.

[brandy1017, ASN, RN]

I am curious to hear pay scales. Nurses start off at 24-25 per hour and the top of the pay scale is 44-45 per hour after twenty years. A six-year nurse would be earning about 29-30.

I would be ticked if I were you as well. Go to HR and get this sorted.

Must be nice, not realistic for most people, is it union. Usually a good union hospital has a step system where your pay goes up substantially each year, rather than a clinical ladder where you are lucky to get a modest raise with the threat of demotion if you don't jump thru ever changing hoops. But the majority of hospitals in the country are non union so wage compression is more common.

[brandy1017, ASN, RN]

Back ~2003 I worked for a large tertiary hospital ICU. There was one nurse on the unit who well, just seemed always angry at me. One day, on break I cornered her and said: "Did I accidentally do something to you?"

She thought a moment and said: "No, I'm sorry, it's just that I've been here for many years and you just started and you make $2+ more per hour than I do."

I really did not know what to say--I think I said, really?

Today I think I'd say: "Quit and if necessary come back next year at $4 more than you make now.

Pay scales are not necessarily equitable of fair and I believe that long-timers get shafted sometimes. The answer really is: Quit and get paid what you're worth elsewhere and if you want, come back in a year or to and from what I've seen that pumps the pay scale back to where it should be.

Just my 2 cents.

So how did things end up? Did she quit? Stay and sulk? I can't imagine going back after finding out I was so underpaid. I would leave and not look back!

[ThePrincessBride, MSN, RN, NP]

Must be nice, not realistic for most people, is it union. Usually a good union hospital has a step system where your pay goes up substantially each year, rather than a clinical ladder where you are lucky to get a modest raise with the threat of demotion if you don't jump thru ever changing hoops. But the majority of hospitals in the country are non union so wage compression is more common.

I work for the state and a large system with multiple facilities. My facility is not union but it benefits from being associated with a system that has a union in its other facilities, if that makes sense.

I have never heard of the term wage compression until this thread. The most senior nurse at my system is making about 40k more than the new grads. But when I did work at a snf facility, I heard that the highest pay was not even 29 bucks...I was shock as they offered me 24. :/

Some people like to talk bad about job hoppers, but that is really the only way to make big increases in pay.

[Dogen]

I work for the state and a large system with multiple facilities. My facility is not union but it benefits from being associated with a system that has a union in its other facilities, if that makes sense.

...

Some people like to talk bad about job hoppers, but that is really the only way to make big increases in pay.

I work in a non-union hospital, but two of the largest hospital systems in the city are union, so our pay scale matches there's. Not the same situation as yours, but we benefit from the unions being in those hospitals and receive a competitive pay scale and better benefits. The pay scale is based on the number of years you've been an RN, period.* I like it because it's transparent. Anyone can find the scale and know what anyone else makes. I think hiding how much people earn makes it easier for employers to screw staff.

Job hopping is the new normal. You used to get ahead by sticking with a company for 25 years - promotions, raises for hard work... it seems like all of those things are gone, and market pay is the biggest determinant of earning.

* Well, and you get $1 for BSN, and then there's the extra for being per diem/on call...

[Bob Loblaw]

Wait till you experience time in grade raises getting out of synch with new hire wages so you will be orientating someone that makes more than you....

[kbrn2002, ADN, RN]

Wait till you experience time in grade raises getting out of synch with new hire wages so you will be orientating someone that makes more than you....

As hard as it would be to give up 20 years of accumulated benefits at that point I think I would have to insist on a raise or walk. And really be prepared to follow through with that threat and walk if necessary.

[Dogen]

Wait till you experience time in grade raises getting out of synch with new hire wages so you will be orientating someone that makes more than you....

That's why I like the pay scale at the hospitals around here: that will never happen. New grads start at the first step, and people with 20 years of experience start at at the 20th step. If the base rate (step 1) changes, then all the steps go up. Wages are written into the ONA contract at the union hospitals specifically to prevent experienced nurses from missing out on pay raises.

[JordiesMomRN]

Thanks for sharing this article....it is quite eye-opening!

[canigraduate]

I have said it before, but I will say it again - job hoppers get a bad rep, but we laugh all the way to the bank.

If I had stayed in my original nursing job, I would be making around $23-24 an hour, assuming they maxed out my raises. It would more likely by $22-23/hour, because management always finds that 2 tenths of a point to keep you out of the top tier on your evaluation.

I make $30-35/hour simply because I have changed jobs and cities so many times. I even have better benefits now than I ever have before.

It isn't worth it to me to be able to pick vacation days first or get the chance at a pension. I also don't think it is worth it to stay in one place too long and get stuck doing things their way all the time. But that's just me.

If I were you, I would have been OUT a long time ago. If you are really committed to the hospital, then I would suggest talking to your manager and talking to HR.

Pre-nursing, I was able to get a lot of raises just by asking for them. I didn't even say why I wanted them. I just told my managers that I felt I wasn't being compensated fairly for the quality of my work and named a rate I would be happy with (you must be a good employee to try this approach). I never even brought up looking for another job, except for once, when I didn't get what I asked for.

Food for thought.

[joanna73, BSN, RN]

When nurses were in demand (10+ years ago) compensation was good. Now that employers can be selective, they don't care if employees walk. It never hurts to ask for a raise, but be prepared for no.

[slauren]

One of my co-workers and I discussed this once. She had been with the company 13+ years and was starting to catch on that new nurses being hired were getting close to what she was getting. Me only being there 3 years, I was getting just $2 less an hour than her. Each year I've been there I've gotten close to $1 hour raise. One of the newly hired but experienced nurses was making $5/hr more than her. It's all business for some companies instead of valuing good loyal employees.