Pay Raises

[Riley3]

We were just told that we would not be getting a merit raise again this year. This is 2 years in a row for our hospital. The frustrating thing is all the other surrounding hospitals are giving there employees raises and found other ways of cutting costs during this time. One hospital (I interviewed at) said they were still giving raises but lets say you were do in January your raise didn't come into effect unitl March. So bascially you had to wait 3 months for the raise to become active. They are also not contributing to health flex dollars so now we have to pay for our health insurance. There was also something about our retirement, but to be honest I couldnt hear anymore at that point. Also when the question was asked if the upper management was getting bonus's or raises the response was "yes because that was budgeted in last year". So that means they didn't think about us worker bees when they did the budget. Our hospital is by no means small as we are one of the two largest in the area.

Is anyone else experiencing the same issues where they work? I know and I am thankful to have a job, but it seems odd that all other places are giving raises and finding other cleaver ways of cutting back. I am starting to wonder about the committment of this hospital to its employees.

[JohnnyTICU]

Raises, you will be lucky to get a raise in many hospitals. Most hospitals that I have worked for are cutting back big time on the raises. They know that if everyone is doing the same thing, then where are you going to go? The medical field is a roller coaster, one year the hospital is doing great, the next it is going downhill. Take the punches as it goes and be happy you have job is what we go by.

[Riley3]

Oh I am happy to have a job trust me. I just wanted to see what others were experiencing at there hospitals. Like I said this is our second year in a row without raises, this year they just also added the insurance and retirement cutbacks. The other hospitals in the area are still giving raises I dont know if there are other areas they are cutting back on. The idea that upper managment was figured into the budget to get there pay increase this year does burn my butt a little though.

[NICU_babyRN, BSN, RN]

We got 1.5% at the most this year. Our insurance premiums went up.

Other hospitals in the area did not give raises at all this year and I hear some hospitals are no longer contributing to 401K or 403B funds.

it blows

[ANnot4me]

It sounds like nursing in the US will be thrown back to the dark ages with this attitude. It's supply and demand and while hospitals may be spouting rubbish about recession now, they will be begging for nurses within a year or two. Always have and always will... Nurses should value themselves and their profession more than offering trite advice like "be luck you have a job." I sure wouldn't want to work in that sort of environment.

[spacey]

We haven't had merit raises in ages....and even cost of living raises have been non-existent for the last 2 years. Insurance went up the last couple of years too. We're now getting cancelled whenever the census is low, and we don't have the option to refuse...even if we have no PTO. People are becoming more and more unhappy (or broke, as the case may be) and many of our PRN people are leaving or finding a second job. Even some of the regular staff are taking on PRN jobs elsewhere to make ends meet. So yeah, it's pretty rough everywhere. (and don't even ask about the "Christmas bonus" ---ugh!)

[Reno1978, BSN, RN]

We just received our merit raises, per our union contract on 10/1/2009 and FT employees just got a $200 holiday bonus, which was a nice surprise! Things don't seem to be too awful in these parts!

[Mulan]

Hey, we got a turkey!

[vivacious1healer]

My raise was 1.94%, and surprisingly, we got a bonus.

My insurance for my husband and I went up another $40/month.

New hires will not have a pension, but will still have 401K &401B.

They are canceling and sending home employees more often now with low census.

In the end, there really is much change in my paycheck.

[MedSurgeMess]

In the southern parts of Indiana, no or low raises, higher insurance premiums, much call off time....it ain't looking good here either!

[Otessa, BSN, RN]

No raises this year or last. This reminds me of when I started in nursing in early 1990s-no raises for 2 years and then I moved to a different state and got a several dollar raise.

otessa

[nurse_mo1986]

LOL. Consider yourselves lucky. At my hospital, not only have we gotten no raises across the board for the last two years, this summer they also took away an additional 3% from ALL STAFF. oh yeah, and they no longer contribute to our 401k and they also took away the eductional reimbursement:(

But I have a job...yae for that.