Pay Rates in NC

AshleyA · Dec 1, 2009

i assume you are asking about rn pay? if so, then you can probably expect about $20-$25/hour plus shift diff. of course it really depends on the hospital and floor.

a word of warning before you move. a lot of nurses are moving to north carolina, so you will be competing with lots of other qualified nurses from all over the country for just a handful of jobs. don't expect to find a job right away.

elkpark · Dec 1, 2009

Also, depending on the area in NC, the cost of living may not be significantly lower. I know there have been several threads here in the past from RNs who moved to NC from higher-pay areas like FL or the Northeast, and they were pretty upset at how little they were going to get paid compared to what they were used to (and, as I noted, they found the cost of living was not significantly less, so that didn't really make up for it).

NC did not having a nursing shortage to begin with, and the economy has affected nursing employment here the same as it has everywhere else. Lots of nurses, not many jobs ...

NurseBanana · Dec 1, 2009

Also, depending on the area in NC, the cost of living may not be significantly lower. I know there have been several threads here in the past from RNs who moved to NC from higher-pay areas like FL or the Northeast, and they were pretty upset at how little they were going to get paid compared to what they were used to (and, as I noted, they found the cost of living was not significantly less, so that didn't really make up for it).
NC did not having a nursing shortage to begin with, and the economy has affected nursing employment here the same as it has everywhere else. Lots of nurses, not many jobs ...

well that stinks!! Maybe I won't be moving there afterall....I should have known such a great state would not have many jobs available ;-)

Chava · Dec 2, 2009

NC is a great state: we've got mountains and beaches, great weather, clean air...but, unfortunately, I do NOT recommend that you begin a career as a nurse here. Nurses are very, very underpaid, benefits are expensive (I've always wondered why they're called "benefits"), and nursing is generally not respected as a profession. One major problems is that there are no nursing unions down here. For some reason, "union" is a bad word in the South. One nurse at a major medical/teaching hospital in the area actually got fired for trying to bolster support to start a union. You are much, much better off in a state with a nursing union. And the cost of living isn't exactly cheap -- unless you go to some god-forsaken hick town with two stoplights. Not worth it.

AshleyA · Dec 3, 2009

NC is a great state: we've got mountains and beaches, great weather, clean air...but, unfortunately, I do NOT recommend that you begin a career as a nurse here.

NC is great. Totally should be a nurse here.

Nurses are very, very underpaid, benefits are expensive (I've always wondered why they're called "benefits"), and nursing is generally not respected as a profession.

Nurses are paid less here than other places, but there is also NOT a nursing shortage here, and more and more nurses are coming here everyday. So pay must not be everything to everyone.

nursing is generally not respected as a profession.

This is just not true. I am sure there are some hospitals that nurses are treated badly, but that is true all over the country not just in NC.

One major problems is that there are no nursing unions down here. For some reason, "union" is a bad word in the South. One nurse at a major medical/teaching hospital in the area actually got fired for trying to bolster support to start a union. You are much, much better off in a state with a nursing union. And the cost of living isn't exactly cheap -- unless you go to some god-forsaken hick town with two stoplights. Not worth it.

Never worked at a union hospital so I don't know.

paacollins · Dec 5, 2009

The cost of living isn't always that wonderful in small towns in NC either. I live near Mount Airy (Mayberry) and a few years ago it was given the "All American City" award. Property prices and property taxes skyrocketed after that. We also have very high unemployment rates because this was a textile town and the vast majority of the jobs have been outsourced overseas. NC, in general, has seen a huge loss of jobs due to tobacco and manufacturing losses. Therefore, many people have gone back to school to pursue jobs in healthcare. We've got a lot of nurses and not a lot of jobs now. There are still jobs for experienced nurses but new grads are finding it tough. I'm one of them. I am shocked at how many people want to move here. My best advice is to try to secure a job BEFORE you make the move, expecially if you are a new grad or have less than a few years experience.

cwood88 · Dec 9, 2009

At the hospitals where I live the starting base pay for 1st shift is btw 17-18/hr and then with shift diff for 2nd and 3rd shift and this is statesville and mooresville areas. And idk about the charlotte area.

luv2shopp85 · Dec 21, 2009

i assume you are asking about rn pay? if so, then you can probably expect about $20-$25/hour plus shift diff. of course it really depends on the hospital and floor.
a word of warning before you move. a lot of nurses are moving to north carolina, so you will be competing with lots of other qualified nurses from all over the country for just a handful of jobs. don't expect to find a job right away.

i'm going to be another one of those nurses relocating to nc next summer. do you have any idea why all nurses are relocating to nc?

elkpark · Dec 21, 2009

I'm going to be another one of those nurses relocating to NC next summer. Do you have any idea why all nurses are relocating to NC?

I responded to your other thread, also. It's not just nurses -- everybody wants to move to NC. Apparently, it's considered one of the more desirable places in the country to live.

tea23 · Dec 22, 2009

I too plan to relocate to the Charlotte area, but only to be closer to family that lives in small town SC, where the cost of living is very low, therefore so is the pay. Through my research , I thought that the Charlotte area would be similar to where I am in Texas (LVN starting pay is 23/hr-LTC). Guess I need to dig deeper...

NurseBanana · Dec 22, 2009

I responded to your other thread, also. It's not just nurses -- everybody wants to move to NC. Apparently, it's considered one of the more desirable places in the country to live.

Because its freakin awesome!!!!!