OK, I have a big beef here. I'm currently in my first year of nursing, and I feel like I have to say something regarding nurses complaining about their pay.
Reading these boards, I just came across someone who said they make $34 an hour in Ontario, and they were telling someone that if they're looking to make money, go into accouting or something. THis just floored me!
$34 and hour!!!! How can you tell me that is not making money? Many many nurses who work in Ontario get WAY less than that.
I just really don't understand.
People are always saying, "if you're in this profession to make money, get out because you won't be rich." This is ridiculous. I live in SK Canada, where nurses make $24 starting (I think) or if not, it's very close to that figure. That is considered a WELL paying job. How can you not live comfortably on pay like that? I know many many many many people who make considerably less than that, and they do just fine.
Some nurses say that there is no money in nursing. Has anyone heard of a Nurse Practitioner? I know they don't make millions, but they do make more than RN's, some even make 6 figures. I am going to be one. Once I'm an RN, I'm working in the ER for one year, then returning to school for a 30 week course. YOu don't have to be a genious to do this either.
I know that you have to love nursing to be in it. You CANNOT be in it JUST FOR THE MONEY, but it makes me mad when people say THERE IS NO MONEY. Some areas pay nurses more than others.
I know it's a lot of work, it's stressful, and it's a hard job, and I know that many people (including me) feel that we should be payed more for what we do, but come on people. Doesn't it make you mad when people who make $34 an hour complain they don't have enough money? Do you spend foolishly? The cost of living in Ont is higher than SK, but $34 an hour is STILL much more than many many people in that prov make.
A few surefire ways to get and keep yourself unhappy with your pay:
- Compare your salary to others in your field who make more. Don't worry about their cost of living, experience, or schedule. Forget about all the ones who make less than you.
- Compare yourself to those above and below you who may make more. Forget about all those who make less than you.
- Constantly remind yourself about people in other fields (especially the ones who have less "education" and "responsibility" than yours) who make astronomically more than you do. Forget about all those who make much less than you.
- Keep your standard of living so high that you spend everything you make. If your salary goes up, increase your spending accordingly. Don't save or invest a dime.
- When you hear about someone else making more money, automatically assume that their jobs and lives are easier, that they are happier, that they don't work NEARLY as hard as you, that their lives have ALWAYS been this way, and they are absolutely filthy rich.
All this is, obviously, written tongue-in-cheek, but hopefully you see my point. A lot of is what we choose to focus on, and what we do with the money we DO make.
Cheeky but true. Almost every nurse I know has terrible spending habits. They spend everything they make plus some, and then complain they don't make enough. I'm sorry but even though our salaries don't increase by much over the years by the time it is over neither has anyone else's. I know a woman who has been working at a factory 20 yrs and she makes a little over $12 an hour.
Yes, nursing is a filthy thankless job but no one is forced to stay in nursing, and there are many opportunities in different nursing disciplines. If your work is getting to you you do have the option of going to something else. I left a high stress job in LTC making $14.50/hr (after 4 yrs.) to a low stress private duty nursing job paying $18/hr (these are LPN wages). I am hoping that with my RN degree I can expect that to go up at least $5.00. Yes, that is blue collar, but most people are blue collar, and for someone who can live on a BUDGET and within their means, even if it means we don't drive a Cadillac and our kids don't always get brand new clothes from The Gap, and we don't have to fritter our money away at the beauty shop...that can add up.
And another thing, car payments will keep you poor. There isn't a reason in the world you can't drive a used paid for car that was paid for in cash, even if it is a $1500-2500 Hoopdie. No, it doesn't have to be a way of life, but if you take the money you are using to make payments on a new car and save for a year you can buy one heck of a sharp slightly used car and save literally thousands. And you won't have that payment hanging over your head. It can be done, and it isn't even hard to do.
I love most of the nurses I work with, but in all I have to say, I have seen some of the most petty, whining complaining people in the nursing field, and I am really disappointed. I would have thought we would have been more adult and professional than that.
OK, so this may be a bit off topic but it relates to salary so i thought id throw it out there for you guys....
My mom has worked at a local hospital here for the past 20 years....some of the nurses there have worked there for longer than that..when these nurses started working years and years ago they started in at this hospital making like 8-10/hr (or something like that, think 20 years ago) over the years they have gotten raises and what not but are now only making 19ish...(the ones i am thinking of are charge nurses) i know that they hire new grads in for more than that...it seems kinda unfair and i dont understand why they arent atleast making what the new grads coming in do.? then i was thinking that if they quit and went to a different hospital wouldnt they get hired in at quite a bit more money since they are charge nurses have soooo much experience?? i realzie that some may not want to leave for reasons of retirement and invesment ( i dont know much about that subject) but it just seems weird to me...it seems like the nurses who have worked for that many years would be making the most instead of the least...i asked my mom why one particular nurse didnt just leave and go to such and such hospital (shed make more money there and same health benefits and such) she said that she just didnt want a change now....is this the same everywhere? im confused...lol...sorry for the long post...
I'm not sure what the cost of living in Canada is like or what you pay for medical benefits and retirement but 50,000$ is not a lot of money down here. It's not enough to raise a family on if you want to own a house and own a car. Plus you have to factor in saving for children's educations, retirement, and other costs. 50K is a nice place to start when you are single but since wages don't increase much as you put in your time the idea of caring for your family in the future is pretty scary.
Hello,
I see this is an older thread but....I have not earned more than 18,000 a year in over 10 years.
Then again, I am not a nurse yet, just a working poor service worker.
Matter of fact, if I exclude the last year then I hadn't earned over 12,000 a year in the last 10 years. I live in a relatively expensive area, all things considered, near Chicago.
Relativity. Of course, there is no way I could try to purchase a house or a fancy car and until recently didn't have access to health care either.
Sigh, hopefully I will remember to live lean even when the money is better so I can keep a perspective of what has meaning. Saving for children's education is very meaningful but, for me, the house and fancy car are meaningless.
Thanks for listening,
Gen
p.s. yet, before these 10 years when I did work in a dangerous factory job I earned over 40,000 with over-time but, with no time to live life either
Specializes in Happily semi-retired; excited for the whole whammy.
OK, so this may be a bit off topic but it relates to salary so i thought id throw it out there for you guys....
My mom has worked at a local hospital here for the past 20 years....some of the nurses there have worked there for longer than that..when these nurses started working years and years ago they started in at this hospital making like 8-10/hr (or something like that, think 20 years ago) over the years they have gotten raises and what not but are now only making 19ish...(the ones i am thinking of are charge nurses) i know that they hire new grads in for more than that...it seems kinda unfair and i dont understand why they arent atleast making what the new grads coming in do.? then i was thinking that if they quit and went to a different hospital wouldnt they get hired in at quite a bit more money since they are charge nurses have soooo much experience?? i realzie that some may not want to leave for reasons of retirement and invesment ( i dont know much about that subject) but it just seems weird to me...it seems like the nurses who have worked for that many years would be making the most instead of the least...i asked my mom why one particular nurse didnt just leave and go to such and such hospital (shed make more money there and same health benefits and such) she said that she just didnt want a change now....is this the same everywhere? im confused...lol...sorry for the long post...
I wouldn't say its the same everywhere, but I have heard similar stories. This is where a union comes in handy! As far as switching hospitals, not sure why people don't do that, either. I've changed jobs a number of times during my career, sometimes because I didn't like the job or just wanted a change, sometimes for more money, sometimes for more flexibility in schedule. Wouldn't think a thing of doing it again tomorrow if my needs changed. I am lucky to live in a large metropolitan area that has plenty of options, though.
I wouldn't say its the same everywhere, but I have heard similar stories. This is where a union comes in handy! As far as switching hospitals, not sure why people don't do that, either. I've changed jobs a number of times during my career, sometimes because I didn't like the job or just wanted a change, sometimes for more money, sometimes for more flexibility in schedule. Wouldn't think a thing of doing it again tomorrow if my needs changed. I am lucky to live in a large metropolitan area that has plenty of options, though.[/QU
True, true, we live in Cincinnati so there are quite a few hospitals around but since you brought up a union my mom has been saying that there have been union meetings and its a whole big controversy at her hospital, in fact she is afraid she is going to lose her job bc her DON knows she went to a union meeting...she knows that her DON wont directly fire her for that bc she could get sued but shes pretty sure that at her meeting on thrusday that the DON is going to tell her that her hours are being cut...she says this has happened to quite a few nurses and they have left over it....shes worked there almost 20 years..her old DON was letting her come in at 5 and work till midnight bc she has another full time job as an office manager...so shes pretty sure thather DON is going to tell her that she cant work there anymore bc they are "doing away with her hours"...pretty crappy, i mean she works there for a little extra spending money but still.... still seems pretty unfair..
I empathize with you. I have to observe,however,that living in SF,or anywhere for that matter is a personal choice - it's about lifestyle. If the place you choose to live is outrageously expensive,then of course $34 an hour isn't good - it isn't even enough. Your dollar will go a lot farther elsewhere. A little research on national costs of living will bear that out( Cities Ranked and Rated by Bert Sperling and Peter Sander is somewhere to start) What is the average U.S. wage? I think not as high as $68,000 annually. I think DMR as well as those who have posted here about lifestyle/life choices(# of children,etc.) have a point. Also, everyone has to pay for mortgage/rent,utilities,auto/transportation,food,medical,taxes,etc. Not just nurses. If most people make less than $34/hour,then those who make $34/hour are doing better - some would even say they are doing well. This does not mean we shouldn't be paid more. When we aren't saving lives,we're improving them. I'm all for nurses making more. Can't help but notice,though, that some people manage their money better than others - that,I think, is the bigger problem here.
I agree that you can make it on $34/hr in some places in the US
But did you not see my previous post about what it cost to live in the SF Bay area
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the cost of living is different everywhere. I just pulled out the classifieds a 3 bedroom 1 bath in one of the lesser desirable areas in the South SF bay area is $385,000. This is not a new home either.just renting a room in a house or apt is between$400-$800/month. In the town the hospital I work is located in you can't find a house for under $700,000 and that is likely a 30 yr old 3/2. I can't afford to live where I work.Most one bedroom apt rent for over $1000/mos, two bedrooms $1400/mos.
To have property with land in this area you either had to inherit it or are extremely weathly. I work with many people, mostly CNA's where multiple families live in one house. Or a whole family lives in one rented room.
It is really sad that Silicon Valley has all this technology and wealth but the people that are going to take care of these techies when they need health care can barely make ends meet. '
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I am not making this up. You would not be able to afford a house in this area. After paying rent and bills you would have no money to afford a down payment.
I know people that live beyond their means but they aren't the ones making $34/hr. They are ones making $100,000 /year+
Here are a few lines from a joke that are all to true
You know you are from Silicon Valley when...
You make $100,000 a year, yet still can't find a place to live.
Your friends just bought a $500,000 fixer-upper.
I can see that what you are saying is true but what I am saying is true too.
No one ever feels they are paid what they are worth. Maybe garbage men make more than some nurses, but so what? Their job is pretty filthy and thankless, too. Is their profession not worthy of a decent wage?
I can't knock nurses, being one myself, but I think some of us have overinflated ego's about our profession and tend to overestimate our self worth. When you look at it, a lot of doctors don't really make that much, either, compared to the years of school and overhead they pay to have a practice. Right or wrong the reason I went to nursing school was to get a better paying job. I was working menial jobs that payed just a little above minimum wage. There is not a nastier job than a CNA in a LTC facility, and when I left my CNA job for school I was making $6.50/hr. I was lucky to have a $360 check every two weeks, that was very depressing. When I got my first check as an LPN, even though it was only $12 an hour, I thought I was rich. $700-800 every two weeks instead of $360. Now I make $800-1000 a week as an LPN, and yes, it is easy for me to start thinking how nice it would be to have *more*. I will be an RN within a couple of months, and I realize my income will not go up much more than it is now. It's still worth it to me.
So now nurses gripe and complain that $55-70K a year isn't enough???
What would be enough? $55-70K is above the median income for the country, and instead of belly aching nurses should thank their lucky stars. I know I'm rehashing some of what I said in an earlier post but this topic really steels my wool. Maybe you nurses who gripe about being forced to live on $60k a year should go work in a factory or a department store or picking up garbage for awhile and have to live on the wages those people make then see if you think it is more worth it to do nursing.
Specializes in Happily semi-retired; excited for the whole whammy.
How much per hour *would* be enough???
No one ever feels they are paid what they are worth. Maybe garbage men make more than some nurses, but so what? Their job is pretty filthy and thankless, too. Is their profession not worthy of a decent wage?
I can't knock nurses, being one myself, but I think some of us have overinflated ego's about our profession and tend to overestimate our self worth. When you look at it, a lot of doctors don't really make that much, either, compared to the years of school and overhead they pay to have a practice. Right or wrong the reason I went to nursing school was to get a better paying job. I was working menial jobs that payed just a little above minimum wage. There is not a nastier job than a CNA in a LTC facility, and when I left my CNA job for school I was making $6.50/hr. I was lucky to have a $360 check every two weeks, that was very depressing. When I got my first check as an LPN, even though it was only $12 an hour, I thought I was rich. $700-800 every two weeks instead of $360. Now I make $800-1000 a week as an LPN, and yes, it is easy for me to start thinking how nice it would be to have *more*. I will be an RN within a couple of months, and I realize my income will not go up much more than it is now. It's still worth it to me.
So now nurses gripe and complain that $55-70K a year isn't enough???
What would be enough? $55-70K is above the median income for the country, and instead of belly aching nurses should thank their lucky stars. I know I'm rehashing some of what I said in an earlier post but this topic really steels my wool. Maybe you nurses who gripe about being forced to live on $60k a year should go work in a factory or a department store or picking up garbage for awhile and have to live on the wages those people make then see if you think it is more worth it to do nursing.
Oh please. Do you really think that many, if not most, of us haven't worked at menial jobs somewhere along the way? I am all for the right of everyone who works hard in a honest job to make a living wage. I can't be expected to carry the banner for everyone, though. I am sure the people in those positions commisserate with one another about their wages all the time, as is their right. I am sure I'd be doing it, too. The point is that I don't work in those fields, so naturally here on this NURSING board, I am going to discuss nursing pay. Strange, I know, but that's just me, cuckoo enough to believe that the appropriate forum for debating the pay level of other jobs isn't allnurses.com.
And of all those many posts, does one of the posters concern themselves with the pay of nurses? No? Perhaps they think, like I do, "why would I do that?"
still seems pretty unfair..
LydiaNN
2,756 Posts
Carnac knows, lol!!!:rotfl: