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.
I have read the most recent threads, I agree that nurses are not paid enough. I chose nursing because I love it. I have worked at fast food resturants and retail stores. In my opinion most of them are paid what they are worth. THAT is only in my opinion. I don't mind flipping burgers for 7.50 an hour. I don't mind running a register for 7.06 an hour. But those jobs for me were mind numbing. My heart is in nursing. It does aggravate me that in our area, that we will pay someone more to flip our burger or serve our drinks than we pay the ones that take care of our parents and loved ones.
I don't want it to sound like I think nurses are high and mighty, but I do want it to be known that I think they are worth a whole lot more than they are paid and I am talking about all in the nursing field from the newest cna with no experience up to the top dog. In the long term facility where I work CNA"s experience or not get hired in at 6.93/hour. Our new lpn's hire in at 9.56 and I don't know exact R.N. entrance but I know it is no more than 22.00/hr. (what bites my tail about this particular LTC is that there are many employees there that have been there near 20 years and new hires are getting hired in making more an hour than they are. but thats another thread) every one in our LTC: nurses, cna's, rehab what have you have all been to some kind of school or certification all of us deserve more. OUR administrator that has no more than a quick 6 week administration class, that cannot even legally touch our patients makes on average 40.00/hr. how is that fair. How is it fair that I/we do for our residents (usually 10+ patients a shift apiece) the ADL's and care for them like we do but if we order a meal from a restuarant the people that make our food and deliver it make a good bit more than most of us that ordered it. It just does not make sense.
I have read the most recent threads, I agree that nurses are not paid enough. I chose nursing because I love it. I have worked at fast food resturants and retail stores. In my opinion most of them are paid what they are worth. THAT is only in my opinion. I don't mind flipping burgers for 7.50 an hour. I don't mind running a register for 7.06 an hour. But those jobs for me were mind numbing. My heart is in nursing. It does aggravate me that in our area, that we will pay someone more to flip our burger or serve our drinks than we pay the ones that take care of our parents and loved ones.
I don't want it to sound like I think nurses are high and mighty, but I do want it to be known that I think they are worth a whole lot more than they are paid and I am talking about all in the nursing field from the newest cna with no experience up to the top dog. In the long term facility where I work CNA"s experience or not get hired in at 6.93/hour. Our new lpn's hire in at 9.56 and I don't know exact R.N. entrance but I know it is no more than 22.00/hr. (what bites my tail about this particular LTC is that there are many employees there that have been there near 20 years and new hires are getting hired in making more an hour than they are. but thats another thread) every one in our LTC: nurses, cna's, rehab what have you have all been to some kind of school or certification all of us deserve more. OUR administrator that has no more than a quick 6 week administration class, that cannot even legally touch our patients makes on average 40.00/hr. how is that fair. How is it fair that I/we do for our residents (usually 10+ patients a shift apiece) the ADL's and care for them like we do but if we order a meal from a restuarant the people that make our food and deliver it make a good bit more than most of us that ordered it. It just does not make sense.
WOW 6.93/hr???? thats insane, how do you even live on that?? i live in the midwest where we have a pretty low cost of living but i know that i couldnt even pay my bills on 6.93/hr...let alone live comfortably (and let me tell you i live VERY modestly right now lol)...let me start off by saying, i'm a student so right now anything looks good to me (that is except 6.93 hr)...but i do agree, nurses deserve more pay...nursing school no matter what route you take is not easy by any means and i think that education warrants better pay....its soooo sad that any of us (cna, nurse, whatever) can go through all the school and hard work just to make less than 10./hr, i dont care where you live or how low your cost of living is but seriously you can make more than that flipping burgers at mcdonalds! not that there is anything wrong with working at mcdonalds but obviously the amount of time and education put into flipping burgers is nothing like what we spend and how hard we work to get through school...i just think pay should reflect that..6.93 hr wow!
Specializes in Happily semi-retired; excited for the whole whammy.
I have read the most recent threads, I agree that nurses are not paid enough. I chose nursing because I love it. I have worked at fast food resturants and retail stores. In my opinion most of them are paid what they are worth. THAT is only in my opinion. I don't mind flipping burgers for 7.50 an hour. I don't mind running a register for 7.06 an hour. But those jobs for me were mind numbing. My heart is in nursing. It does aggravate me that in our area, that we will pay someone more to flip our burger or serve our drinks than we pay the ones that take care of our parents and loved ones.
I don't want it to sound like I think nurses are high and mighty, but I do want it to be known that I think they are worth a whole lot more than they are paid and I am talking about all in the nursing field from the newest cna with no experience up to the top dog. In the long term facility where I work CNA"s experience or not get hired in at 6.93/hour. Our new lpn's hire in at 9.56 and I don't know exact R.N. entrance but I know it is no more than 22.00/hr. (what bites my tail about this particular LTC is that there are many employees there that have been there near 20 years and new hires are getting hired in making more an hour than they are. but thats another thread) every one in our LTC: nurses, cna's, rehab what have you have all been to some kind of school or certification all of us deserve more. OUR administrator that has no more than a quick 6 week administration class, that cannot even legally touch our patients makes on average 40.00/hr. how is that fair. How is it fair that I/we do for our residents (usually 10+ patients a shift apiece) the ADL's and care for them like we do but if we order a meal from a restuarant the people that make our food and deliver it make a good bit more than most of us that ordered it. It just does not make sense.
Ick. Can't decide which is worse- the CNA's pay or the LPN's.
Ick. Can't decide which is worse- the CNA's pay or the LPN's.
thats what i was thinking!!! my jaw is still sitting on the ground...hold on..ok its back up now...i live in cincinnati and the LPN's start out at atleast 18...wow..
Specializes in Critical Care, Pediatrics, Geriatrics.
I don't want it to sound like I think nurses are high and mighty, but I do want it to be known that I think they are worth a whole lot more than they are paid and I am talking about all in the nursing field from the newest cna with no experience up to the top dog. In the long term facility where I work CNA"s experience or not get hired in at 6.93/hour. Our new lpn's hire in at 9.56 and I don't know exact R.N. entrance but I know it is no more than 22.00/hr.
This is soooooooooo terrible...do you know that my 18yr old brother got hired at a local DIY warehouse with no experience driving a forklift all day for 11.50/hr, while these people may mean the difference in another living vs dying and they are being paid such a minimal amt of money!!!! I never really inquired about pay in my area other than RN but it is not much more than what you described...really shocked me. And just from this post I have discovered that I seem to be in a better position as a new RN than those with much more experience as far as pay. What a shame, and they wonder why there is such a shortage. Our nursing veterans are priceless!!!!
Agreed our wages are not what we are worth! However, who is to say what my, your, or your neighbors families lives are worth? I dont want to get flamed here, but if you read my last post on this i still hold to that. It's about living within your means because there is very little people can do to make one profession worth more than another. We do that as a society and we have chosen entertainment as being a very worthy and well paid profession havent we? We buy the tickets and make the demand. Lifestyles of the rich and famous, most of them are in the entertainment field.
I dont know,, my garbage guy is pretty important, if he didnt do his job we would have diseases running rampent from garbage etc everywhere. My utility worker is pretty important, id freeze to death in the winter and fry in the summer if he didnt keep my utilities in working order. I dont know i dont want to have to build a bonfire in the backyard to cook supper every night, and its kind of nice not to have to go to bed at dusk because i cant see in the dark. I'm sure they all feel they dont get paid enough either. I could go on,,but i wont. JMO......
Specializes in Happily semi-retired; excited for the whole whammy.
Agreed our wages are not what we are worth! However, who is to say what my, your, or your neighbors families lives are worth? I dont want to get flamed here, but if you read my last post on this i still hold to that. It's about living within your means because there is very little people can do to make one profession worth more than another. We do that as a society and we have chosen entertainment as being a very worthy and well paid profession havent we? We buy the tickets and make the demand. Lifestyles of the rich and famous, most of them are in the entertainment field.
I dont know,, my garbage guy is pretty important, if he didnt do his job we would have diseases running rampent from garbage etc everywhere. My utility worker is pretty important, id freeze to death in the winter and fry in the summer if he didnt keep my utilities in working order. I dont know i dont want to have to build a bonfire in the backyard to cook supper every night, and its kind of nice not to have to go to bed at dusk because i cant see in the dark. I'm sure they all feel they dont get paid enough either. I could go on,,but i wont. JMO......
I have no problem with the garbage collector's pay or the utility worker's or anyone else's. Like I said before, it isn't a contest. I would think that the workers in the fields you mention recognize the value of their work, and don't go around saying "oh gee, some of us are paid too much", which is what some of the nurses on this thread HAVE said. If they want to downplay the importance of their work, it wouldn't bother me much, except that by extension, they are also downplaying the importance of mine.
Agreed our wages are not what we are worth! However, who is to say what my, your, or your neighbors families lives are worth? I dont want to get flamed here, but if you read my last post on this i still hold to that. It's about living within your means because there is very little people can do to make one profession worth more than another. We do that as a society and we have chosen entertainment as being a very worthy and well paid profession havent we? We buy the tickets and make the demand. Lifestyles of the rich and famous, most of them are in the entertainment field.
I dont know,, my garbage guy is pretty important, if he didnt do his job we would have diseases running rampent from garbage etc everywhere. My utility worker is pretty important, id freeze to death in the winter and fry in the summer if he didnt keep my utilities in working order. I dont know i dont want to have to build a bonfire in the backyard to cook supper every night, and its kind of nice not to have to go to bed at dusk because i cant see in the dark. I'm sure they all feel they dont get paid enough either. I could go on,,but i wont. JMO......
What you said is so far out and solid and right on. It's about living within our means. My (ex)sister-in-law thinks she has a really good paying job, and she makes $25-27K per year working at a factory. And the work she does is hard. Like I say, some of these people griping about living on the slave wage salary of $60,000+ a year...gee whiz, what would be enough??? They say you can't raise a family and have a nice house and have cars on that...maybe not in Silicon Valley but in this area that kind of salary means a good wage earner. Griping about $60,000 a year when most families don't make near that only makes the griping person sound like a spoiled brat. People feeling "entitled" to indulgences, well, there are a lot of people who work as hard or harder who would be every bit as much deserving of a few indulgences. I am making around $1000 a week as an LPN and feel ever so grateful, even after getting a needle stick from a woman with hepC (which I will have hanging over my head the rest of my life.) Of course I'd like to make more, I've never seen a person who wouldn't. As for that I wouldn't even bother to get out of bed for $6.95 or $9.95/ hr. Talk about people not getting paid what they're worth.
Specializes in Happily semi-retired; excited for the whole whammy.
What you said is so far out and solid and right on. It's about living within our means. My (ex)sister-in-law thinks she has a really good paying job, and she makes $25-27K per year working at a factory. And the work she does is hard. Like I say, some of these people griping about living on the slave wage salary of $60,000+ a year...gee whiz, what would be enough??? They say you can't raise a family and have a nice house and have cars on that...maybe not in Silicon Valley but in this area that kind of salary means a good wage earner. Griping about $60,000 a year when most families don't make near that only makes the griping person sound like a spoiled brat. People feeling "entitled" to indulgences, well, there are a lot of people who work as hard or harder who would be every bit as much deserving of a few indulgences. I am making around $1000 a week as an LPN and feel ever so grateful, even after getting a needle stick from a woman with hepC (which I will have hanging over my head the rest of my life.) Of course I'd like to make more, I've never seen a person who wouldn't. As for that I wouldn't even bother to get out of bed for $6.95 or $9.95/ hr. Talk about people not getting paid what they're worth.
Nooo... A spoiled brat is a person who thinks they should have things handed to them that they haven't worked for, and that acts petulant when they don't get their way. I work hard for everything I have. I'm not going to act like my employer is doing me a huge favor by giving it to me. I am going to continue to work hard. It isn't a matter of being entitled, it is a matter of having earned it, which is very different indeed.
Generally speaking, in areas where the hourly wage (of any profession or job) is "low" the cost of living is also "low." They seem to go hand in hand. So in an area where nurses make $34/hr. the standard of living is compensurate with that. Likewise, if the nurses make $17/hr, the standard of living parallels it.
I'm sure that if I went back to my home state of Kansas and took a job in the little rural town where I grew up, my hourly pay would be about 1/3 of what it is now, here in Washington State. But then I could buy a house there for $35K dollars too and here $35K won't even buy the tiny piece of land it would sit on.
It's all pretty relative, if you ask me. And comparing salaries other than from areas close to you, is a waste of time.
I am making around $1000 a week as an LPN and feel ever so grateful,
You are making more than many RN's. I am sure they would love to live within the means of an RN where you are if LPNs make $52K. Not everyone complains about "slave wages" of $60K+. Some of us have very legitimate complaints - we live in an area where cost of living is not low, but wages are. A new grad RN working 12-hour shifts makes under $35K here ($18/hr, 72 hours per 2 week pay period). That is way underpaid, in my opinion. We are not talking about living beyond one's means. It is just not a fair wage, particularly when you look at the vast differences between what nurses make in different areas. The cost of living is not all that much different in most areas.
LPNtoRN,, thanks, but i would bet you would get out of bed for 6.95 or 9.95 an hour. :)
I think when i started my RN career 18.00/hr was close if not more than i started at. High pay for me when i was a LPN topped out at 13.75 an hour at the top of their pay scale.
Sue7573
112 Posts
I have read the most recent threads, I agree that nurses are not paid enough. I chose nursing because I love it. I have worked at fast food resturants and retail stores. In my opinion most of them are paid what they are worth. THAT is only in my opinion. I don't mind flipping burgers for 7.50 an hour. I don't mind running a register for 7.06 an hour. But those jobs for me were mind numbing. My heart is in nursing. It does aggravate me that in our area, that we will pay someone more to flip our burger or serve our drinks than we pay the ones that take care of our parents and loved ones.
I don't want it to sound like I think nurses are high and mighty, but I do want it to be known that I think they are worth a whole lot more than they are paid and I am talking about all in the nursing field from the newest cna with no experience up to the top dog. In the long term facility where I work CNA"s experience or not get hired in at 6.93/hour. Our new lpn's hire in at 9.56 and I don't know exact R.N. entrance but I know it is no more than 22.00/hr. (what bites my tail about this particular LTC is that there are many employees there that have been there near 20 years and new hires are getting hired in making more an hour than they are. but thats another thread) every one in our LTC: nurses, cna's, rehab what have you have all been to some kind of school or certification all of us deserve more. OUR administrator that has no more than a quick 6 week administration class, that cannot even legally touch our patients makes on average 40.00/hr. how is that fair. How is it fair that I/we do for our residents (usually 10+ patients a shift apiece) the ADL's and care for them like we do but if we order a meal from a restuarant the people that make our food and deliver it make a good bit more than most of us that ordered it. It just does not make sense.