I am sure that many of you do not want to hear this. But it is the actual truth. There still is no special schedule for nurses, and the Schedule A is not included in the Visa Bulletin.
That the dates are current for the month of July does not state that it is over. There is a huge number of applicants waiting for the green card, in addition to nurses, and they have been waiting as well. Remember that most that came to the US under the H1-B visa, are also included with the EB-3 caseload. And many of their attorneys are much faster at getting things done. Example: When the window opened for petitions to be submitted in April for the October 2007 H1-B visas, there were more than a 150,000 submitted in less than one day. And they were gone.
Not trying to burst any bubble, but trying to be honest on this. There are only so many visas available per year, never unlimited number. And this Bulletin does not go into effect until July 1, 2007. And those dates are only for that month and if you notice there is also mention that if the visas get used up that are there, then the dates will not remain in effect all month.
For those of you that got stopped in the processing just before your interview, this will be very beneficial for you. If your DS-230 has been approved and accepted, then this can be beneficial to you. For those that are just starting the process, remember you at the mercy of your agency and attorney and how fast that they will do things. We have seen multiple posts over the years of mistakes made with petitions that delayed things for quite a period of time. There is also a considerable raise in immigration fees going into affect at the end of July that will delay things for some people as the agencies are going to be holding back on paying of fees.
Those that have been paying their own way will find that they may get thru faster.
So please, do not make final plans to leave for the US until you actually have an interview date given to you. We saw what happened last fall to quite a few of you here.
Until there is another Schedule in place for nurses, the retrogression will not be over. Just an open window in the scheme of things, but definitely not over. Look at what happened even last month when the dates were moved up for the PD, you did not see a significant movement of anything. When money is needed to be paid by the agencies, everything drops to a crawl.
Yes, I've read that there is no shortage of registered nurses in the U.S., but since so many U.S.-licensed registered nurses have left the profession, there is actually a shortage of "actively working" registered nurses in the U.S.
Our hospital frequently cannot find enough RN's to adequately staff all the units in our hospital. I know this for sure because I give report to the nursing supervisor on duty every time I'm assigned as the unit charge nurse. Frequent discussion with the nursing supervisor on duty, as any charge nurses would attest, is the problem of inadequate nurses available to work.
If your hospital increased wages and improved working conditions for RNs, I'm sure you would have no trouble staffing all your units. However, if the hospital can, instead, import foreign nurses who are delighted to work for lower wages and under lousy conditions, then the hospital doesn't need to make any effort -- how nice for the hospital ...
If your hospital increased wages and improved working conditions for RNs, I'm sure you would have no trouble staffing all your units. However, if the hospital can, instead, import foreign nurses who are delighted to work for lower wages and under lousy conditions, then the hospital doesn't need to make any effort -- how nice for the hospital ...
Most foreign nurses come to US on GCs, so the they are paid wages prevailing in that region, this is required by law, so I dont see how it is advantageous to the hospital to hire foreign nurses.
Furthermore I keep reading about how it is so expensive for the US hopspital to hire foreign nurses and about the long wait for these nurse to actually enter US to start working. Yet these hospitals are hiring foreign nurses. I cannot comment on the extent or the type of nursing shortage in the US as I am not physically present there, but it seems to me that there is more here than meets the eye here.
Specializes in Neuro-Surgery, Med-Surg, Home Health.
If your hospital increased wages and improved working conditions for RNs, I'm sure you would have no trouble staffing all your units. However, if the hospital can, instead, import foreign nurses who are delighted to work for lower wages and under lousy conditions, then the hospital doesn't need to make any effort -- how nice for the hospital ...
The starting salary for RN's (with no experience) in our hospital is around $40/hr. (with additional 20% night shift differential) and we get excellent benefits. RN's are provided with a no-cost retirement contribution. The top pay for a staff nurse on the night shift is around $67/hr. Many RN's in our hospital earn more than $100,000/year.
Every nurse in our hospital get the same wages according to seniority. The salary raises are automatic and the rate of pay idepends on how long a nurse has been employed in our hospital.
We get TWO pay raises a year per union/hospital contract. When our hospital is understaffed due to many sick calls the hospital tries to call nursing registries but they sometimes cannot provide enough RN's due to lack of available nurses. The hospital tries to give each nurse just four patients due to our high patient acuity, but they can legally assign each nurse up to five patients each in the Med/Surg. units.
It doesn't matter where the RN came from, in our hospital every RN get the same rate of pay.
The starting salary for RN's (with no experience) in our hospital is around $40/hr. (with additional 20% night shift differential) and we get excellent benefits. RN's are provided with a no-cost retirement contribution. The top pay for a staff nurse on the night shift is around $67/hr. Many RN's in our hospital earn more than $100,000/year.
Every nurse in our hospital get the same wages according to seniority. The salary raises are automatic and the rate of pay idepends on how long a nurse has been employed in our hospital.
We get TWO pay raises a year per union/hospital contract. When our hospital is understaffed due to many sick calls the hospital tries to call nursing registries but they sometimes cannot provide enough RN's due to lack of available nurses. The hospital tries to give each nurse just four patients due to our high patient acuity, but they can legally assign each nurse up to five patients each in the Med/Surg. units.
It doesn't matter where the RN came from, in our hospital every RN get the same rate of pay.
Many Nurses work either two jobs or many over time hours to make that six digit figure. The trend is very very high among the foreign nurses. Your hospital may be one in very few of them who pay a $40 starting salary. The pay depends on cost of living, and I am sure your area is not an exception.
Even though the imported RNs aren't actually paid less than the average, but they are definitely helping the health care industry keep the RN's wages low. Not all but many of the foreign nurses are too desperate to move to the US that they are willing to accept the job unconditionally, they don't care what the benefits are, salary is etc.. US dolor is definitely more heavier than their currency (or at least the income they make in their home country).
My previous employer had 99 percent of the nurses imported from one particular country. I have seen many many Nurses from that country who were exploited by my previous employer. They all came with CGFNS before passing the NCLEX-RN. started working as CNAs in the book (even though most of them do the nursing jobs like wound nurse etc.), take the test after few months, and even months after passing their exams, they are still not promoted as RNs, the employer keeps postponing the RN orientation by making some excuses. And their actual contract of two years starts counting only when they are formally accepted as RNs. They work for the employer at least a year before they can become RNs. The nurses don't know who to complain to, the agency that brought them is not helping.
In that place, the RN's salary has remained same for last eight years. They don't feel the need to increase the salary because they are getting enough nurses who are more than willing to work for that pay(the DON told me when I asked if they can give me a raise). The nurses don't get any raise, either annual or whatever. The only way to earn more money is to work another job or to do overtime when they need it. Finding overtime is also hard for the nurses because everybody wants to do that. Almost all of the RNs who work there have a second job, including the ADON, and the unit managers, and Nursing supervisors. I had one nurse telling me that she made 96 hours that week.
If your hospital increased wages and improved working conditions for RNs, I'm sure you would have no trouble staffing all your units. However, if the hospital can, instead, import foreign nurses who are delighted to work for lower wages and under lousy conditions, then the hospital doesn't need to make any effort -- how nice for the hospital ...
His hospital actually pays quite well, all of the Bay Area hospitals do. But the cost of living is also quite high in the area.
Many Nurses work either two jobs or many over time hours to make that six digit figure. The trend is very very high among the foreign nurses. Your hospital may be one in very few of them who pay a $40 starting salary. The pay depends on cost of living, and I am sure your area is not an exception.
Even though the imported RNs aren't actually paid less than the average, but they are definitely helping the health care industry keep the RN's wages low. Not all but many of the foreign nurses are too desperate to move to the US that they are willing to accept the job unconditionally, they don't care what the benefits are, salary is etc.. US dolor is definitely more heavier than their currency (or at least the income they make in their home country).
My previous employer had 99 percent of the nurses imported from one particular country. I have seen many many Nurses from that country who were exploited by my previous employer. They all came with CGFNS before passing the NCLEX-RN. started working as CNAs in the book (even though most of them do the nursing jobs like wound nurse etc.), take the test after few months, and even months after passing their exams, they are still not promoted as RNs, the employer keeps postponing the RN orientation by making some excuses. And their actual contract of two years starts counting only when they are formally accepted as RNs. They work for the employer at least a year before they can become RNs. The nurses don't know who to complain to, the agency that brought them is not helping.
In that place, the RN's salary has remained same for last eight years. They don't feel the need to increase the salary because they are getting enough nurses who are more than willing to work for that pay(the DON told me when I asked if they can give me a raise). The nurses don't get any raise, either annual or whatever. The only way to earn more money is to work another job or to do overtime when they need it. Finding overtime is also hard for the nurses because everybody wants to do that. Almost all of the RNs who work there have a second job, including the ADON, and the unit managers, and Nursing supervisors. I had one nurse telling me that she made 96 hours that week.
Most in the Bay Area get in the $100,000 range with just one job, but the housing takes a big chunk of it. The Bay Area is quite different than the rest of the US. Many come but then they leave because of the increased taxs and increased living expenses.
$40 is actually a little low compared to some as well.
I very intentionally mentioned both wages andworking conditions. Money is certainly not the only issue (or even the most important issue) for many nurses.
I understand that completely but knowing where he is working, as well as the pay rates in the Bay Area as well as work conditions, that is not the issue here. And with strong union presence as well as the ratio laws, the issue becomes finding people at the last minute when a staff member calls off. On a tele unit, the nurse cannot have more than four patients ever, as well as the ICU nurse cannot have more than two. The ratio laws also require that there is a nurse that can providde breaks so that no one at any time has more than the legal limit of patients. If this happens, then the unit is considered short and the hospital actually has to pay a premium if one does not have proper covererage for their breaks.
So, it is not short like you hear around the country, but more having to do with ratio laws as well as the requirements for that. With so many hospitals also being located in one area, people are always moving around here to try to get something better.
The Bay Area also does not import nurses on temporary work visas, they are not actually permitted by union contracts up here, or in CA for that matter. So there is no way to import anyone to fill positions here, they must wait for the green card.
Raises are also every 6 months in the Bay Area per union contracts as well.
I140 is for your greencard but will not allow you to work at the moment with retrogression you can not file 485 which will allow you to work whilst waiting. You do not need a SSN to submit paperwork
Because there are no visas available and that is one thing that needs to be available before they will accept the petition for the AOS, or adjustment of status.
There was an open window last summer, but there were already no visas available then and the US was not going to accept them then but the immigration attorneys got into a tizz and forced the government's hand. So do not expect any AOS petitions to be accepted for several years, all visas need to be current for them to be accepted again.
Hi, I am also one of the retrogression affected candidate.......I've been searching all over in this community about the possibility of applying a tourist visa here in riyadh, while I have an approved I-140, and I cannot find exact answer to my question...Sorry If I miss looked the answers if this query had been answered for a thousand times...Sorry also If I am in a wrong thread....can anybody here help me understand those possibility or not possible?...Thank You So Much...
Specializes in Medical and general practice now LTC.
Hi, I am also one of the retrogression affected candidate.......I've been searching all over in this community about the possibility of applying a tourist visa here in riyadh, while I have an approved I-140, and I cannot find exact answer to my question...Sorry If I miss looked the answers if this query had been answered for a thousand times...Sorry also If I am in a wrong thread....can anybody here help me understand those possibility or not possible?...Thank You So Much...
There is nothing stopping you from applying for a tourist visa but no guarantee that you will get one. Make sure you have plenty of proof that you will be returning back to Riyadh ie job/employment letter etc
....I've been searching all over in this community about the possibility of applying a tourist visa here in riyadh, while I have an approved I-140, and I cannot find exact answer to my question...Sorry If I miss looked the answers if this query had been answered for a thousand times...Sorry also If I am in a wrong thread....can anybody here help me understand those possibility or not possible?...Thank You So Much...
elkpark
14,633 Posts
If your hospital increased wages and improved working conditions for RNs, I'm sure you would have no trouble staffing all your units. However, if the hospital can, instead, import foreign nurses who are delighted to work for lower wages and under lousy conditions, then the hospital doesn't need to make any effort -- how nice for the hospital ...