San Fran

I was JUST wondering the exact same thing... so anyone with info please speak up!

Since housing is so expensive in SF and it's such a great place to go, your hourly pay rate is going to be low. If you add your hourly pay rate + your housing, you will see that your TOTAL monthly rate is not bad. If you live outside of SF, you will end up making more $$ hourly. You can live north or south of SF itself and take the BART to work, if you want to save money on housing. Or you can live/work outside of town and still be within BART travel to the city. I worked in San Jose (1 hour south of SF)-my company paid for my housing (I forget what the stipend was, but we had nice apartments=$2000+ range), but I made $33-$37/hour (blended rate)-I worked there 2 different times. I know people who took the stipend in SF and found furnished, short-term rentals on craigslist and were able to keep some of that housing stipend. Good luck!!

Since housing is so expensive in SF and it's such a great place to go, your hourly pay rate is going to be low. If you add your hourly pay rate + your housing, you will see that your TOTAL monthly rate is not bad. If you live outside of SF, you will end up making more $$ hourly. You can live north or south of SF itself and take the BART to work, if you want to save money on housing. Or you can live/work outside of town and still be within BART travel to the city. I worked in San Jose (1 hour south of SF)-my company paid for my housing (I forget what the stipend was, but we had nice apartments=$2000+ range), but I made $33-$37/hour (blended rate)-I worked there 2 different times. I know people who took the stipend in SF and found furnished, short-term rentals on craigslist and were able to keep some of that housing stipend. Good luck!!

I hear this term often so can you explain the "blended rate" to us traveling newbies?

re: blended rate-you receive a rate for your 1st 8 hours (for ease, we'll use $20), for the next 4 hours of a 12 hour shift, you receive time-and-half ($30). Your blended rate is 23.33/hour (8x20 + 4x30 divided by 12). When you are given a pay rate in CA, ask your recruiter if it is the base or blended rate.

re: blended rate-you receive a rate for your 1st 8 hours (for ease, we'll use $20), for the next 4 hours of a 12 hour shift, you receive time-and-half ($30). Your blended rate is 23.33/hour (8x20 + 4x30 divided by 12). When you are given a pay rate in CA, ask your recruiter if it is the base or blended rate.

Thanks

I am interviewing with a hospital in Oakland in the next few days. I'll let you guys know how the pay is across the Bay!

I just finished a contract at Doctors in San Pable. new grades were hired at 59.00 hr. I got about 37.50 between stipen and hourly. Never again because I will research before I go. Hated the assisngment but loved San Fran

What did you not like about the assignment?

What didnt I like about the assignment? besides making 1/2 of what staff was making?

They just started to do 8 hr shifts and no one wanted the PM shift so they hired a few travelers and 10 new grads who didnt have a clue about Telemetry. 2 charge nurses that were well know for doing nothing except give you admits. It didnt matter how behind you were, you hadnt had a break by 10 pm, new nurses needed help, they didnt do anything except for telling you how busy they were doing charge nurse stuff. The monitor tech and unit secretary did the assignments, spent most of the shift with personal calls taking hour breaks to spend time on the internet, and leaving to do errands and covered for each other but if they couldnt find a nurse right away called and reported it to the supervisor. One refused to put in orders although she was the uinit secretary for the shift because she didnt feel like working. The thing the staff will tell you "they dont fire you untill you kill 3 people". No CNA's except for sitters and then they only sat. The manager didnt care about anything and you never saw her except when state was there investigating which was 6 times in my 3 months. One nurse had a death in the family and left several messages for the manager and she never returned any call about needing time off or just to touch base with her. Pharmacy closed at 9 and when you asked the supervisor to go to ER for a med that was missing you were told "day shift can take care of it". The last thing that happened before I was finished is a pt I admitted after falling at home and stayed on the floor 2 days till a neighbor found him, had abrasions all on the left side but nothing on his back side. He developed a wound on his bottom and another traveler was called into see the manager because they were positive he had it when he came in and the admit papers and the next 4 days that we took care of him were missing. The state was investigating it and they wanted us to redo the charting to show it. of course we refused. Honestly how can 4 days of charting go missing. They were several on the night shift that were verbally abusive to other staff and no one cares. In 4 yr of traveling that was my worst assignment.

Damn.

Alameda County Med Ctr. I just read a post that said a MD got beaten to tell a death a few yrs ao. She might have lived after the assault but no one notice she was even gond. Less than thrilled about difficult pts but willing to take it B/c it's where I wanted go and that hard for psych nurses.

:tinkbll: