Signed Contract as a new nurse

[dekagirlsRN]

Would appreciate any and all input. As a new grad, I signed a contract a few months ago to work as an RN in a local hospital for two years in exchange for them training me. Since signing the contract, all employees have taken a pay cut and there is a freeze on salary increases. (my salary is not addressed in the contract)

In the meantime, a wonderful opportunity has come along, in a field I think I would enjoy more, making more money. My question, do you think I can get out of my contract, and not have to pay the penalty $3000? I don't think I can afford that penalty, but I feel I shouldn't have to since I took a pay cut. I'm afraid if I go talk to HR, word will get out to my boss that I'm interested in leaving, and things would get uncomfortable working there.

What do you think?

[PostOpPrincess, BSN, RN]

Harsh and quite a generalization! Anyways, to OP: GO FOR IT! In this economy it isn't often you get a chance to get a job you actually want. Pay the $3000 and never look back. :)

The reason why investing in the younger ones--this is one of them. Just ask HR. I did.

Moreover, the fact that trying to back out of $3000 as if it could just be exchanged...how presumptive.

OP is the one of the reasons we don't hire new grads. Just because of this attitude.

[sunnycalifRN]

The reason why investing in the younger ones--this is one of them. Just ask HR. I did.

Moreover, the fact that trying to back out of $3000 as if it could just be exchanged...how presumptive.

OP is the one of the reasons we don't hire new grads. Just because of this attitude.

I don't know if the hiring policy is because of that attitude; I think that it's all dollars & cents. The hospital invests a lot of money into the training of a new grad and a certain number will bail out after getting a little experience.

We've instituted a new grad residency program to try to address the problem of those who think the "grass is always greener!" Having never gone through the program, I don't know what penalties and commitments are in place.

[PetiteOpRN]

The reason why investing in the younger ones--this is one of them. Just ask HR. I did.

Moreover, the fact that trying to back out of $3000 as if it could just be exchanged...how presumptive.

OP is the one of the reasons we don't hire new grads. Just because of this attitude.

I agree, I wish there was a "first year out of school etiquette" class in nursing school, but there isn't. New grads do not understand what a liability they really are. The OP is very lucky to have an employer who seems to bending over backwards for her. Just about every new RN goes through the "the grass is greener at that other facility" syndrome during the first year, and hospitals loose their initial investment.

I wonder if managers have a column for "money spent to train new staff who will leave at the drop of a hat" in their budgets, because we spend a fair chunk of change this way.

I absolutely advocate nurses doing what they need to to promote their own happiness and further their careers, however, the OP should be aware of the potential negative ramifications of leaving her employer and the process to leave with tact and integrity.

[elkpark]

My thought basically boiled down to "Would I pay $3000 to be happy to go to work everyday?". The resounding answer was YES!!! Whether I not I can get out of the $3000 remains to be seen but, I know I have made the best decision for my family and my career in the long run.

Good luck to you, I know how hard this decision is. Think of it this way....Is $3000 worth being unhappy? Secondly, will you always think...what if? I know I would.

Thoughts are with ya!!

Think of it as a business decision. How much more will you be making at job 2? I bet you would probably make up that money in a year. What is the price tag on a job that you will enjoy more, in an area you want to be in? Personally, I would pay the $3000.

Ahhhh, but the catch is that you can't know in advance whether you're going to be "happier" in the one job than in the other -- I've made job changes a number of times in my career because I was (somewhat) unhappy with my current job and expected that the new job would be a big improvement, but found within a few months or so that I wasn't really any better off (or "happier") in the new job than in the old job.

I also agree with JoPACU -- this is one of the reasons so many facilities were starting to balk at hiring new grads even before the economy tanked, because they were getting v. tired of investing in new grads who then didn't want to live up to their side of the agreement.

To the OP, if you feel so strongly that you have to get out of the commitment you made to this employer, then at least do it the right way and pay back pleasantly whatever you're required to pay back without trying to weasel out of it. And, even if you do so and give them a decent notice, don't necessarily expect them to be willing to take a chance on hiring you again in the future.

[Grumpygs, MSN, RN]

It would be nice if some of us new grads could take over the job that the OP is giving up... I have my license now and haven't gotten as much as a call back from the many, many applications that I have submitted.

I fully understand that hospitals pay/spend a lot of money on new grads, I would just like the opportunity to prove myself - I've been at my current (non-nursing, non-medical) job for over 20 years - I'm not looking to get training and jump ship - I'm looking to stay for the long haul.

[GM2RN]

I fully understand that hospitals pay/spend a lot of money on new grads, I would just like the opportunity to prove myself - I've been at my current (non-nursing, non-medical) job for over 20 years - I'm not looking to get training and jump ship - I'm looking to stay for the long haul.

What's ironic is that the OP probably would have said the same thing before being hired for her first job.

I'm on the fence about this. While I agree with some of the others that you should fulfill your commitment, I also know that the hospital wouldn't think twice about letting you go if it suited them, contract or no. In the end I guess I have to go along with those who say to leave if you must, but at least do it right by giving proper notice and paying back the $3K. That's little enough to ask for them to have taken a chance on hiring you in the first place.

[us2uk4u]

$3K divided into 2 years comes to about $4.10 per day. Is $4.10 per day worth your happiness and enjoying what you do?

But I do hope that you plan to leave on good terms with your current employer because you never know who you will work for again in the future. Which probably means pay the $3K and don't try to find loop holes in the contract.

[PacoUSA, BSN, RN]

It would be nice if some of us new grads could take over the job that the OP is giving up... I have my license now and haven't gotten as much as a call back from the many, many applications that I have submitted.

I fully understand that hospitals pay/spend a lot of money on new grads, I would just like the opportunity to prove myself - I've been at my current (non-nursing, non-medical) job for over 20 years - I'm not looking to get training and jump ship - I'm looking to stay for the long haul.

I feel the same way. I am 41 and when I do pass the NCLEX and start working as an RN I would be more than happy to stay somewhere for at least 5 years minimum if I can help it, especially if they paid me an incentive such as a scholarship. Compared to what I have endured for the past 10, such a commitment is not a problem on my end.

And I also feel that the increase of nurses breaking these contracts, even if the hospitals are reimbursed, are causing the opportunities to disappear for us that are hoping to have such when we are ready to enter the profession.

[Zookeeper3]

We require a contract, we will hold the last paycheck and PTO's until the contract is paid back. OUr issue was training new grads in the ICU, they got their year and went traveling or what not. It is very expensive to train for the first year and not at least get a few years of a solid nurse in return.

I hope other new nurses out there read this and think about contracts before signing them. When you're offered your first job, you think you'll be there forever. ONce you realize how hard nursing really is then you start looking around. Then you second guess that contract.

Its an expensive lesson, and you very likely will be held to the payment.

[HeartsOpenWide, RN]

Why were you even looking for other jobs if you signed a contract? Its like these people that think it is so horrible that the credit card companies are hounding them...you made an agreement to pay them in exchange for borrowing the money; you are not keeping your end of the deal so they are going after what is theirs...a new grad cost about $60,000 to train; you can not afford to break your contract? They can not afford to train people that just up and leave.

[PacoUSA, BSN, RN]

a new grad cost about $60,000 to train; you can not afford to break your contract? They can not afford to train people that just up and leave.

.... OMG! Call me naive, but I had no idea it was that much, are we factoring in costs not including the RN's salary??

[Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN]

OP: you signed a legal contract and made a committment to working for them that is just as binding as the committment they made to training you. I'm not saying don't leave the job, as once-in-a-lifetime opportunities are few and far between--when they come your way, then you need to grab them! But if you decide to quit, IMO it's rather irresponsible of you to expect to be let off of the hook as far as the penalty goes.

You will probably have to pony up the $3000...as others said, it may be a short-term hit you have to take as you move towards your long-term goal. Then again, you may be burning a bridge with this place by breaking the contract--and you definitely will be burning it if you try to fight them on the $3000 while doing so--and you never know if you'll find yourself needing another job there, or even needing just a reference.

Good luck whatever you decide.