Sure didn't expect this!

Ask for less money.... This is the best way to compete in the job market nowadays, employees want cheap labor. Show off your skills, get a few more certificates and offer to do the job for less. If you can get into the facility and speak to the manager you could try and win them over with your awesome personality.

Is this REALLY ok? Ask for less money? To just accept that after of humping your behind for YEARS (in my case 35) and say it is ok to be paid as a new grad?

If that is the case what sort of precedent are we setting?

The whole thing makes me sick and angry....

Age discrimination is alive and well in nursing! It's alive and well in every profession however IMHO it is new to nursing. I think the OP is pretty active considering she was injured riding a motorcycle. (I am gald you are better OP)

I remember the day when experienced nurses we honored and rewarded...they were respected and sought after. It is a dirty rotten shame that experienced nurses are being ignored and tossed out like trash. I think it is the problem with nursing and mistakes.....there are no proper mentors guiding the new into their roles. Back in the day you were promoted because you were stellar in your position. You had the experience and skills. You were respected. You led by example. The nurse executives were promoted from the trenches and empathized with the working bedside nurses.

Now....they are hired for letters after their name. No bedside experience. They want to do things according to "evidence based practice" however if you have never "practiced" at the bedside what's your evidence? I know...all the written academic articles by the same individuals who have never practiced at the bedside crunching the statistics.

It is very easy to say.....go back to school. Well it isn't that easy. My prerequisites are 35 years old. My Math, English, and other gen ed's are 35 years old. I will have 2 children in college in September. Do I, or can I, take on my own college debt? NO! Why on earth would I spend a minimum of $12,000.00 excluding any prerequisites at my age?

When did all my knowledge and experience become worthless?

Sad state of affairs.

OP I feel your pain. Some have suggested Telephone triage....well every one I applied for sought a "better candidate as your qualifications surpassed the position".

Is this REALLY ok? Ask for less money? To just accept that after of humping your behind for YEARS (in my case 35) and say it is ok to be paid as a new grad?

If that is the case what sort of precedent are we setting?

The whole thing makes me sick and angry....

The precedent being set? The one that says it is not desirable to be unemployed. Each and every employer that bothered to talk about available work recently, offered me CNA wages and told me to my face that they weren't going to pay me for my qualifications. In one instance, the person told me they would be interviewing a new grad half an hour after my appointment. She was smiling as she said this. This is not handwriting on the wall, it is the unemployment compensation ending for many. Nobody likes to be unemployed.

I became a nurse after 40. Fortunately, all employers don't discriminate.

I think it is more experience/age driven.

The precedent being set? The one that says it is not desirable to be unemployed. Each and every employer that bothered to talk about available work recently, offered me CNA wages and told me to my face that they weren't going to pay me for my qualifications. In one instance, the person told me they would be interviewing a new grad half an hour after my appointment. She was smiling as she said this. This is not handwriting on the wall, it is the unemployment compensation ending for many. Nobody likes to be unemployed.

You know what....I'd probably go back to bar tending. At least there you can get tips.

I have never tended bar, or I would be there, or at a restaurant as a hostess, if not waiting table. I can assure you, it was not easy to keep my cool. The employers "conveniently" have never called back. One can not flat out refuse if they are still drawing unemployment benefits, so that makes it very difficult to really tell someone what one thinks in these instances. The disgusting aspect is that ALL of the employers in the area are lowering their wages. So, if you want to work as a nurse......

Age discrimination is very much alive and well these days. Employers can't NOT hire based on age alone, but they can (and will) find a million other reasons not to hire an experienced nurse who's past her prime working years. I looked for months, and interviewed for a number of positions that I would have easily gotten just a few years ago. Unfortunately, I have some dings and dents in my resume (too many jobs where I didn't last long) and that pretty much finished me off.

I am disabled now, so the job search is over. I recently renewed my nursing license just in case I decide I want to volunteer to revitalize the parish nurse program at my church. But unless some miracle happens and a no-stress nursing job opens up (!) I will just have to wait for Social Security to make a decision as to whether I'm disabled enough to get payments. This does not appear to be the OP's problem. But if ageism is indeed a factor in her inability to find suitable work, there have been some really good suggestions made, including updating the appearance and at least becoming tech-savvy if she isn't already. Not everyone can afford further schooling or has the desire to go, although it's a good idea if the money is there. There are a lot more jobs available to nurses with advanced degrees.