Wage Increase for All RNs But Not Me Please advise

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I am a nurse in administration. When I took this position my wage was increased by 2 dollars and hour. I care for Infection Control, Employee Health, Survey Readiness, Education and am an active member of our nursing leadership team. A substantial increase was voted for RNs. It means that a staff nurse with less experience than mine will be making more money than I do by about 1,000 dollars per month. I am the only RN on the leadership team with the exception of our COO who is already highly compensated that would not receive this raise. :o I would receive only a 3% raise which will not come even close to the others. Am I wrong to feel this is totally unfair? I am also salaried and when I do work extra clinically I only receive straight time!! Any thoughts?

This is a good example of something that I think contributes to the nursing shortage. Bedside care is traditionally seen by many as the "bottom rung" in nursing. Since I have made a conscious choice to remain at the bedside for 30 years, and have no intention of moving into a different type of nursing, this bothers me. We need all the various positions in order for it all to work. Goodness knows, I don't want to make out schedules, get ready for Jayco (sp), and all those other administrative tasks. I don't always enjoy patient care either; it isn't that "I love what I do". I do like it, but I know I wouldn't like the other stuff. I have 30 years worth of practice on my skills, and an excellent knowledge base on which to base my assessments and plans for my patients. So I have chosen to stay at the patient's side, and with this decision comes automatically the knowledge that I will work weekends and holidays for the remainder of my work life.

I am not complaining about this, as it is my choice. But I really believe that the various avenues of nursing should be seen as lateral positions, not a move up, thereby deserving of more money. The general implication has always been that to "advance" in one's career, one "gets out" of patient care. This strikes me as sad and frustrating and is a contributory factor in the feeling that many bedside care-givers have of lack of respect. If you sense that most view you as the bottom rung of a career, it is frustrating when you believe differently.

I am not trying to pick a fight; really. I've heard many many nurses say something similar to what you wrote, and it has always hit me as ironic. Who else would do the patient care if no, and I mean NO RN's did it? If we all "advanced" away from the bedside?

Respectfully.

It was never my intent to disrespect in anyway bedside nurses. If you carefully read my post you would see I still work clinically when needed. I too did bedside nursing for over 30 years, I pursued education and spent countless hours preparing to take this position. I frequently work more than 40 hours without overtime and I hope one day to be DON or COO. Do you truly believe this added responsibility does not deserve added compensation. Someone has to do the administrative work as well. I hope that your health holds out and your knees and back. Mine did not and I worked very hard to position myself to complete my career in administration while keeping my hand in clinically. It is not that I don't feel the bedside nurses deserve their raise. I do. But I feel I do also.

:)

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It was never my intent to disrespect in anyway bedside nurses. If you carefully read my post you would see I still work clinically when needed. I too did bedside nursing for over 30 years, I pursued education and spent countless hours preparing to take this position. I frequently work more than 40 hours without overtime and I hope one day to be DON or COO. Do you truly believe this added responsibility does not deserve added compensation. Someone has to do the administrative work as well. I hope that your health holds out and your knees and back. Mine did not and I worked very hard to position myself to complete my career in administration while keeping my hand in clinically. It is not that I don't feel the bedside nurses deserve their raise. I do. But I feel I do also.

:)

Witnurse,

My post was in reply to a post by another poster, not yours. You have been most reasonable, and sound like a good nurse, both clinically and administratively, and deserve to be paid well. My words in my post were a direct gut reaction to the post quoted in my post, and was not motivated by anything you posted. You are absolutely right, that someone has to do the administrative work, and I said so in my post too. We are in agreement on that.

I too hope that my health and knees and back hold out. I am sorry to hear that you have trouble in this area, it is a most painful and frustrating thing. I wish you the best, and good luck in all you pursue.

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Your frustration is understandable. Nurse leaders/administrators should be individuals who have demonstrated exceptional skill as staff nurses and possess further skill and knowledge to be leaders. The extra knowledge and leadership abilty qualify leaders for some sort of added benefit. That benefit may be pay or other perks.

The nurse leader does not however deserve higher pay or benefits because they have "put in their time in the trenches." All nurses make great sacrifices everyday. If you are a capable and knowledgable leader, which I am sure you are, you should discuss your concerns with your employer and negotiate a mutually satisfying pay or benefit package.

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