We make as much as maids

Nurses General Nursing

Published

I just have to vent. I have been interviewing for a cleaning woman and would you believe many of them asked for $20/hr!! That's cash by the way! I am so angry that many nurses are making the same hourly salary as a maid and WHY WHY WHY are more nurses not angry about thier pay? I am furious that so many non degreed positions make the same or more than we do. Why haven't nurses stood for their rights??? I am new but I would love to bring nursing salaries to the negotiating tables. I am so angry.

I make about 35-40/hour doing acute dialysis but I have an exceptional job. I'm not sure where you live but 20/hour is a salary of about 38k/year. That is pretty low unless you live in a rural area. Any nurse that has a brain and cares about money finds ways to make decent money. If I didnt have this job I would either work strictly agency or a weekend program where the pay is closer to 30-40/hour. I refuse to work for less than 30/hour, preferably more. By the way, the starting pay in my area for an RN is 20/hour. Screw that.

yeah, gosh, I wish all non-educated people would just learn to know their place and accept poverty as god's will for them too.

WHAT THE HECK??????????????????????????????????/

I strongly suggest you read "Nickled and Dimed" by Barbara Ehrenreich. there is a section in that book about maids I think you would find interesting......

According to the Department of Labor:

Median annual earnings of registered nurses were $48,090 in 2002. The middle 50 percent earned between $40,140 and $57,490. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $33,970, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $69,670. Median annual earnings in the industries employing the largest numbers of registered nurses in 2002 were as follows:

Employment services $55,980

General medical and surgical hospitals 49,190

Home health care services 45,890

Offices of physicians 44,870

Nursing care facilities 43,850

http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos083.htm

My mom cleans houses for a living and usually her charges start at 15 dollars an hour, but she also has to pay for all her supplies. Yeah I know some windex and paper towels doesnt sound too expensive, but trust me it does all add up. But I agree, I think nurses should definently be paid more.

hey if someone is willing to pay $20 per hour for maid service, then more power to the maid! I agree nurses should be paid more, but in most cases i think the do (much much more!)

Here is Los Angeles, the hospital I am currently working for starts RNs around $22 an hour..... LOS ANGELES!!! It is disgusting. I originally turned the job down and when they asked me why, I told them that I made $15 an hour as a house keeper in college and that I didn't go to school for 4 years to only earn $6 more. Well, they bumped up my starting salary a lot and then I took the job.

As long as Nurses put up with crappy pay, that's what they will get. Same goes for being treated poorly. You put up with it, then that what you're going to get. Nobody else is going to look after you.

When you say nurses make much more than $20 an hour, what do you mean by much?

P.S. I loved housekeeping. No stress, always got my breaks and took them whenever I wanted, never had over time, weekends or holidays and was actually thanked much more often than I am in Nursing.

Specializes in TRAUMA/MED SURG/HOMECARE.

I made $30 as a lvn , iam currently a RN and make $45 plus %nigth shift differential, this is just the 3rd step in pay where I work. also let me remind you housekkepers work very hard and deserve to be pay more, they really do a lot and are not easily reconigsed or respected for their job. we as Nurses already make a decent salary, I know more is better,still want more come on there is enough for everyone.please worry about your own pay and not others..... also please do not look down on people because of their job or education, there has to be a job for everyone rigth? well there has to be a job for people to clean, since there are many that prefer to pay for some one to clean up after them, so therefore there are housekeepers and they deserve to be pay what they work for. hurray for housekeepers, yeeee.

Yes, my sister hired a housekeeper and paid her $20/hr regularly - but that meant this woman had nothing to cover her for EI nor did this kind of cash payment contribute to any kind of government pension for the woman. I think the woman would have been better working for an agency that would have looked after these other aspects.

Specializes in Trauma,ER,CCU/OHU/Nsg Ed/Nsg Research.

Are these maids self-employed? That could be the answer right there. My sis runs her own house-cleaning business, and makes good money doing it. I say more power to them. And really, if I were making enough money to pay someone to clean my house for me, I'd be satisfied.

Specializes in LTC.

I'm getting ready to open a house cleaning service. I'm burned out on nursing and have only been doing it for 9 yrs. I am looking forward to making a decent living and not having to deal w/ junk that goes w/ nursing.

I agree that nurses are underpaid for the amount of stress and responsibility they have.

Of course in this day and time no matter what profession one is in there is always the threat of lawsuits. At least cleaning houses I don't have to worry about killing someone.

I have a new grad LPN friend who is miserable in nursing and wants to leave. I will suggest housecleaning to her- LPNs where I work only make $11.00/hr. Being a maid would be a big pay increase for her!

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