Why are Florida RNs paid so low?

elkpark · Jul 15, 2010

For the same reason that everyone else (regular people with regular jobs) gets paid so little in FL -- because employers can get away with it. It's simple "supply & demand" -- so many people want to live in FL that employers can be v. cavalier about how they treat employees; if one person quits, there will be plenty of other people who want that job, no matter how lousy the pay and benefits are.

My sister moved back home (we were both born and raised in FL) from TX a few years ago to be near our aging parents; she not only was not able to find any decent employment or affordable housing in the area we grew up in and in which my parents still live (she ended up in a larger city two hours away), the only job she could find meant a big pay cut (she has many years of experience and excellent references -- she was at the top of her field in TX). Potential employers didn't care what she had to offer; their attitude was take it or leave it; if you don't want the lousy salary we're offering, there are a hundred other warm bodies who do.

CrunchRN, ADN, RN · Jul 15, 2010

Because they pay you in sunshine and palm trees - LOL! :jester: :smokin:

gerryNYC · Jul 16, 2010

that is truly unfortunate:mad:

FLmomof5 · Jul 16, 2010

I believe that unless you are talking Miami, you have been misinformed about the COL here. My brother is a NYC nurse as well and he makes 6 figures.....but his Manhattan apt (2 BR small sq ft) was $3000/mo! Here in Jax you could live on the beach in a large house for that kind of money! Also, in NYC you have NYS income tax AND NYC income tax. For my brother who is a smoker....packs are now over $10 ea! Forget owning a car....the parking fees/mo are more than we pay in payments.

I attended St Francis Prep and Manhattan College for my undergrad degree so I do have knowledge of the area. My parents retired to LI about a mile from my sis. I could not believe what they paid for a Levitt house (build in 1945) 18 yrs ago....$285K!

I have a 2000 sq ft 4 BR/2BA brand new (3 yrs old) home (on a large fenced lot) with central air (we KNOW that wasn't available in the city!!! LOL), 2 car garage and I paid $200K for it. I have a paid off 2000 Dodge Neon (DD drives it), 2002 Dodge Grand Caravan (mine), 2004 Toyota Highlander, a 2004 Honda VTX 1800 and a pair of 2005 Honda turbo jet skis. :) Of course we have a neighborhood pool complex. Traffic is laughable....if you have to slow down below 75 mph....you are considered "in heavy traffic"!! LOL (Compare that with the LIE, CIP, XBrxExprwy...) We have winter....it is called January. We MIGHT get to 32 degrees. No SNOW to shovel, no ice or slush to drive on.... Gas is $2.55/gal. Smokes (Gads! I shouldn't be saying this on a nursing site!) can be purchased for $32/carton (breaks down to $3.20 per pack). NO INCOME TAX. Our sales tax is about the same as yours...+/1 a percent. Then lets talk property tax...ummm...my parents pay 3X what I pay and I have more house and land. Beaches aren't crowded....not like Jones. A dinner out on the town is probably half of what one would pay in the city. No tolls here in Jax....and about 5 bridges and a few interstate highways.

One has to look at the whole picture. I was appalled by the first salary offer I got when I started working at Winn-Dixie corporate offices. I had been earning over $65K - 75K for 15 years and they offered $58K!!!! OMG!!! Well, I was unemployed and took it. I never really noticed the reduction in pay! (My first mortgage here was $1300/mo).

Nursing will be a cut in pay for me. (about $15/hr).

What you have to do is ask yourself, what is it you want? What do you enjoy?

Yes, we earn much less...but that alone reduces what we pay in fed income tax too. It isn't what you are paid. It is the lifestyle you can get from what you are paid. (IMHO)

CrunchRN, ADN, RN · Jul 16, 2010

man, I wanna move there now!

gerryNYC · Jul 16, 2010

I believe that unless you are talking Miami, you have been misinformed about the COL here. My brother is a NYC nurse as well and he makes 6 figures.....but his Manhattan apt (2 BR small sq ft) was $3000/mo! Here in Jax you could live on the beach in a large house for that kind of money! Also, in NYC you have NYS income tax AND NYC income tax. For my brother who is a smoker....packs are now over $10 ea! Forget owning a car....the parking fees/mo are more than we pay in payments.
I attended St Francis Prep and Manhattan College for my undergrad degree so I do have knowledge of the area. My parents retired to LI about a mile from my sis. I could not believe what they paid for a Levitt house (build in 1945) 18 yrs ago....$285K!
I have a 2000 sq ft 4 BR/2BA brand new (3 yrs old) home (on a large fenced lot) with central air (we KNOW that wasn't available in the city!!! LOL), 2 car garage and I paid $200K for it. I have a paid off 2000 Dodge Neon (DD drives it), 2002 Dodge Grand Caravan (mine), 2004 Toyota Highlander, a 2004 Honda VTX 1800 and a pair of 2005 Honda turbo jet skis. :) Of course we have a neighborhood pool complex. Traffic is laughable....if you have to slow down below 75 mph....you are considered "in heavy traffic"!! LOL (Compare that with the LIE, CIP, XBrxExprwy...) We have winter....it is called January. We MIGHT get to 32 degrees. No SNOW to shovel, no ice or slush to drive on.... Gas is $2.55/gal. Smokes (Gads! I shouldn't be saying this on a nursing site!) can be purchased for $32/carton (breaks down to $3.20 per pack). NO INCOME TAX. Our sales tax is about the same as yours...+/1 a percent. Then lets talk property tax...ummm...my parents pay 3X what I pay and I have more house and land. Beaches aren't crowded....not like Jones. A dinner out on the town is probably half of what one would pay in the city. No tolls here in Jax....and about 5 bridges and a few interstate highways.
One has to look at the whole picture. I was appalled by the first salary offer I got when I started working at Winn-Dixie corporate offices. I had been earning over $65K - 75K for 15 years and they offered $58K!!!! OMG!!! Well, I was unemployed and took it. I never really noticed the reduction in pay! (My first mortgage here was $1300/mo).
Nursing will be a cut in pay for me. (about $15/hr).
What you have to do is ask yourself, what is it you want? What do you enjoy?
Yes, we earn much less...but that alone reduces what we pay in fed income tax too. It isn't what you are paid. It is the lifestyle you can get from what you are paid. (IMHO)

It still does not add up. I live in Queens, my rent is similar than if I lived in FL, my car is paid for etc...I just think that FL nurses are getting paid wayyyyy too low.

mandarr213 · Jul 17, 2010

You think Florida is bad...try starting out in Iowa. Base pay for a new RN grad is $19.00/hr. Ouch! Lol

gerryNYC · Jul 18, 2010

that is soooo loww. I just cannot comprehend it :down:

Preeps · Jul 18, 2010

The pay rate for RN's in Fl. is low. However when you actually compare the rate against say a NYC nurse it is pretty comparable actually. Fl has no state income tax. What is the N.Y rate, 7%? That makes a huge difference. We have no sales tax and the cost of living is quite a bit lower. Especially now with the economy in the tank you can purchase a 3 bedroom 2 bath home in Central Fl for between 120-250k. There is nothing close in N.Y.

I would say a nurse who makes 60k in Fl. would need to make 90-100k to live in N.Y to have the same purchasing power. So it all depends on where you prefer to live. I just think people that make 90k and then they see a 60k salary think they are taking a huge pay cut when actually the purchasing power is about the same.

Danoob · Jul 18, 2010

We do have a sales tax in Florida. State income tax no, but sales yes.

It is really hard to compare NYC with the entire state of FL. Florida has many different places to live with cost of living varying quite a bit. I am in south Florida and I would say that wage/cost of living is really not balanced.

johndz · Jul 18, 2010

I believe that unless you are talking Miami, you have been misinformed about the COL here. My brother is a NYC nurse as well and he makes 6 figures.....but his Manhattan apt (2 BR small sq ft) was $3000/mo! Here in Jax you could live on the beach in a large house for that kind of money! Also, in NYC you have NYS income tax AND NYC income tax. For my brother who is a smoker....packs are now over $10 ea! Forget owning a car....the parking fees/mo are more than we pay in payments.
I attended St Francis Prep and Manhattan College for my undergrad degree so I do have knowledge of the area. My parents retired to LI about a mile from my sis. I could not believe what they paid for a Levitt house (build in 1945) 18 yrs ago....$285K!
I have a 2000 sq ft 4 BR/2BA brand new (3 yrs old) home (on a large fenced lot) with central air (we KNOW that wasn't available in the city!!! LOL), 2 car garage and I paid $200K for it. I have a paid off 2000 Dodge Neon (DD drives it), 2002 Dodge Grand Caravan (mine), 2004 Toyota Highlander, a 2004 Honda VTX 1800 and a pair of 2005 Honda turbo jet skis. :) Of course we have a neighborhood pool complex. Traffic is laughable....if you have to slow down below 75 mph....you are considered "in heavy traffic"!! LOL (Compare that with the LIE, CIP, XBrxExprwy...) We have winter....it is called January. We MIGHT get to 32 degrees. No SNOW to shovel, no ice or slush to drive on.... Gas is $2.55/gal. Smokes (Gads! I shouldn't be saying this on a nursing site!) can be purchased for $32/carton (breaks down to $3.20 per pack). NO INCOME TAX. Our sales tax is about the same as yours...+/1 a percent. Then lets talk property tax...ummm...my parents pay 3X what I pay and I have more house and land. Beaches aren't crowded....not like Jones. A dinner out on the town is probably half of what one would pay in the city. No tolls here in Jax....and about 5 bridges and a few interstate highways.
One has to look at the whole picture. I was appalled by the first salary offer I got when I started working at Winn-Dixie corporate offices. I had been earning over $65K - 75K for 15 years and they offered $58K!!!! OMG!!! Well, I was unemployed and took it. I never really noticed the reduction in pay! (My first mortgage here was $1300/mo).
Nursing will be a cut in pay for me. (about $15/hr).
What you have to do is ask yourself, what is it you want? What do you enjoy?
Yes, we earn much less...but that alone reduces what we pay in fed income tax too. It isn't what you are paid. It is the lifestyle you can get from what you are paid. (IMHO)

North Florida is MUCH,MUCH cheaper than anywhere in south florida, comparing the COL in the north and the south might as well be the same as comparing different states.