Why hasn’t pay increased? Hazard pay, etc.?

Nurses COVID

Updated:   Published

Why hasn’t pay increased? Hazard pay, etc.? Especially considering that multiple hospitals lack supplies for PPE and we are frontline workers.

9 Votes
Specializes in school nurse.

I bet the fact that the economy is crashing may be one of the reasons.

8 Votes
Specializes in ED, med-surg, peri op.

I think this is very selfish. Thousands of people have lost their jobs. People are in financial crisis. The economy is crashing. Asking for more money for doing your job, which you chose, you know the risk we are at every single day, Is just rude!

12 Votes

There really isn't much incentive for hospitals to offer hazard pay right now. Even if staffing is tight, most people won't quit their jobs and lose their employer-sponsored health insurance mid-pandemic, especially when all of the other nursing jobs that are currently hiring would put you in the line of fire for COVID.

Hospitals with unions might be able to swing it, but I'm sure it would be a crazy time for negotiations since so many regions are in crisis mode.

It would be nice if hospitals offered hazard pay, but I'm sure they're also hurting financially given all of the new measures they're having to put into place. Hospitals' greatest revenue tends to come from surgeries and invasive procedures; many are losing a lot of anticipated revenue because they've cancelled their non-emergent surgeries. I'm sure the logistics of implementing all of these no protocols aren't cheap, either. Even if hospitals wanted to offer a hazard diff, they might not be able to afford it.

If people do get hazard pay, I doubt it would be more than $1 per hour, maybe $2. In the military, the hazard pay for soldiers in armed combat is only $150 a month (which is about $1/hour if you work 40 hour work weeks), and that job is far more hazardous than what we do. IMO, getting an extra $12 per shift wouldn't make the risks any more 'worth my while.'

Honestly, I'd rather have the hospital use that revenue to procure more PPE than get a couple of extra bucks per shift.

15 Votes
Specializes in NICU/Mother-Baby/Peds/Mgmt.

Nurses aren't even demanding adequate PPE, they're not going to ask for more money. Though I have heard of some C19 associated jobs (mostly) paying well lately so some places are realizing nurses are worth it. I'm must wondering if the doctors are getting extra money?

7 Votes
Specializes in Former NP now Internal medicine PGY-3.
20 hours ago, gcupid said:

Why hasn’t pay increased? Hazard pay, etc.? Especially considering that multiple hospitals lack supplies for PPE and we are frontline workers.

Be glad you are in healthcare with a stable job and quit expecting a pat on the back.

Also, don’t be one of those nurses on fb who remind everyone else q12 hours that they still have to go to work. Just do your job

14 Votes
10 hours ago, Tegridy said:

Be glad you are in healthcare with a stable job and quit expecting a pat on the back.

Also, don’t be one of those nurses on fb who remind everyone else q12 hours that they still have to go to work. Just do your job

I will be sure to follow that order. MSN,APRN,NP

But I don't expect a pat on the back and I'm pretty sure a lot of us dont have that expectation because if many of us did have that expectation we would no longer be registered nurses without the MSN,APRN, np. or no longer be registered period.

Reading comprehension is paramount. I believe the expectation from us frontline workers is to have the equipment available to perform our jobs safely. If there is no minimum safety standard being upheld, is it possible that hazard pay is a fair request?

24 Votes
2 hours ago, adventure_rn said:

There really isn't much incentive for hospitals to offer hazard pay right now. Even if staffing is tight, most people won't quit their jobs and lose their employer-sponsored health insurance mid-pandemic, especially when all of the other nursing jobs that are currently hiring would put you in the line of fire for COVID.

Hospitals with unions might be able to swing it, but I'm sure it would be a crazy time for negotiations since so many regions are in crisis mode.

It would be nice if hospitals offered hazard pay, but I'm sure they're also hurting financially given all of the new measures they're having to put into place. Hospitals' greatest revenue tends to come from surgeries and invasive procedures; many are losing a lot of anticipated revenue because they've cancelled their non-emergent surgeries. I'm sure the logistics of implementing all of these no protocols aren't cheap, either. Even if hospitals wanted to offer a hazard diff, they might not be able to afford it.

If people do get hazard pay, I doubt it would be more than $1 per hour, maybe $2. In the military, the hazard pay for soldiers in armed combat is only $150 a month (which is about $1/hour if you work 40 hour work weeks), and that job is far more hazardous than what we do. IMO, getting an extra $12 per shift wouldn't make the risks any more 'worth my while.'

Honestly, I'd rather have the hospital use that revenue to procure more PPE than get a couple of extra bucks per shift.

I'm pretty sure we'd all rather PPE than extra money but in the mean time bc some facilities are going without enough PPE, can we get hazard pay?

This way of thought is why nurses don't have better pay and working conditions in my eyes. We are considered essential personnel. We can uphold one of the richest nations in the world with our knowledge and actions. There has been billions on billions spent on wars abroad and there is an actual legit viral war going on in the US and the expectation is to not receive hazard pay or believe that hazard pay would only consist of a couple of extra bucks per shift.

6 Votes
4 hours ago, nznurse93 said:

I think this is very selfish. Thousands of people have lost their jobs. People are in financial crisis. The economy is crashing. Asking for more money for doing your job, which you chose, you know the risk we are at every single day, Is just rude!

With all due respect, some of us were willing to take those risks because we knew that there would be some type of minimum protective equipment provided in order to safely do our jobs.

I've come across some old school nurses that practiced when there wasn't gloves to provide care except for sterile procedures. They would wipe butts and snot off of peoples faces like patient's were new born babies. I'm sorry, if there were no gloves available, I would not be wiping anyone's orifice or changing these infected wounds or deep suctioning patients or holding basins filled with vomit, etc.

Also, "thousands have lost their jobs," I'm pretty sure family that have a nurse in it will be expecting the nurses to pick up the slack to maintain bills while at the same time having the expectation that the nurse in their family doesn't bring them back a deadly virus.

This way of thinking to me tells me why nurses aren't commanding high salaries and better working conditions.

21 Votes
Specializes in Former NP now Internal medicine PGY-3.
10 hours ago, gcupid said:

I will be sure to follow that order. MSN,APRN,NP

But I don't expect a pat on the back and I'm pretty sure a lot of us dont have that expectation because if many of us did have that expectation we would no longer be registered nurses without the MSN,APRN, np. or no longer be registered period.

Reading comprehension is paramount. I believe the expectation from us frontline workers is to have the equipment available to perform our jobs safely. If there is no minimum safety standard being upheld, is it possible that hazard pay is a fair request?

If PPE isn’t adequate then speak out against that. Asking for or expecting hazard pay is silly.

3 Votes
4 hours ago, Jedrnurse said:

I bet the fact that the economy is crashing may be one of the reasons.

Okay, well where's some of this magical bail out money that seems to come when corporations are failing? Who is fighting for the bedside individuals who are putting themselves at risk? You guys people have died from this virus.

6 Votes
9 hours ago, Tegridy said:

If PPE isn’t adequate then speak out against that. Asking for or expecting hazard pay is silly.

This forum does not give you authority to order.

I Will speak out against whatever I desire to speak out against. Save those orders for your work environment in which you have those privileges.

14 Votes
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