Why In The Heck Should I Be A Loyal Nurse?

[hiddencatRN, BSN, RN]

Companies were loyal in "the good old days" because the labor movement was much stronger and unafraid to exercise their power. Pensions and benefits were not just a gift that companies decided to dole out to their employees- those are all the winnings of the labor movement. The decline in pensions, benefits and incentives to stay with one employer go hand in hand with a weakening of the labor movement in the face of globalization, outsourcing and political changes. It's a major pet peeve of mine when people talk about past labor relations as being totally rosy and nice without giving a nod to the fact that labor waged a battle for that stuff.

[fafine]

In summary, I am loyal to myself. I am loyal to my patients while I am on the clock and providing care to them. However, I will never be loyal to any entity that employs me. As soon as the people in upper management get tired of me, I know they’ll terminate my employment without losing one minute of sleep over me. And as soon as my workplace no longer meets my needs, I will quit without feeling a morsel of guilt. The feeling is mutual these days. It’s nothing personal.

You are so right "The Commuter....thats exactly how i feel!

[Bluebelle74]

I think the reality is that it depends on the type, size, location of the hospital. Bigger hospitals run like a big business and RARELY show loyalty to anything other than money. Smaller hospitals USUALLY feel more like a family and are loyal to their employees..

[wooh, BSN, RN]

In most of those cases, though, the displaced nurses and even nurse executives were offered other jobs within the network or at the very least, the first opportunity to bid on any open positions. The only nurses jobless at the end of the restructuring were those who chose to be.

My workplace eliminated a department. Nurses had to find their own jobs within the system or leave. If there wasn't a suitable opening, oh well.

[MattNurse, MSN, RN]

I look out for myself. I feel no loyalty with my current employer. I will drop them the second I get an offer for better money or sign on bonus somewhere else. I don't work for charity.

[dirtyhippiegirl, BSN, RN]

I started my career in the late 70s, and in all of the years since, I have never seen what the OP describes as standard operating procedure. Executives, including nurse executives may wax and wane in favor, and I have seen entire departments eliminated or merged with other departments. In most of those cases, though, the displaced nurses and even nurse executives were offered other jobs within the network or at the very least, the first opportunity to bid on any open positions. The only nurses jobless at the end of the restructuring were those who chose to be. The only place I've ever "seen" the type of disloyalty to employees described by the OP is in the large California HMO where my sister, as nurse executive, purges her staff from time to time. I'd always assumed it was my sister's disloyalty to her employees, not the HMO's, although I could be wrong.

In my current job, working for a large healthcare system, what I've seen is that every employee we've had to let go as a poor fit is offered 2-4 weeks pay after their employment ends and all possible assistance in finding a new job within the system. Only the employees who are fired for cause (like the guy whose solution to a recalcitrant Pyxis was to kick in the screen or the guy who was found passed out in the employee bathroom surrounded by vials of Fentanyl with a needle in his arm) aren't offered the chance to find a new position in the system. That's the way it's been everywhere I've worked in the past 35 years.

Just because you haven't experienced something doesn't mean that it doesn't exist. Even if you enjoy using your crusty old bat status or whatever to your advantage.

[Ruby Vee, BSN]

Just because you haven't experienced something doesn't mean that it doesn't exist. Even if you enjoy using your crusty old bat status or whatever to your advantage.

While it's true that just because I -- or my numerous nurse friends -- have not experienced something, it does not mean it doesn't exist, it does mean that that thing is not universally true.

[amandatRN]

Great Article! I only show as much respect as I am shown.

[KelRN215, BSN, RN]

I feel some loyalty towards my manager. There have been a couple times she's looked out for me. That's not being naive, as I was burned badly before I started working for her, so I've got my eyes wide open. She really is a good boss. (As far as bosses go! :) )

But the company? Not so much. I'm just as loyal towards them as they are towards the nursing staff. And that is NONE. They'll screw us over in a heartbeat. Little things here and there add up to big things. They talk a good game with their non-profit philanthropic spouting off about our mission and ideals. But they're just as full of corporate doublespeak as an HCA or Wal-Mart.

I felt this way for a while but then the mistreatment from the institution became too much to bear. My manager was very very good to me during a time of personal and medical crisis and I felt loyal to her because of that. Then when things settled down for me personally, I asked a few too many questions about the way the institution did things and began to see their true colors. I resigned shortly thereafter.

In response to the article... I'm 28 and have been a nurse for 5 years and have already had more/as many employers as both of my parents. My father worked for the same company (pretty much... it got bought out by larger companies a few times but he stayed through it all) for his entire career and my mother, a teacher for nearly 40 years, has worked in 3 school systems in all these years. She's been in the same one for the past 20ish and I'm sure will retire there. I entered my career at my "dream hospital" with part of me thinking that I could spend my career there. 4 1/2 years later, I realized there was just no way I could stay in a relationship with the institution.

[Joaquin49, BSN, RN]

Great article, I worked in a health institution for 8 years, management fired most of the well seasoned nurses and replaced us with new grads. The world is ruthless sometimes.

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

I worked in a health institution for 8 years, management fired most of the well seasoned nurses and replaced us with new grads. The world is ruthless sometimes.

This doesn't surprise me one bit. Most seasoned nurses have topped out on the wage grid and are earning top pay, whereas new grads often start at the lowest pay rate on the wage grid. The bean counters figure they're saving plenty of money by replacing 'expensive nurses' with cheaper labor, but they're not taking account the wealth of knowledge, experience, and the unspoken 'spidey sense' that highly seasoned nurses bring to the table.

We need the highly experienced nurses to transfer their knowledge and skills to the next generation of nurses. Whatever we do, management would be foolish to continue kicking seasoned nurses to the curb just because they earn 'too much money.'

[mariebailey, MSN, RN]

This is a great article. I've been told "Your generation will go work somewhere else in a heartbeat for 25 cents more an hour" (or something to that effect). This explains what I haven't adequately articulated: this is not the same work environment it was decades ago, and you cannot be loyal to an organization without trust that the loyalty is mutual. In my 1st job out of nursing school, the organization laid off 10% of its staff and sent many into early retirement in my 1st 2 years there. Lesson learned: allegiance to an employer may not be judicious.