Working with agencies that misrepresent a job

There is no future in occ health nursing! Agencies lie thru the teeth so they can make money. Don't give a hoot about you. Keep away from agencies that promise big money because they are making big money right along side you. You walk in to big messes that you have to clean up or are so back logged with work because there has not been a nurse there in eons. You get squat....no benefits, sick time, .....nothing.

Caliotter,

That's just my point! If a nurse is successful, hard-working and gets a job done, why should she not be offered a position that offers the fringe benefits.("the gravy") Doesn't good performance demonstrate anything? I surmise that hard work may not be the way to go anymore if a company or agency doesn't acknowledge and reward its hardest working employees. Is it all business and no allegiance whatsoever to the employee?

My experience as an Occ nurse has been they don't value you. I don't mean the employees ( they did), but the management does not. First of all, the medical field is foreign to them- they have no idea how much work is involved if you want to run things efficiently.

I was a direct hire and worked in several plants of a major corporation. I had to become audiometry/spirometry certified and was responsible for the employees cpr/first aid training. The employees have to have an annual physical, but that hadn't been done for years. I took on get everyone caught up (close to 200 people) and was responsible for case managing the work related and non work related injuries and back to work program.

The pay was terrible, add to that was the fact that I was considered an exempt employee which means they tried to load more hours on me for no more pay. After I was hired, one of the managers came up to me and said " You know, twice a year we work a 60 hour/week for 3 to 4 weeks and you are expected to work those hours with us". I told him I would be looking for another job soon.

Anne,

Good for you telling them you would be looking for another job. I guess management doesn't realize that there are laws for exempt employees, as well as for non-exempt, for companies that try to "bilk" the employee. The DOL's "Wage and Hour Division" places reasonable caps on exempt employee hours. Many companies do this because the CAN! OR, because they have incredibily stupid management! Unfortunately, these days, it is an employer's market, especially in Occupational Health. Jobs are scarce, competition is high, and corporate frustration mounts daily.

Back in 2000 - 2001 I kept busy doing Occupational Health nursing for an agency with a variety of companies. Motorola was my favorite place to work. They were once the largest employer in Arizona. Now you rarely hear of them and their plants have been sold. Suddenly the work dried up and my agency found me other jobs. Last I heard the RN positions were eliminated or had become contracted and the Worker's Compensation cases shipped to India! Rarely do I see an ad now for an Occupational Health nurse.

Just curious what others have experienced working with Occupational Health nursing agencies? I have found that quite a few agencies lie about what the job entails, often luring you in by promising a temp to hire position within a company only to tell you after you have invested your time and energy that the company is downsizing or closing when they knew it all along--- OR not disclosing that there has been a habitual turnover of nurses due to bad management? Have you found that nurses have now become expendable and easily thrown to the side after being "used"? It seems that agencies and companies are benefiting, but what about the nurse, who often has the rug pulled out from underneath? If so, I would like your feedback on this. I want the heads-up on these agencies that deal dishonestly so I can avoid them. Please name these agencies that are disreparable. Thanks for your feed-back!

I think you may be asking too much to ask people to post the names of disreputable. I have had dealings with both Kelly Healthcare Services and YOH, and they have been very decent. I like them both, and would work for either. I think that sometimes the company is the one that changes their mind. They think..."Hey, we have this great person working for us, and we don't have to pay vacation or benefits, or anything." What a deal for them! So, they just decide to continue that way.

I think most employers misrepresent themselves. Sometimes it's unintentionally since upper echelon are often aloof and unfamiliar with the day-to-day occurrences but also because if they aired their dirty laundry no one, at least not quality people, would come around for more jobs when the positions came open.

Yes, it is too much to ask for names--sorry...

Try this agency, I hear they mean what they say, and say what they mean:

Brnuemup & Queec Nursing Agency:

1) Not one of our contract nurses have expressed a single complaint, we have 100% satisfaction.

2) Every nurse is guaranteed to become permanently hired by the company that they work for within a reasonable amount of time.

3) We give you loads of opportunities so that you can become highly educated in your field.

4) Compensation is guaranteed to be adjusted annually.

5) We've heard of your quality work and we need you, come join us.

6) Generous benefit plan: Physicals, and eye care are free. We have a quality medical insurance plan.

Of course reading between the lines:

1) They know better than complain. A hint of complaining and *poof* bye, bye.

2) Reasonable amount of time = 60 years. Wel, it's reasonable in a geological scale!

3) You've got a local library--dummy, use it!

4) Who said compensation was to be adjusted "up" doh! Be real.

5) Ho hum, you sound naive, and of course we need you, too many of our nurses have died from stress already.

6) Of course physicals and eye care are free, gosh--you do that for all employees, why not help yourself? Yes, we do have an annual medical insurance plan, and you only pay $100 per month, but what you don't know is that TOTAL maximal benefits combined is $1000 per year. And yes it does say unlimited emergency room visits and the plan will pay up to the maximum allowed each time, but what you don't know is that the maximum allowed is $20 per visit. (This insurance policy is very real--not imaginary! It was the last one I had).

Oh, if you did not "get it" at the start, go back and read the name of the agency slowwwwwwwwly....

I predict that within 5 years there will naturally form a new Union called the Grand Union of Contract and Part-time workers. The Unions (which ultimately became too powerful and a problem in themselves) were formed by abuse. Unfortunately, today, almost all of us are faced with abuse in our work.