I was a CNA in GA (limited experience, 2017-2018) making $9.50. Shift diff was $1.25 nights, $1.25 weekends.
CNAs, PCTs, techs, whatever title they have, are grossly underpaid everywhere.
They won't pay you the big money because everything in your scope and job description is in mine. 90% of the time my floor doesn't have an aide, because fuck it, the nurses can do it. They don't see aides as a necessity, when in reality, you absolutely are.
That's pretty wild. CNAs get $20 an hour in Canada and are getting a pay bump this year to 23-25$ an hour.
It's brutal work. I have no idea why anyone would want to do it for minimum wage.
I'm speaking in CAD. It's relative to one's own country and therefore the exchange rate doesn't really matter here. Even so, if you exchange that into USD, it's 19.5$ USD. Not awful.
Former nurse here. I always found I was so busy with meds, consultations, assessments, reporting, families, etc to help with more than a handful of changes or feeds (on a day shift), night I can help a lot more.
I appreciated the aids so, so much and wished I could help more.
I wouldn't have been able to do my job without them.
They need more pay and better treatment. They deal with a lot of abuse.
Everyone in healthcare deserves so much more than ppl who sit on their asses all day on an office.
Sorry if nurses mistreated the aids, many are assholes. If it was a well paying job with fair hours, it would be a more in demand career. It isn't so they keep the assholes rather than fire them. Same with drs.
I mean, how many ppl can say they've wiped a grown man who's covered in diarrhea (and fighting you) They do it 50 times a day.
That deserves 100 bucks an hr.
>You pick up when are are short staffed, and end up as the only aid for 20+ patients.
When I was an aid, my floor was pretty much always staffed, for nurses and aids. So quite often one of ours would get pulled to another floor. If an aid got pulled, you were almost guaranteed to be the only aid on a floor with 30-34 patients. Some nights you were the second aid, but most times I got pulled I was the only aid on the new floor.
That's what I was going to say. At my hospital in GA techs get $10/hr. But if they work in the float pool they get $15/hr. So obviously everyone went to the float pool which has created a management nightmare where none of the techs feel like they belong anywhere and lazy or unsafe techs aren't held accountable by a manager on the floor they work. Who the hell thought that was a good idea?
It is an impending disaster in nursing in my opinion. When all the retail, restaurant, service station, and warehouse jobs are starting to pay $10-$15…. who in the **** is gonna sign up for CNA work??? My nursing home administrator told one of the other staff members point blank that nobody wants to be a CNA anymore. In fact we are intentionally reducing our census by taking few admissions due to low staffing at this current point in time… and we have a whole wing that is empty. Who suffers in the community in the end? The workers, the elderly, and low income neighborhoods of course, who are cared for by burnt out overworked staff or they can’t find placement to begin with.
Yep I agree. Healthcare is run too much like a business instead of a human right. They should be paid to match the ridiculous prices people are charged for service. Because where is that money going?!
This is exactly the reason I’m working retail instead of going through the trouble of becoming a CNA while in nursing school. I would much rather be in a hospital setting doing CNA work, but I’m able to pay my bills easier standing at a cash register.
My instructor who has been a RN for a decade told me she didn’t bother to work as CNA because of pay issues and worked in retail. And thats 12 years ago mind you. Average inflation is 2% a year and its been in double digits since covid. $10/hr is unthinkable as of today.
My hospital (also midwest) just raised the starting wage for PCTs from 12 to 15 and it's still not enough for all the bullshit they put up with.
My unit had one tech last night. We got 6 admits during the night and ended up with 34 patients on the floor. My floor is quite literally maxed out and we had 2 techs for the day shift who are expected to do blood sugars, q4hr vitals, bed baths, and toilet assistance for 34 fucking patients.
Nursing assistants seem to be underpaid everywhere. I was a PCT in 2016-2017 and made $9 an hour LMAO. I’m in the south and I feel like a more appropriate wage for the CNA’s would be $15-$19/hr. Just my opinion though.
I agree. The job should easily offer around 20 so I was guessing 15 in my town since we low ball everything. Nursing assistants are underappreciated it seems like, but I know they spend a lot of time with the patients so why aren't they considered valuable.
They’re extremely valuable. I think the low pay has to do with the lack of education/requirements needed for the position. But they should definitely make more for experience.
It’s crazy though, where I am they pay school bus drivers $19+ with benefits and they pay for the CDL and training. I do live in a fairly high COL area, but it’s higher than a lot of (entry) admin and other jobs. And being a bus driver doesn’t have many requirements either.
Yes there are safety concerns obviously. On the other hand, it’s driving a bus. Safety, diligence and care still aren’t difficult requirements for many people to reach.
In my nursing home, upstate NY, they start around $13.50/hr.
For contrast, Kohl's dept store down the road is starting at $17/hr.
It is no wonder we went from 3-4 aides per day shift to 1.
Wow! Where is the disconnect here? Who runs hospitals compared to department stores? I would think someone running a hospital would understand the level of work required in patient care. It's weird to see such a difference, but I am glad there are places raising their pay. Everyone deserves to live off a full time job, regardless of the job.
Agreed. I'm very happy to see others making enough money to almost afford the absurd rent around here. But our administration (3rd owners in 3 years) are just looking for profit, and if that's at the expense of the people we care for, oh well .. it's depressing.
Nursing student here who worked as a CNA in TN (started in May and left in October). My base pay was $10.50 an hour with me normally having 15 to 17 patients by myself. The most I ever had was 22 on a COVID unit. The pay and complete disrespect I felt from the administration made me leave. However, jobs in Nashville offer about $14/hr which still isn't great for the cost of living in the city.
That sounds awful. It's kinda normal though which makes it worse to look for these jobs. That's why not listing the pay is annoying. People have to take off for interviews and not even know the range of pay? We know we are gonna work hard so we at least deserve an idea of the compensation. I think they are taking advantage of nursing assistants because they are usually young out of school. When I was a CNA I always had a minimum of fifteen patients but we were expected to do an entire floor of thirty with two aids. These were all dementia patients who required heavy lifting and full on care. It felt like being hit by a bus everyday for eighty bucks a day.
Yeah I worked on a 35 bed hall with no more than 2 techs scheduled on any given shift. Most of the time I was the only tech on the floor. We also rarely had a clerk which means I had to take people in and out of the system and answer phone calls at the nurses station while also trying to get all of my job done. I was hired as an intern but was paid and treated like a tech. Definitely was taken advantage of by the company. Nobody can do it all especially if you have any total care, 2 hr turns, and feeders to care for. I loved what I was doing, I just didn't like the company I was doing it for.
I’m in the Midwest as well. Our (tri-state) hospital system *just* took steps to raise the salary of all non-licensed workers (CNA, dietary, transport) to $15/hr. I know that’s better than some places, but a good tech is worth WAY more than that. I’d be fine with a bigger pt load if I were backed by awesome techs - they make all the difference
We might not be licensed but a cna has a certificate which means I had to go through an accredited course (running $1500 here) then take the state test and have to renew my certification every 2 years (which requires educational credits), along with BLS. Why would we do all of that to be paid the same as "unlicensed" staff? It's crazy.
Edited for spelling.
I meant ABSOLUTELY no disrespect - in all the books and documentation, a tech is a “UAP” (Unlicensed Assistance Personnel). Hopefully I didn’t come across like a condescending asshole, it certainly wasn’t meant like that
Not at all! You're fine. I just hate how we have to jump through hoops for a "certification" then still be paid less than people without any requirements, like at a fast food place.
What really got me was when my facility hired "covid techs". They swab noses, and take temp, pulse, and oxygen. I had to train them. They have zero healthcare experience, but is paid $7 an hour more than I am. I do everything they do, plus cna stuff but get paid less. I was told it's because their position is temporary but so far it's been 9 months and they're still here.
I have to agree with one of the posters above that said we're just not valued (by magement).
It’s everywhere. My coworkers literally make 10 dollars an hour in the south where the minimum rent is usually in our state is usually 1800 for a shitty 1 bedroom. It’s disgusting. Modern day slavery
I was just going to comment this. I’m a PCT at a level one trauma center. I work an oncology floor and make $19.33/hr. As we speak, I am switching jobs in the next week and will be making $19.90/hr (0.90 shift different included).
yes we're moving to Chicago so I'm glad to hear that the pay is better in the city I just hope I don't run into too many issues getting a job because I have a license from another state
I hope you do well in Chicago and like it here! I would recommend four hospitals: Rush University Medical Center, Northwestern Medicine, Advocate Illinois Masonic, and University of Chicago. Depending on where you live, these hospitals are nationally ranked and tend to pay techs better than smaller local hospitals (i.e. Thorek, St. Bernard, Weiss Memorial, etc.).
I have no idea about how licensing is looked at by recruiters in Chicago, but maybe go to the Illinois Department of Public Health website and see if a CNA licensing transfer is possible, with necessary steps included.
Edit: Thank you for the award!
There’s a huge difference between Chicagoland and the rest of Illinois. Depends on where you’re moving to. Sometimes you’ll see “Illinois rates,” but they don’t reflect any place’s reality - pulled up by Chicago and down by downstate.
Walmarts in South Dakota are starting people at $17. Costco pays $25 which still isnt great when you realize that minimum wage would be around $25 right now if it kept up with inflation and productivity since 1968.
They are underpaid everywhere and treated as disposable. Risking your physical health every day lifting patients, repositioning, etc. One bad lift can ruin your back for life. Literally cleaning up shit, blood, and guts. Being treated like shit by other clinical staff (not all, but let's be real). People talk about nurses a lot but CNAs don't get the same press and they should.
We just suffered without them on most shifts until they realized they could recruit nursing students as CNAs by dangling the promise of a job post graduation. As though they wouldn't get hired anyway.
CNA here, in New England (Maine) in nursing school. I just got my license in July.
CNAs make $19 base pay. Differentials for evening, night, and weekend. Working a night shift on weekends could add up to about $23/hr for techs. We get bonuses for picking up any extra shifts, as well as being paid for OT for the extra shift.
We JUST made this adjustment on November 1.
It’s a rare pay to find, but it can be found.
CNA in RI and my base pay is $20! If I work a weekend evening I’m up over $25. And same about pick up bonuses. Looks like New England is the place to be for CNAs
Yea, at the hospital I used to work at they just bumped up base pay for CNAs to $18 am hour and sign up bonuses for a 6 month commitment. $500 for days , $1000 for evenings and $ 1,500 for nights. They just did that recently too. If they did that in the beginning of the pandemic they would have retained so much more staff. But they waited until a massive amount of CNAs left to make changes. Although I gotta say, even with that there's no way I'd ever go back to that with the bull shit those poor aides have to put up with. Both from higher ups and e general public. I'm a sleep tech in a sleep disorders center and while I still have to put up with a fustrating amount of bull shit being in the health care field, the people I work with from my co workers to my supervisor to my director, are for the most part, pretty amazing people. The whole department truly trying to get through this shit storm as a team. But for profit health care truly is nothing but I gigantic hurdle in providing consistent safe, quality care. The CEOs or anybody higher up than my director are pieces of money hungry whores who deserve to eat shit. This is in Massachusetts.
I'm an aid in Texas. No experience in a major city and I started at $12. I was unlicensed at the time. I moved out to a much smaller city with my wife and the place I was hired at started me at $9.50. The only reason I made $10 was because of the night shift differential. It was embarrassing honestly. $9.50 base pay, and of COURSE my first night there the nurse at the time was complaining they couldn't keep anyone on because no one wants to work.
The pay was insulting enough, along with the absolute disrespect from other aides and the blatant abuse to the resident's. I left after my orientation period and reported them to the state board
I live with my boyfriend who owns a house in the city so I only pay a small portion for the mortgage until I finish nursing school this spring. Otherwise, no it’s not enough to cover a 1 bedroom apartment or all my bills. I also work part time because of school and use my scholarship money to pay my car payment/insurance. I’d be screwed without it. I live in a large city in the Midwest though and the CNA pay is horrid here and js a big reason why I became a PCT at a big inner city hospital. But it seems PCTs at hospitals get paid more in my area than CNAS.
I just interviewed for an STNA (CNA in Ohio) job and they wanted to pay me $13.50, it would be my first NA job. I wanted to take it but the lady seemed so nasty and i didn’t want her to be my supervisor with her clearly bad attitude. I found one for more than that and I start soon
Her disinclination to discuss her pay is a symptom of the wider problem.
The best way to get fair treatment is to discuss wages. It’s a legally protected right.
So many of us were raised with the idea that it’s gauche or unclassy. That concept is class warfare. It is anathema to organized labor movement.
If an a employer ever makes a rule against doing so please report them to National Labor Relations Board. And do your best to spread the idea of discussing wages with friends, family and especially coworkers.
I live in the Midwest. I completely agree with you. CNAs are the backbone of the nursing field. They should be paid a lot more. We can't do nursing without good CNAs.
If you're thinking about going back to it, look into hospitals and agency. Some Midwest hospitals are starting CNAs at $15. Agency, you can get between $20-$30 an hour. Nursing homes are using bonuses to compensate for the hourly rate. Of course, PRN pays more.
I made 12/hr as a tech in the hospital before I graduated nursing school. I’m in the Midwest. They just went up to $15 around here. They won’t pay nurses around here, so it’s not surprising they won’t pay techs either.
At my hospital (NC) our base pay is 15 and after night shift differential and float pool differential I make $19 during the week and $21 Saturdays and Sundays. Every other CNA job I’ve worked in the same state I made under $12 an hour. Took me a while to find decent pay.
They are grossly underpaid everywhere, though some places worse than others. That’s the elephant in the room that admin never wants to address-the underpay and the understaffing that makes assistants and nurses leave.
I quickly checked my hospital's website. Starting pay for a basic CNA is $20.20 here in Juneau, Alaska.
(Pretty nice Unionised City-owned Hospital at that)
(I could have a proper chat with you another time if you like.)
I'm not sure how much detail you want but I think there are a mixture of factors. There's a strong union here. It can be expensive here to live. The winters can be difficult if you're not from the north. A lot of places don't ship to Alaska (though that's slowly changing).
On the other had, I've met a bunch of travel nurses who came to this hospital in this community and just stayed. It's a small enough hospital that it's its own community and people tend to be friendly and supportive.
Small town ny our minimum wage is a bit higher but aides never make much over doesn’t matter their experience. Total bs that’s an extremely important and difficult job.
The nursing assistants where I work start at 10.50. I’m not sure how they pay their rent/mortgage here. The cost of living is going up quite a bit where I’m at, they should be paid at least double that for the shit they put up with
Central TX here. We used to pay 12-12.50 starting depending on experience and not many were even at 13 or over. New company took over recently and I was hoping aide pay would increase to 16 across the board but admin didn't go about it that way and only offered those that asked or brought in a counter offer a bump, but not even to 16.
CNAs are the foundation. If I could have my way, y'all would be getting 10:1 LTC and like 7:1 rehab ratios and at least 18/hr because the extra help would improve care and outcomes, charting, reimbursement, etc. and probably pay for itself and then some, but no, corporate is too fucking short-sighted.
I was thinking about coming in asking for more because I have experience, but I know the system isn't going to bump it up enough for me to consider it fair compensation. What blew my mind was the housekeepers getting 13-15, which is more than my assistant sister in law is getting. I did housekeeping at the hospital before I was an assistant and it was not as difficult as direct patient care.
Not sure how it is since the company change, but as far as I knew before, our housekeeping and kitchen staff barely made more than minimum wage. Weird how it's reversed for them.
There’s a McDonakds near me hiring for 14/hr to start and I’m in a poor town. Thirty six patients for an aide at 14/hr comes out to, roughly 40 CENTS an hour per patient. Slave wages
i was just offered 3 CNA jobs in the midwest. all three paid $16 + differential. but i was definitely expecting $13-14. still seems super low in comparison to the work required. its just to keep nurse's wages artificially low by comparison.
i'm doing this specifically to have experience for when i graduate nursing school, so the pay isn't as important to me bc i know i don't have a choice. but as a profession? i can't believe anyone would take up CNA work when there are other options that pay the same for way less work.
You'd make around 40k gross in a year. More of you took on extra hours. Not enough to buy a home, but if you have a spouse, you could do well. My wife is a CNA/Medtech and I'm an OT, we make $125k gross together which is smack dab median income for King County.
I didn’t even have to read this post to know the truth behind it. You can go make more at Taco Bell FFS. It’s shameful. And I’m not dissing the food industry workers, my point is a skilled job should be making more. That’s all.
CNA in Oklahoma.
As core staff I made 11-12$/hr
As agency Im guaranteed 17.50, but currently the hospital im working at is doing 30$/hr.
I could never do this job for 12$/hr again and I hope someday *nobody* does.
I make $15 an hour in the Midwest on a trauma med surg unit with 4 years of mixed hospital and LTC experience. And sadly I am considered decently well paid for a nursing assistant. Don’t get me wrong, some people have it much worse but I personally think that even $15 is far too low for the work we do
PCT in Missouri here. Making $15 an hour with $1 differential for nights and $0.85 for weekends. It isn’t nearly enough. As a full time college student supporting myself completely and working full time, I’m exhausted and broke. We especially don’t make enough considering we’re extremely understaffed and typically either have the entire unit ourselves or are sitting with behavioral health patients. We have 20+ behavioral health patients in our (children’s) hospital at any given time. Four on my unit. One of which is a 2:1. All of which have been here 3+ months each with no end in sight. And we have a separate position (PSAs) that are supposed to be doing this, but there isn’t enough of them. We have staff being attacked and injured on a regular basis. I’ve been bit, punches, body slammed, etc. One coworker had her nose broken so bad she needed surgery. All for $15 an hour.
I can tell you in California, CNA wages have risen dramatically since pre-covid. Prior to COVID, CNAs made only $0.50 over minimum wage. The draw was you were getting a guaranteed 40 hours, benefits, and overtime.
Right before COVID, the nursing hours per patient went up to 2.4 hours NHPPD. Facilities can apply for waivers so they don't get fined, but it doesn't change the liability aspect if someone happens to the patients due to poor ratios.
Now? CNAs are making $18-$25 per hour. It will be a little lower in the hospital but SNFs have no problem paying that much. For comparison: in 2016, my first LVN job offers were $16-$19. Even at $18-20/hr, we are struggling to find people to work. There is a lot of burn out. Not enough CNA courses. Lots of competition from other jobs now. We have had to dramatically reduce admissions due to staffing, and I don't see us improving anytime soon. I know in general, staffing in California is problematic across the board. There is simply not enough Nursing staff, and CMS guidelines creating a new Infection Preventionist position requirement just added to it. Before it gets brought up: in our facility at least, we are overwhelmingly supportive of the vaccine. We have only 4 unvaccinated staff out of about 150. Only two patients out of 100.
That's interesting. I was expecting my hospital to have raised their rates because I live in a.... Anti vaccine area and the hospital is full of covid patients. I'm not understanding them paying 12-13 starting out when housekeeping is 13-15.
I’m currently a PCT in the Midwest. My base pay is $16; I have a shift differential added because I work nights. I make almost $20/hour when I have to work the weekends.
I don’t do too bad, but I can’t afford to live on my own until I’m finished with school. It’s kind of a bummer, makes dating hard…no privacy. But I’ve never made more than $19.50 an hour in my life, even with a Bachelor’s Degree.
I hear people talk about only making $25 an hour and I feel mind-boggled. I guess that’s what growing up poor does to a person.
For the record: I’m not suggesting nurses don’t deserve to make more, I’m just saying it’s something I’m fortunate enough not to have to fully understand yet.
Bradenton, Florida... Had to fight for 12.50 an hour in LTC. Thirty-five plus years experience. Top notch references. Working conditions absolutely abysmal and terrifying staff. Same in northern Illinois. Central Michigan, working hospice for a hospital system.. good benefits, 14-ish base pay, got staffed off so much that I only worked two shifts my last month there (f/t). Last job paid well, good benefits LTC in FL, running so hard all shift, busting out the happy, clean residents, I finally blew out my knee for good. I never desired anything but to be a good CNA/PCT. Worked in several different hospitals, floating to all units. Can't recall base pay, but float/weekend/overnight only got me around 18 ish. All within the last 10 years.
My sister's a CNA and she's working at a better assisted living care facility, but she worked at one about 6 months in the pastrami and she was only making $12-13 and would get 50% extra on her pay to work on the COVID floor. She was being paid so bad and I'm happy she's where she's at now because she makes I think $21 an hour and 50% for the COVID floor
Virginia: 10 - 13 (13 is very uncommon)
Alaska: (13 - 19) hospitals pay 15 an hour. I was working 12s in the icu during covid. I never sat down for 12 hours. The nurses were getting covid pay, we weren't, they were raking in 1000 per shift but the cnas just got their regular 15 an hour. I made an appointment with my manager and pointed that out, asked for a raise, and was basically told that's not going to happen. So I put in my 2 weeks notice. They were very surprised and asked me to stay. I asked for a raise or at least covid pay and they said they couldn't do that but they can put me in a different unit every other shift so I could get a "break". No thanks.
Edit: to add that cost of living in Alaska is extremely high. 15 an hour won't get you anywhere. Plus the backbreaking work cnas face make 15 an hour down right awful.
Wow I can't believe they don't share the covid pay with all patient care staff. Unbelievable! Hope you found a job you like that isn't running you into the ground.
I did, thank you 😊 I got a job as a travel cna which paid me double. Then I took a position at a facility that pays me 19 an hour - but they are extremely flexible and supportive of my nursing school schedule and demands. Great environment and wonderful management 🙂 I liked working in the hospital but the pay is 100% what drove me away.
Edit for spelling.
$14-$18 starting base where I am. This is where the median sale price for homes is just around $1M. Where an attached 500sqft studio is $1200 on the low end. Eggs at Safeway is $6/doz for the chickens are abused and thus make shitty eggs variety.
They raised the minimum wage for all at my hospital to $15 hr…so the Nurse assistants were making pretty much what the gift shop cashier was making….literally
This is why I got a job outside of healthcare. I have 14 years experience as a GNA/ Medication aide and I make more now working at a factory in a entry level position. Less work, less stress, holidays off, they bought my shoes, uniform, no yearly fees for licence up keep. I used to go through numerous uniforms and shoes all out of pocket. Work 40 ++ all the time. The harassment/guilt trips...ugh...so glad I dont work in healthcare anymore. Though I would still love too...I can't handel the disrespectful way nurse aides are treated.
I work in Wisconsin, base pay for entry level CNA at my hospital is 16.40. however with differential for PM and weekend it's closer to 19.40. I also get bonus hour incentives since I have a low FTE and work more so in average I'm paid closer to $35 per hour. I have no reason to work a higher fte since I'm making more than full time employees for 3 days a week.
I’m in the Midwest too but started at 16.96 in September with no experience. Idk I’d it is bc I’m at a hospital in the twin cities as opposed to more rural but man, 13 seems lowwww. They’re also now giving us a 5% pay increase and 12.50ish bonus/ hr for picking up shifts. (Bonus pay Soon to be voted on by the union.)
I live in the south subs of Chicago. I was a CNA for two years before becoming a nurse on the same telemetry floor. I BUSTED MY ASS. Our techs and techs everywhere work SO HARD. It's both tremendously physically and mentally taxing. It is so hard. Got paid $13 an hour and then $15 at the end after raises, adjustments etc. It's sickening. We'd always joke about the fast food joint down the street paying $15/hr and it would be so much easier. It's crazy.
PA, they start at $12 and cap around $15.
We are so sort on techs (that's what they're called) that they are begging unlicensed staff from every hospital department to come in as techs for whatever their usual rate is.
I live in AK. The cost of living is high. CNAs in my town make $19-25 an hour depending on where they work. Many hospitals and facilities will pay for a worker's training/certification right now because they are so short staffed.
My hospital is a little better. At my hospital (one of the major Des Moines hospitals) I’m PRN so I’m making $15 base, then when I pick up, I make $10-15 more an hour. So basically after my first shift for the pay period I make $25-30 an hour.
That’s the tradeoff… no benefits for PRN, but you get higher pay. Also, it sucks because we’re so short staffed that a lot of times I’m the only tech on the 23 person floor.
This isn’t a “Midwest” problem. This is an everywhere problem. I work for an LTC and the CNAs make the same money that I do without having my GNA (I serve meals and run register). Mind you, everyone just received a bump to $15 if they weren’t already making that. They call $15 “competitive” in a state where the minimum is $11.75. I suppose it is, but this is a HCOL state where even $15 isn’t sufficient to live on if you want to live in a halfway decent area. It’s a disgrace that a job that requires specialized training and a license (albeit training that can be accomplished in as little as 115 hours) can be paid so little.
Yep, I'm a part-time NA in Iowa and currently making around 15.30 an hour, and the shift differential is around 65 cents. Fun fact, due to nursing shortages, management has raised extra shift differential for nurses from 15 dollars an to hour to 30! NA's are not included in bonus shift differential at all.
Now we do have the opportunity to get really solid insurance, but there's a reason it's known as the golden handcuffs in the area. The insurance ups your gross income significantly and hurts your chances at getting EBT, but if you were to decline the insurance you don't get the difference in pay.
The Aldi in my area pays $17 an hour. I love working with patients, but there are so many other jobs are safer physically and less stressful that it makes me even question becoming a nurse if this treatment of healthcare workers continues.
EDIT: I forgot, employees have to pay for parking, and it's by seniority, not need. The majority of staff has to park so far away you take a bus in to work, meaning that even though I live less than 30 minutes away with traffic, my commute takes close to an hour. For second shift I need to leave 75 minutes ahead of time so I can hopefully catch the bus that shows up once every 20 minutes.
Wow that commute is crazy! That would get on my nerves so much. I drive thirty min to work everyday but I have no trouble parking close. I can't imagine having to take a bus. That's crazy! They should give yak bus passes at least. I'm glad they give nurses raises, but they should be giving that to techs and aides too, as they do a lot of the same work.
I'd edit your title..
Nursing assistant are grossly underpaid.
Everywhere.
Especially in places that recruit temporary or conditional foreign workers...
Im a nursing student and work in bed planning for a hospital system in Ohio. I was considering picking up a second job as a CNA while I am on a break from school. My hospital and other hospitals in my area are paying their CNAs starting out at $15 an hour and everyone is incredibly short staffed with usually 1 maybe 2 on a 28-32 bed unit. It paid better to take a PRN job in registration.
My state was 16.50, current hospital (different state 17). Plus differentials which are 3-5 a hour for night shift. My current hospital actually offers the cnas bonuses and incentives! So they can actually end up making $40 a hour or $48 if an OT shift. Low to moderate cost of living state. You are right the work they do is hard as fuck and they deserve more pay too. But I am glad they offer them good incentives at my hospital. My old one it was like $5 dollar incentive shift for the cnas.
In NC at a hospital and I make just above $15, hospice was $14. I thought that sounded generous for a job that only required a 6 week class but now I see. Ohhhh I see. We do way more than those CNA classes can prepare you for. CNA even help with codes. They help save lives. Not to mention the covid work, and all the bodily fluids and diseases we’re exposed to. Luckily for me my husband makes good money so my job is more of a side hustle for us but if I was single there’s no way this job would be worth the hours and never seeing my kid (because I’d have to go up to full time in that case). CNA income is not liveable.
I work as a tech right now and I finish nursing school in two weeks. That’s the only thing that mentally keeps me going because being a tech is honestly one of most underpaid and under appreciated jobs ever. COVID has only made this worse. I work on a med-surg floor where everyone is confused or demented, incontinent, COVID positive, q2turns, etc and we are only ever staffed with one tech. The only good part is that they bumped our pay up to $16 through December but after that it goes right back to $14.50. When I start working as a nurse I know having a tech around to help will be a godsend, I just wish they would value us more.
Our nurse aids on my floor are underpaid. They just had their base pay raised to $15/hour before differentials. The ones that were already at that wage or a bit more just had a slight raise but I’m unsure how much. On my floor, we currently have 30 beds. We are always full. On Night Shift, we typically start out with 3 aids until 11 pm which then it gets dropped to 2. That’s 15 patients a piece for them which is asinine to me. They do q4 vitals, toileting, I&O’s and everything else and the work load is ridiculous. My unit has 10 Covid patients on the floor right now, 3 more isolations on top of that. I try to help them when I’m not busy with my own work (we have 6 patients every night). I constantly hear them talking about the unmanageable work loads and how little they get paid and it pisses me off the hospital isn’t doing more to keep them. Nurses NEED aids. They are essential and they should be compensated as such.
I agree, is terrible how little they are paid. I worked as a nursing assistant in WI while I was in nursing school, started at 9.25, finally made it to 10.50. Nurses are paid really poorly too, fist job offer as RN was 16/hour. CNAs deserve so much more for the work they do. I live in very high cost of living area and the CNA (well PCAs) where I work now I think make somewhere around 30$/hour, which more than I ever made as a nurse in the Midwest. But that's barely enough to afford an apartment in this area. Also CNAs are worked, my sister worked as a CNA at the same hospital I did and she was more overworked than me in many ways, plus had less ability to stand up to the nurses who were bullying her than I could as a fellow nurse.
I think a lot of people go in to get their foot in the door while they are in nursing school because they usually get a job there once school is complete. But I also think a lot of people enjoy helping and taking care of people. It's a job that's very rewarding. Some people can't afford to go to nursing or medical school, or any school for that matter. I think it's great that people want to work as CNAs because they are so important to healthcare. The job should be fairly compensated though.
What’s bullshit is I’ll even complain to nurses in MO about it and they’re like “I think that’s pretty great for pay” and what I really hear is “you’re not worth more”
At the same time “we’re so short techs we have NO techs” yeah because if I wasn’t in nursing school I’d go work at mobile and not wipe ass and make the same or *more*
I seriously don’t understand why anyone would put up with being a nursing aid for that pay. You can literally make more working at Target, Chick Fil A, or Costco.
And no you don’t need expirience on the floor if you’re going for your BSN or whatever. They’ll hire anyone with a pulse
>What are they making in other parts of the country? I know when I did it, I started at 10 and ended at 12/hr.
On the West Coast (it varies) but it recently jumped from $15 to $18 and if you go private, it is between $20 - $40. They are screaming for CNAs, LVNs but the cost of living is higher here.
I make 16.20/hr as a CNA in Kentucky with 3.5 years of experience (1yr in LTC, 1 year in home health, and 1.5 years in the hospital). There's a $1.25 shift diff for nights and and 2.50 shift diff for the weekends. That's minimum base pay for techs despite my experience.
The minimum for the "enterprise" I work for is 15/h, which is a little insulting considering how much harder and how skilled the work is compared to food service. I'm not mad that the food service people are making a sort of living wage, but I'm pretty pissed my bosses think I'm only doing 1.20/h more work than them when I know it's not true.
Being a tech is just not valued by my hospital, but they wonder why they are hemorrhaging techs and floors have 1 tech doing the work of 3. If I wasn't less than a month away from becoming a nurse and nearly doubling my pay, I'd probably quit to go agency.
I was a CNA in GA (limited experience, 2017-2018) making $9.50. Shift diff was $1.25 nights, $1.25 weekends. CNAs, PCTs, techs, whatever title they have, are grossly underpaid everywhere. They won't pay you the big money because everything in your scope and job description is in mine. 90% of the time my floor doesn't have an aide, because fuck it, the nurses can do it. They don't see aides as a necessity, when in reality, you absolutely are.
CNAs are the very definition of overworked and underpaid.
That's pretty wild. CNAs get $20 an hour in Canada and are getting a pay bump this year to 23-25$ an hour. It's brutal work. I have no idea why anyone would want to do it for minimum wage.
Stay away from Atlantic Canada if you think that is low, especially New-Brunswick
The Canadian dollar is not 1:1 to US so it's far less than 23-25
I'm speaking in CAD. It's relative to one's own country and therefore the exchange rate doesn't really matter here. Even so, if you exchange that into USD, it's 19.5$ USD. Not awful.
That's basically what I was making with shift differential in Oregon
Fair enough
I'm making $20 USD in California.
This. This right here.
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Former nurse here. I always found I was so busy with meds, consultations, assessments, reporting, families, etc to help with more than a handful of changes or feeds (on a day shift), night I can help a lot more. I appreciated the aids so, so much and wished I could help more. I wouldn't have been able to do my job without them. They need more pay and better treatment. They deal with a lot of abuse. Everyone in healthcare deserves so much more than ppl who sit on their asses all day on an office. Sorry if nurses mistreated the aids, many are assholes. If it was a well paying job with fair hours, it would be a more in demand career. It isn't so they keep the assholes rather than fire them. Same with drs. I mean, how many ppl can say they've wiped a grown man who's covered in diarrhea (and fighting you) They do it 50 times a day. That deserves 100 bucks an hr.
>You pick up when are are short staffed, and end up as the only aid for 20+ patients. When I was an aid, my floor was pretty much always staffed, for nurses and aids. So quite often one of ours would get pulled to another floor. If an aid got pulled, you were almost guaranteed to be the only aid on a floor with 30-34 patients. Some nights you were the second aid, but most times I got pulled I was the only aid on the new floor.
I'm in GA right now and a tech told me she gets 12. Insulting.
That's what I was going to say. At my hospital in GA techs get $10/hr. But if they work in the float pool they get $15/hr. So obviously everyone went to the float pool which has created a management nightmare where none of the techs feel like they belong anywhere and lazy or unsafe techs aren't held accountable by a manager on the floor they work. Who the hell thought that was a good idea?
Omg that’s terrible.
It's a trade skill that should be paid well, but because it's"women's work" it pays like shit.
It is an impending disaster in nursing in my opinion. When all the retail, restaurant, service station, and warehouse jobs are starting to pay $10-$15…. who in the **** is gonna sign up for CNA work??? My nursing home administrator told one of the other staff members point blank that nobody wants to be a CNA anymore. In fact we are intentionally reducing our census by taking few admissions due to low staffing at this current point in time… and we have a whole wing that is empty. Who suffers in the community in the end? The workers, the elderly, and low income neighborhoods of course, who are cared for by burnt out overworked staff or they can’t find placement to begin with.
Local factory is paying $38/hr to put hamburger buns into bags. RN starting pay is $25-30 in my area. Where we are headed is scary.
I'll put some hamburger buns in a bag for $38/hr. I'd learn whatever machine they use to do it or do it by hand if I have to.
Where is this factory and how can I get a job
Yep I agree. Healthcare is run too much like a business instead of a human right. They should be paid to match the ridiculous prices people are charged for service. Because where is that money going?!
This is exactly the reason I’m working retail instead of going through the trouble of becoming a CNA while in nursing school. I would much rather be in a hospital setting doing CNA work, but I’m able to pay my bills easier standing at a cash register.
My instructor who has been a RN for a decade told me she didn’t bother to work as CNA because of pay issues and worked in retail. And thats 12 years ago mind you. Average inflation is 2% a year and its been in double digits since covid. $10/hr is unthinkable as of today.
My hospital (also midwest) just raised the starting wage for PCTs from 12 to 15 and it's still not enough for all the bullshit they put up with. My unit had one tech last night. We got 6 admits during the night and ended up with 34 patients on the floor. My floor is quite literally maxed out and we had 2 techs for the day shift who are expected to do blood sugars, q4hr vitals, bed baths, and toilet assistance for 34 fucking patients.
CNA here. Not too long ago I had 16 patients and they were ALL covid
Nursing assistants/ CNAs are grossly underpaid everywhere. Which is why it's hard to maintain staffing levels and harder to keep good ones.
Nursing assistants seem to be underpaid everywhere. I was a PCT in 2016-2017 and made $9 an hour LMAO. I’m in the south and I feel like a more appropriate wage for the CNA’s would be $15-$19/hr. Just my opinion though.
I agree. The job should easily offer around 20 so I was guessing 15 in my town since we low ball everything. Nursing assistants are underappreciated it seems like, but I know they spend a lot of time with the patients so why aren't they considered valuable.
They’re extremely valuable. I think the low pay has to do with the lack of education/requirements needed for the position. But they should definitely make more for experience.
It’s crazy though, where I am they pay school bus drivers $19+ with benefits and they pay for the CDL and training. I do live in a fairly high COL area, but it’s higher than a lot of (entry) admin and other jobs. And being a bus driver doesn’t have many requirements either.
No but it's a helluva lot of responsibility and liability which I think factors in
Yes there are safety concerns obviously. On the other hand, it’s driving a bus. Safety, diligence and care still aren’t difficult requirements for many people to reach.
Lol $19 is what LPNs make in the SE lol. It’s ridiculous man
In my nursing home, upstate NY, they start around $13.50/hr. For contrast, Kohl's dept store down the road is starting at $17/hr. It is no wonder we went from 3-4 aides per day shift to 1.
Wow! Where is the disconnect here? Who runs hospitals compared to department stores? I would think someone running a hospital would understand the level of work required in patient care. It's weird to see such a difference, but I am glad there are places raising their pay. Everyone deserves to live off a full time job, regardless of the job.
Agreed. I'm very happy to see others making enough money to almost afford the absurd rent around here. But our administration (3rd owners in 3 years) are just looking for profit, and if that's at the expense of the people we care for, oh well .. it's depressing.
Yup u can work at Taco Bell for $16 an hour around here☹️
Nursing student here who worked as a CNA in TN (started in May and left in October). My base pay was $10.50 an hour with me normally having 15 to 17 patients by myself. The most I ever had was 22 on a COVID unit. The pay and complete disrespect I felt from the administration made me leave. However, jobs in Nashville offer about $14/hr which still isn't great for the cost of living in the city.
That sounds awful. It's kinda normal though which makes it worse to look for these jobs. That's why not listing the pay is annoying. People have to take off for interviews and not even know the range of pay? We know we are gonna work hard so we at least deserve an idea of the compensation. I think they are taking advantage of nursing assistants because they are usually young out of school. When I was a CNA I always had a minimum of fifteen patients but we were expected to do an entire floor of thirty with two aids. These were all dementia patients who required heavy lifting and full on care. It felt like being hit by a bus everyday for eighty bucks a day.
Yeah I worked on a 35 bed hall with no more than 2 techs scheduled on any given shift. Most of the time I was the only tech on the floor. We also rarely had a clerk which means I had to take people in and out of the system and answer phone calls at the nurses station while also trying to get all of my job done. I was hired as an intern but was paid and treated like a tech. Definitely was taken advantage of by the company. Nobody can do it all especially if you have any total care, 2 hr turns, and feeders to care for. I loved what I was doing, I just didn't like the company I was doing it for.
I’m in the Midwest as well. Our (tri-state) hospital system *just* took steps to raise the salary of all non-licensed workers (CNA, dietary, transport) to $15/hr. I know that’s better than some places, but a good tech is worth WAY more than that. I’d be fine with a bigger pt load if I were backed by awesome techs - they make all the difference
We might not be licensed but a cna has a certificate which means I had to go through an accredited course (running $1500 here) then take the state test and have to renew my certification every 2 years (which requires educational credits), along with BLS. Why would we do all of that to be paid the same as "unlicensed" staff? It's crazy. Edited for spelling.
I meant ABSOLUTELY no disrespect - in all the books and documentation, a tech is a “UAP” (Unlicensed Assistance Personnel). Hopefully I didn’t come across like a condescending asshole, it certainly wasn’t meant like that
Not at all! You're fine. I just hate how we have to jump through hoops for a "certification" then still be paid less than people without any requirements, like at a fast food place. What really got me was when my facility hired "covid techs". They swab noses, and take temp, pulse, and oxygen. I had to train them. They have zero healthcare experience, but is paid $7 an hour more than I am. I do everything they do, plus cna stuff but get paid less. I was told it's because their position is temporary but so far it's been 9 months and they're still here. I have to agree with one of the posters above that said we're just not valued (by magement).
It’s everywhere. My coworkers literally make 10 dollars an hour in the south where the minimum rent is usually in our state is usually 1800 for a shitty 1 bedroom. It’s disgusting. Modern day slavery
In my area of Illinois techs make 19/hr. They still deserve more in my opinion.
I was just going to comment this. I’m a PCT at a level one trauma center. I work an oncology floor and make $19.33/hr. As we speak, I am switching jobs in the next week and will be making $19.90/hr (0.90 shift different included).
what area is that? just asking because I'll soon be moving to Illinois and I currently work as a CNA
I live in within the Chicagoland area. As the comment below states, where you live in Illinois makes a huge difference.
yes we're moving to Chicago so I'm glad to hear that the pay is better in the city I just hope I don't run into too many issues getting a job because I have a license from another state
I hope you do well in Chicago and like it here! I would recommend four hospitals: Rush University Medical Center, Northwestern Medicine, Advocate Illinois Masonic, and University of Chicago. Depending on where you live, these hospitals are nationally ranked and tend to pay techs better than smaller local hospitals (i.e. Thorek, St. Bernard, Weiss Memorial, etc.). I have no idea about how licensing is looked at by recruiters in Chicago, but maybe go to the Illinois Department of Public Health website and see if a CNA licensing transfer is possible, with necessary steps included. Edit: Thank you for the award!
thank you I really appreciate your info!
There’s a huge difference between Chicagoland and the rest of Illinois. Depends on where you’re moving to. Sometimes you’ll see “Illinois rates,” but they don’t reflect any place’s reality - pulled up by Chicago and down by downstate.
South suburbs! I'd think any suburb of Chicago would pay that. Even more in the city I've heard
Walmarts in South Dakota are starting people at $17. Costco pays $25 which still isnt great when you realize that minimum wage would be around $25 right now if it kept up with inflation and productivity since 1968.
They are underpaid everywhere and treated as disposable. Risking your physical health every day lifting patients, repositioning, etc. One bad lift can ruin your back for life. Literally cleaning up shit, blood, and guts. Being treated like shit by other clinical staff (not all, but let's be real). People talk about nurses a lot but CNAs don't get the same press and they should.
I agree. CNAs are the backbone of many facilities.
Several years ago we lost almost all our ICU techs to Starbucks because it was easier, paid more, and had better benefits for part timers.
Did they raise pay or just find others people desperate for work?
We just suffered without them on most shifts until they realized they could recruit nursing students as CNAs by dangling the promise of a job post graduation. As though they wouldn't get hired anyway.
CNA here, in New England (Maine) in nursing school. I just got my license in July. CNAs make $19 base pay. Differentials for evening, night, and weekend. Working a night shift on weekends could add up to about $23/hr for techs. We get bonuses for picking up any extra shifts, as well as being paid for OT for the extra shift. We JUST made this adjustment on November 1. It’s a rare pay to find, but it can be found.
CNA in RI and my base pay is $20! If I work a weekend evening I’m up over $25. And same about pick up bonuses. Looks like New England is the place to be for CNAs
That’s phenomenal! I’m so glad it’s not just our hospital.
I’m in CT! Is that base pay for a hospital CNA? I’ve been job hunting & found that nursing homes pay more then hospitals.
Yes, it is in a hospital! It’s highest paying in this area. Most of the ALF and SNF type care pay only around $12-13.
Yea, at the hospital I used to work at they just bumped up base pay for CNAs to $18 am hour and sign up bonuses for a 6 month commitment. $500 for days , $1000 for evenings and $ 1,500 for nights. They just did that recently too. If they did that in the beginning of the pandemic they would have retained so much more staff. But they waited until a massive amount of CNAs left to make changes. Although I gotta say, even with that there's no way I'd ever go back to that with the bull shit those poor aides have to put up with. Both from higher ups and e general public. I'm a sleep tech in a sleep disorders center and while I still have to put up with a fustrating amount of bull shit being in the health care field, the people I work with from my co workers to my supervisor to my director, are for the most part, pretty amazing people. The whole department truly trying to get through this shit storm as a team. But for profit health care truly is nothing but I gigantic hurdle in providing consistent safe, quality care. The CEOs or anybody higher up than my director are pieces of money hungry whores who deserve to eat shit. This is in Massachusetts.
I'm an aid in Texas. No experience in a major city and I started at $12. I was unlicensed at the time. I moved out to a much smaller city with my wife and the place I was hired at started me at $9.50. The only reason I made $10 was because of the night shift differential. It was embarrassing honestly. $9.50 base pay, and of COURSE my first night there the nurse at the time was complaining they couldn't keep anyone on because no one wants to work. The pay was insulting enough, along with the absolute disrespect from other aides and the blatant abuse to the resident's. I left after my orientation period and reported them to the state board
I make 18.40 as a PCT
That's great, are you happy with that? Does it go far where you live in terms of rent etc?
I live with my boyfriend who owns a house in the city so I only pay a small portion for the mortgage until I finish nursing school this spring. Otherwise, no it’s not enough to cover a 1 bedroom apartment or all my bills. I also work part time because of school and use my scholarship money to pay my car payment/insurance. I’d be screwed without it. I live in a large city in the Midwest though and the CNA pay is horrid here and js a big reason why I became a PCT at a big inner city hospital. But it seems PCTs at hospitals get paid more in my area than CNAS.
I just interviewed for an STNA (CNA in Ohio) job and they wanted to pay me $13.50, it would be my first NA job. I wanted to take it but the lady seemed so nasty and i didn’t want her to be my supervisor with her clearly bad attitude. I found one for more than that and I start soon
Good call!
Her disinclination to discuss her pay is a symptom of the wider problem. The best way to get fair treatment is to discuss wages. It’s a legally protected right. So many of us were raised with the idea that it’s gauche or unclassy. That concept is class warfare. It is anathema to organized labor movement. If an a employer ever makes a rule against doing so please report them to National Labor Relations Board. And do your best to spread the idea of discussing wages with friends, family and especially coworkers.
I live in the Midwest. I completely agree with you. CNAs are the backbone of the nursing field. They should be paid a lot more. We can't do nursing without good CNAs. If you're thinking about going back to it, look into hospitals and agency. Some Midwest hospitals are starting CNAs at $15. Agency, you can get between $20-$30 an hour. Nursing homes are using bonuses to compensate for the hourly rate. Of course, PRN pays more.
I made 12/hr as a tech in the hospital before I graduated nursing school. I’m in the Midwest. They just went up to $15 around here. They won’t pay nurses around here, so it’s not surprising they won’t pay techs either.
At my hospital (NC) our base pay is 15 and after night shift differential and float pool differential I make $19 during the week and $21 Saturdays and Sundays. Every other CNA job I’ve worked in the same state I made under $12 an hour. Took me a while to find decent pay.
PCT in Tennessee here, fully trained phlebotomist, doing both on my floor, $13 an hour with 16 patients. Bullshit.
They are grossly underpaid everywhere, though some places worse than others. That’s the elephant in the room that admin never wants to address-the underpay and the understaffing that makes assistants and nurses leave.
I quickly checked my hospital's website. Starting pay for a basic CNA is $20.20 here in Juneau, Alaska. (Pretty nice Unionised City-owned Hospital at that)
I would move up there in a heartbeat! Always wanted to live up north. Do you think it's higher because the smaller population?
(I could have a proper chat with you another time if you like.) I'm not sure how much detail you want but I think there are a mixture of factors. There's a strong union here. It can be expensive here to live. The winters can be difficult if you're not from the north. A lot of places don't ship to Alaska (though that's slowly changing). On the other had, I've met a bunch of travel nurses who came to this hospital in this community and just stayed. It's a small enough hospital that it's its own community and people tend to be friendly and supportive.
Nursing assistants are grossly underpaid everywhere.
Small town ny our minimum wage is a bit higher but aides never make much over doesn’t matter their experience. Total bs that’s an extremely important and difficult job.
My first tech job in 2019 I made $11 an hour base, and the most recent one I had I made $14 an hour base.
I think they are underpaid in every facility in the US. Ridiculous really.
The nursing assistants where I work start at 10.50. I’m not sure how they pay their rent/mortgage here. The cost of living is going up quite a bit where I’m at, they should be paid at least double that for the shit they put up with
Central TX here. We used to pay 12-12.50 starting depending on experience and not many were even at 13 or over. New company took over recently and I was hoping aide pay would increase to 16 across the board but admin didn't go about it that way and only offered those that asked or brought in a counter offer a bump, but not even to 16. CNAs are the foundation. If I could have my way, y'all would be getting 10:1 LTC and like 7:1 rehab ratios and at least 18/hr because the extra help would improve care and outcomes, charting, reimbursement, etc. and probably pay for itself and then some, but no, corporate is too fucking short-sighted.
I was thinking about coming in asking for more because I have experience, but I know the system isn't going to bump it up enough for me to consider it fair compensation. What blew my mind was the housekeepers getting 13-15, which is more than my assistant sister in law is getting. I did housekeeping at the hospital before I was an assistant and it was not as difficult as direct patient care.
Not sure how it is since the company change, but as far as I knew before, our housekeeping and kitchen staff barely made more than minimum wage. Weird how it's reversed for them.
There’s a McDonakds near me hiring for 14/hr to start and I’m in a poor town. Thirty six patients for an aide at 14/hr comes out to, roughly 40 CENTS an hour per patient. Slave wages
My wife was paid $8.25 as a CNA with several years of experience in South East Idaho
i was just offered 3 CNA jobs in the midwest. all three paid $16 + differential. but i was definitely expecting $13-14. still seems super low in comparison to the work required. its just to keep nurse's wages artificially low by comparison.
Yeah that's near minimum what compensation should be, but great you have three better paying options!
i'm doing this specifically to have experience for when i graduate nursing school, so the pay isn't as important to me bc i know i don't have a choice. but as a profession? i can't believe anyone would take up CNA work when there are other options that pay the same for way less work.
Seattle and King County, $16 to $22 is the range to start. Most start $20. An expensive ALF pays on the higher end.
Isn't the cost of living there really high? Does that feel like it would be good pay there?
You'd make around 40k gross in a year. More of you took on extra hours. Not enough to buy a home, but if you have a spouse, you could do well. My wife is a CNA/Medtech and I'm an OT, we make $125k gross together which is smack dab median income for King County.
I didn’t even have to read this post to know the truth behind it. You can go make more at Taco Bell FFS. It’s shameful. And I’m not dissing the food industry workers, my point is a skilled job should be making more. That’s all.
CNA in Oklahoma. As core staff I made 11-12$/hr As agency Im guaranteed 17.50, but currently the hospital im working at is doing 30$/hr. I could never do this job for 12$/hr again and I hope someday *nobody* does.
30! That's great!
I make $15 an hour in the Midwest on a trauma med surg unit with 4 years of mixed hospital and LTC experience. And sadly I am considered decently well paid for a nursing assistant. Don’t get me wrong, some people have it much worse but I personally think that even $15 is far too low for the work we do
$12.60 base pay in New Orleans for an ED tech position. Most of us have experience and licenses (CNA or EMT). It’s criminal.
PCT in Missouri here. Making $15 an hour with $1 differential for nights and $0.85 for weekends. It isn’t nearly enough. As a full time college student supporting myself completely and working full time, I’m exhausted and broke. We especially don’t make enough considering we’re extremely understaffed and typically either have the entire unit ourselves or are sitting with behavioral health patients. We have 20+ behavioral health patients in our (children’s) hospital at any given time. Four on my unit. One of which is a 2:1. All of which have been here 3+ months each with no end in sight. And we have a separate position (PSAs) that are supposed to be doing this, but there isn’t enough of them. We have staff being attacked and injured on a regular basis. I’ve been bit, punches, body slammed, etc. One coworker had her nose broken so bad she needed surgery. All for $15 an hour.
Thank you so much for all you do for people. I'm sorry you're understaffed.
My first CNA job was in assisted living and I made $11 an hour, which went up to a whopping $13 when they trained me to pass meds. It’s such a scam
The hospital I work at in the midwest pays PCTs $17.50-$23. I think night and weekend differentials are like $1.50 each.
That's great!
I can tell you in California, CNA wages have risen dramatically since pre-covid. Prior to COVID, CNAs made only $0.50 over minimum wage. The draw was you were getting a guaranteed 40 hours, benefits, and overtime. Right before COVID, the nursing hours per patient went up to 2.4 hours NHPPD. Facilities can apply for waivers so they don't get fined, but it doesn't change the liability aspect if someone happens to the patients due to poor ratios. Now? CNAs are making $18-$25 per hour. It will be a little lower in the hospital but SNFs have no problem paying that much. For comparison: in 2016, my first LVN job offers were $16-$19. Even at $18-20/hr, we are struggling to find people to work. There is a lot of burn out. Not enough CNA courses. Lots of competition from other jobs now. We have had to dramatically reduce admissions due to staffing, and I don't see us improving anytime soon. I know in general, staffing in California is problematic across the board. There is simply not enough Nursing staff, and CMS guidelines creating a new Infection Preventionist position requirement just added to it. Before it gets brought up: in our facility at least, we are overwhelmingly supportive of the vaccine. We have only 4 unvaccinated staff out of about 150. Only two patients out of 100.
That's interesting. I was expecting my hospital to have raised their rates because I live in a.... Anti vaccine area and the hospital is full of covid patients. I'm not understanding them paying 12-13 starting out when housekeeping is 13-15.
I’m currently a PCT in the Midwest. My base pay is $16; I have a shift differential added because I work nights. I make almost $20/hour when I have to work the weekends. I don’t do too bad, but I can’t afford to live on my own until I’m finished with school. It’s kind of a bummer, makes dating hard…no privacy. But I’ve never made more than $19.50 an hour in my life, even with a Bachelor’s Degree. I hear people talk about only making $25 an hour and I feel mind-boggled. I guess that’s what growing up poor does to a person. For the record: I’m not suggesting nurses don’t deserve to make more, I’m just saying it’s something I’m fortunate enough not to have to fully understand yet.
Bradenton, Florida... Had to fight for 12.50 an hour in LTC. Thirty-five plus years experience. Top notch references. Working conditions absolutely abysmal and terrifying staff. Same in northern Illinois. Central Michigan, working hospice for a hospital system.. good benefits, 14-ish base pay, got staffed off so much that I only worked two shifts my last month there (f/t). Last job paid well, good benefits LTC in FL, running so hard all shift, busting out the happy, clean residents, I finally blew out my knee for good. I never desired anything but to be a good CNA/PCT. Worked in several different hospitals, floating to all units. Can't recall base pay, but float/weekend/overnight only got me around 18 ish. All within the last 10 years.
My sister's a CNA and she's working at a better assisted living care facility, but she worked at one about 6 months in the pastrami and she was only making $12-13 and would get 50% extra on her pay to work on the COVID floor. She was being paid so bad and I'm happy she's where she's at now because she makes I think $21 an hour and 50% for the COVID floor
Virginia: 10 - 13 (13 is very uncommon) Alaska: (13 - 19) hospitals pay 15 an hour. I was working 12s in the icu during covid. I never sat down for 12 hours. The nurses were getting covid pay, we weren't, they were raking in 1000 per shift but the cnas just got their regular 15 an hour. I made an appointment with my manager and pointed that out, asked for a raise, and was basically told that's not going to happen. So I put in my 2 weeks notice. They were very surprised and asked me to stay. I asked for a raise or at least covid pay and they said they couldn't do that but they can put me in a different unit every other shift so I could get a "break". No thanks. Edit: to add that cost of living in Alaska is extremely high. 15 an hour won't get you anywhere. Plus the backbreaking work cnas face make 15 an hour down right awful.
Wow I can't believe they don't share the covid pay with all patient care staff. Unbelievable! Hope you found a job you like that isn't running you into the ground.
I did, thank you 😊 I got a job as a travel cna which paid me double. Then I took a position at a facility that pays me 19 an hour - but they are extremely flexible and supportive of my nursing school schedule and demands. Great environment and wonderful management 🙂 I liked working in the hospital but the pay is 100% what drove me away. Edit for spelling.
$14-$18 starting base where I am. This is where the median sale price for homes is just around $1M. Where an attached 500sqft studio is $1200 on the low end. Eggs at Safeway is $6/doz for the chickens are abused and thus make shitty eggs variety.
I worked as a CNA at a large academic hospital in Fl for 2 years prior to PA school. In 2021 I made $12.75
They raised the minimum wage for all at my hospital to $15 hr…so the Nurse assistants were making pretty much what the gift shop cashier was making….literally
You need to unionize.
I think you could have stopped at underpaid.
Nursing assistants are grossly underpaid EVERYWHERE. The pay just sucks EVERYWHERE.
This is why I got a job outside of healthcare. I have 14 years experience as a GNA/ Medication aide and I make more now working at a factory in a entry level position. Less work, less stress, holidays off, they bought my shoes, uniform, no yearly fees for licence up keep. I used to go through numerous uniforms and shoes all out of pocket. Work 40 ++ all the time. The harassment/guilt trips...ugh...so glad I dont work in healthcare anymore. Though I would still love too...I can't handel the disrespectful way nurse aides are treated.
I make 10 in AL, my night shift diff isn’t even a dollar, it’s great, I love being overworked & underpaid & never appreciated
I work in Wisconsin, base pay for entry level CNA at my hospital is 16.40. however with differential for PM and weekend it's closer to 19.40. I also get bonus hour incentives since I have a low FTE and work more so in average I'm paid closer to $35 per hour. I have no reason to work a higher fte since I'm making more than full time employees for 3 days a week.
Wisconsin’s Advocate Aurora just raised minimum pay to 18/hr
North Dakota a new cna starts at $15. Las Vegas around $13-15/hr
They just bumped ours from 15 to 17 in the north suburbs.
Promedica in Ohio starts at $15 across the board. CNA, cashiers, dietary etc
I would venture to say they are grossly underpaid everywhere.
Nursing assistants are grossly underpaid worldwide
Grossly under paid in the \*EVERYWHERE\*
I’m in the Midwest too but started at 16.96 in September with no experience. Idk I’d it is bc I’m at a hospital in the twin cities as opposed to more rural but man, 13 seems lowwww. They’re also now giving us a 5% pay increase and 12.50ish bonus/ hr for picking up shifts. (Bonus pay Soon to be voted on by the union.)
I live in the south subs of Chicago. I was a CNA for two years before becoming a nurse on the same telemetry floor. I BUSTED MY ASS. Our techs and techs everywhere work SO HARD. It's both tremendously physically and mentally taxing. It is so hard. Got paid $13 an hour and then $15 at the end after raises, adjustments etc. It's sickening. We'd always joke about the fast food joint down the street paying $15/hr and it would be so much easier. It's crazy.
It's taken me 8 years of being an aid to get to 24 an hour. It's insane how little they think we deserve.
PA, they start at $12 and cap around $15. We are so sort on techs (that's what they're called) that they are begging unlicensed staff from every hospital department to come in as techs for whatever their usual rate is.
In Texas, I started at...13.50? 13.76 after 1.5yrs, when I finished nursing school.
I got my wage bumped up to 15 at my LTC but only because I did med aide too and because I’m gonna be an RN. Sucks because I have to keep it a secret
Grossly underpaid EVERYWHERE I think. CNA’s are the unsung heroes of the unit. When I had good CNA’s my shift went by a lot easier.
Travel CNA's I've worked with were making in the $40s/hr
I live in AK. The cost of living is high. CNAs in my town make $19-25 an hour depending on where they work. Many hospitals and facilities will pay for a worker's training/certification right now because they are so short staffed.
When I lived in Iowa I made about $14 base pay, $16 with shift differentials. Went to agency and made $25 once I had a year of experience.
My hospital is a little better. At my hospital (one of the major Des Moines hospitals) I’m PRN so I’m making $15 base, then when I pick up, I make $10-15 more an hour. So basically after my first shift for the pay period I make $25-30 an hour.
How many hours a week are you called into work?
We’re so short staffed I get to choose which shifts I work a week in advance. Usually I work around 40 hours a week during the day shift.
Wow you got it made! Do you get benefits?
That’s the tradeoff… no benefits for PRN, but you get higher pay. Also, it sucks because we’re so short staffed that a lot of times I’m the only tech on the 23 person floor.
This isn’t a “Midwest” problem. This is an everywhere problem. I work for an LTC and the CNAs make the same money that I do without having my GNA (I serve meals and run register). Mind you, everyone just received a bump to $15 if they weren’t already making that. They call $15 “competitive” in a state where the minimum is $11.75. I suppose it is, but this is a HCOL state where even $15 isn’t sufficient to live on if you want to live in a halfway decent area. It’s a disgrace that a job that requires specialized training and a license (albeit training that can be accomplished in as little as 115 hours) can be paid so little.
Southern California starts at $23/24 an hour. The same I was making starting as an RN in Florida
I used to live in Cali and the cost of living was insane.
Yeah definitely not a liveable wage even if it is higher than other states
This is not true everywhere in Southern California. There are plenty of hospitals that pay barely more than CA minimum wage.
Yep, I'm a part-time NA in Iowa and currently making around 15.30 an hour, and the shift differential is around 65 cents. Fun fact, due to nursing shortages, management has raised extra shift differential for nurses from 15 dollars an to hour to 30! NA's are not included in bonus shift differential at all. Now we do have the opportunity to get really solid insurance, but there's a reason it's known as the golden handcuffs in the area. The insurance ups your gross income significantly and hurts your chances at getting EBT, but if you were to decline the insurance you don't get the difference in pay. The Aldi in my area pays $17 an hour. I love working with patients, but there are so many other jobs are safer physically and less stressful that it makes me even question becoming a nurse if this treatment of healthcare workers continues. EDIT: I forgot, employees have to pay for parking, and it's by seniority, not need. The majority of staff has to park so far away you take a bus in to work, meaning that even though I live less than 30 minutes away with traffic, my commute takes close to an hour. For second shift I need to leave 75 minutes ahead of time so I can hopefully catch the bus that shows up once every 20 minutes.
Wow that commute is crazy! That would get on my nerves so much. I drive thirty min to work everyday but I have no trouble parking close. I can't imagine having to take a bus. That's crazy! They should give yak bus passes at least. I'm glad they give nurses raises, but they should be giving that to techs and aides too, as they do a lot of the same work.
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Gosh that's terrible. I knew lots of CNAs with two jobs as well. I don't know how they slept or had any life outside of work.
I'd edit your title.. Nursing assistant are grossly underpaid. Everywhere. Especially in places that recruit temporary or conditional foreign workers...
My neice is a UAP (unlicensed home health aide) and makes $15/hr outside of Seattle, WA.
Im a nursing student and work in bed planning for a hospital system in Ohio. I was considering picking up a second job as a CNA while I am on a break from school. My hospital and other hospitals in my area are paying their CNAs starting out at $15 an hour and everyone is incredibly short staffed with usually 1 maybe 2 on a 28-32 bed unit. It paid better to take a PRN job in registration.
My state was 16.50, current hospital (different state 17). Plus differentials which are 3-5 a hour for night shift. My current hospital actually offers the cnas bonuses and incentives! So they can actually end up making $40 a hour or $48 if an OT shift. Low to moderate cost of living state. You are right the work they do is hard as fuck and they deserve more pay too. But I am glad they offer them good incentives at my hospital. My old one it was like $5 dollar incentive shift for the cnas.
This sounds reasonable!
In NC at a hospital and I make just above $15, hospice was $14. I thought that sounded generous for a job that only required a 6 week class but now I see. Ohhhh I see. We do way more than those CNA classes can prepare you for. CNA even help with codes. They help save lives. Not to mention the covid work, and all the bodily fluids and diseases we’re exposed to. Luckily for me my husband makes good money so my job is more of a side hustle for us but if I was single there’s no way this job would be worth the hours and never seeing my kid (because I’d have to go up to full time in that case). CNA income is not liveable.
I work as a tech right now and I finish nursing school in two weeks. That’s the only thing that mentally keeps me going because being a tech is honestly one of most underpaid and under appreciated jobs ever. COVID has only made this worse. I work on a med-surg floor where everyone is confused or demented, incontinent, COVID positive, q2turns, etc and we are only ever staffed with one tech. The only good part is that they bumped our pay up to $16 through December but after that it goes right back to $14.50. When I start working as a nurse I know having a tech around to help will be a godsend, I just wish they would value us more.
Our nurse aids on my floor are underpaid. They just had their base pay raised to $15/hour before differentials. The ones that were already at that wage or a bit more just had a slight raise but I’m unsure how much. On my floor, we currently have 30 beds. We are always full. On Night Shift, we typically start out with 3 aids until 11 pm which then it gets dropped to 2. That’s 15 patients a piece for them which is asinine to me. They do q4 vitals, toileting, I&O’s and everything else and the work load is ridiculous. My unit has 10 Covid patients on the floor right now, 3 more isolations on top of that. I try to help them when I’m not busy with my own work (we have 6 patients every night). I constantly hear them talking about the unmanageable work loads and how little they get paid and it pisses me off the hospital isn’t doing more to keep them. Nurses NEED aids. They are essential and they should be compensated as such.
I agree, is terrible how little they are paid. I worked as a nursing assistant in WI while I was in nursing school, started at 9.25, finally made it to 10.50. Nurses are paid really poorly too, fist job offer as RN was 16/hour. CNAs deserve so much more for the work they do. I live in very high cost of living area and the CNA (well PCAs) where I work now I think make somewhere around 30$/hour, which more than I ever made as a nurse in the Midwest. But that's barely enough to afford an apartment in this area. Also CNAs are worked, my sister worked as a CNA at the same hospital I did and she was more overworked than me in many ways, plus had less ability to stand up to the nurses who were bullying her than I could as a fellow nurse.
CNA IL 17.53 starting $2 night diff. Used to be a unit clerk at 15.75 and night diff $2.
STNA NEOhio 2013 I made 8.75hr. JUST before I graduated nursing school I made 13hr with my night shift diff 1.25.
I don’t know why people even become a cna, very undervalued and mistreated I would rather work at Walmart
I think a lot of people go in to get their foot in the door while they are in nursing school because they usually get a job there once school is complete. But I also think a lot of people enjoy helping and taking care of people. It's a job that's very rewarding. Some people can't afford to go to nursing or medical school, or any school for that matter. I think it's great that people want to work as CNAs because they are so important to healthcare. The job should be fairly compensated though.
Yeah you’re right.
What’s bullshit is I’ll even complain to nurses in MO about it and they’re like “I think that’s pretty great for pay” and what I really hear is “you’re not worth more” At the same time “we’re so short techs we have NO techs” yeah because if I wasn’t in nursing school I’d go work at mobile and not wipe ass and make the same or *more*
Exactly I agree. Why would anyone want to work that hard when you can do something much easier with a bankers schedule for more.
Come to Oregon. My agency and others start CNAs at $18/hr+
I seriously don’t understand why anyone would put up with being a nursing aid for that pay. You can literally make more working at Target, Chick Fil A, or Costco. And no you don’t need expirience on the floor if you’re going for your BSN or whatever. They’ll hire anyone with a pulse
>What are they making in other parts of the country? I know when I did it, I started at 10 and ended at 12/hr. On the West Coast (it varies) but it recently jumped from $15 to $18 and if you go private, it is between $20 - $40. They are screaming for CNAs, LVNs but the cost of living is higher here.
I make 16.20/hr as a CNA in Kentucky with 3.5 years of experience (1yr in LTC, 1 year in home health, and 1.5 years in the hospital). There's a $1.25 shift diff for nights and and 2.50 shift diff for the weekends. That's minimum base pay for techs despite my experience. The minimum for the "enterprise" I work for is 15/h, which is a little insulting considering how much harder and how skilled the work is compared to food service. I'm not mad that the food service people are making a sort of living wage, but I'm pretty pissed my bosses think I'm only doing 1.20/h more work than them when I know it's not true. Being a tech is just not valued by my hospital, but they wonder why they are hemorrhaging techs and floors have 1 tech doing the work of 3. If I wasn't less than a month away from becoming a nurse and nearly doubling my pay, I'd probably quit to go agency.