A recent survey of approximately 2,000 nurse leaders indicates they’re being paid less these days than they were three years ago – and they’re not happy about it.
The survey, published in a recent issue of Nursing Management, indicates the annual salary for a nurse leader in 2010 is $80,170, whereas a nurse leader in 2007 earned $83,930. In addition, almost 60 percent of those surveyed said they aren’t being compensated properly for the level of responsibility with which they’re entrusted by their employer.
“If you thought nursing was immune to the downturn, think again,” said Richard Hader, RN, editor-in-chief of the mjournal, which is published by Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins, a division of Philadelphia-based Wolters Kluwer Health. “The poor economy is keeping us working longer than we’d anticipated, and in addition to wage cuts, organizations are freezing or eliminating retirement benefits, further negatively impacting employee morale.”
Of those surveyed, 64 percent have held their position of leadership for less than five years, while 7 percent have held the position at least 16 years. An earlier survey has indicated 49 percent of nurse leaders will retire by the end of this decade.
“Those of us in leadership positions right now have had a lengthy career as a clinician, but a relatively short one as a manager,” Hader pointed out.
He also noted that while nursing leaders aren’t happy about their salaries, the evidence isn’t there to indicate their workload has increased. According to Hader, the survey indicated nurse leaders are working the same number of hours per week and aren’t responsible for any more job duties or personnel than they were before the economic downturn.