It was somewhat tongue in cheekdata:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
One point i’d make about those who choose to work in nursing (and teaching, as above) is that they choose that career for the ability to care for people, not for the great salary/perks (as neither really exist!).On the other hand, people like myself choose to work in IT, in the Private sector, which comes with financial/working conditions perks like good pay, overtime, agile working, sociable hours etc.In contrast though, I find my job unrewarding and merely a means to an end, to the point that I come home and moan about another server failing and having to be rebuilt etc, to which my wife normally explains how a patient arrested during dialysis and she performed life saving CPR and they’re still alive as a result! For all of the crappy conditions and under-appreciation, she’s genuinely making a difference to other humans yet I get paid 3 times her salary.
Whilst it’s clearly her choice to do that role, the people around her are just asking for equal appreciation.
My wife and I are pretty happy with her pay for the role she is doing. She's been promoted a couple of times, recently completed her nursing degree and is going onto a very challenging course starting in October that will allow her to move on to the next level - and increase her earnings again.
I think people staying in the same role for nigh on 10 years should not be surprised if their earnings stagnate.
If your wife has only just completed her nursing degree, what role has she been doing up to now?
She is lead nurse in a GP surgery. She qualified as a nurse back in the 90s via the project 2000 course. In the course of her career she has worked in a number of clinical specialties (one of which was very specialised), been a sister on two different hospital units and even worked part time on the local regional phone advice service.
She hasn't needed a degree for any of this. She still doesn't need it, but her practice saw the value in investing in her.
After she finishes her next course she will begin working as a nurse practitioner/prescriber in the same practice.
To compare directly, my wife completed her nursing degree 18 years ago and has worked across multiple roles in 3 hospitals, working up from the lowest band when she first qualified up to the top of band 5 as she is now.She’s also had 2 periods of maternity leave in that time.
My other half works in a 'team leader' role for our LA. She manages 2 teams across 2 sites, 11 people in total.
She has to manage each team and each individuals workload, manage absences and holiday bookings, manage their 'employee development' and have a formal sit down with each of them bi-monthly or whatever... her net pay is a whopping £63 per month more than the lowest paid person reporting to her. They just turn up each day and sit there waiting to be told what to do.
On paper it looks like a sh*t job, in reality its probably a sh*t job, BUT her office is a 3min walk from our front door. We only need to run 1 car, she doesn't have to commute, I walk her to work each morning and meet her at the site gate most nights, take her for a drink or some food on the way home.
She loves the job, when she forgets how much she hates the job and remembers just how much she loves it.
Its all about perspective. data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
Personally, i’d love it if my wife worked in a GP surgery.Monday-Friday 9-5 without having to work in a crumbling hospital.I think she’d miss the ward too much though, which comes back to the difference between me and her!
So are we saying that one does not deserve a cost of living pay increase unless they progress through the ranks ? . This is not my definition of a pay increase, it is a promotion to the next level and that position pay structure of said position. There are many cogs . If individuals meet and exceed targets in their pay band do they not deserve just a basic cost of living rise in pay ? It seems not.
Would also like to add that many a few in the public sector and indeed private are happy with their jobs because it suits their home life .Does this mean they are all wasters ?It is a fine balence for many that greasing the pole to move up is a non starter as that change will affect their home life So these employees to some means they lack ambition and do not want better themselves then equels they a poor employee that should stay on that same wage indefinitely ?
I myself turned down a management position because my current position is perfect for me work wise and home life. Does this mean I am not worthy of a cost of living pay increase even though I continue to meet and exceed my yearly assessment and goals .