To ask band 5 nurses (at lower end of pay scale) how much you earn?

[Llbarls81]

I've just done a calculation as I'm due to qualify in September and I'm shocked at how little the pay is!! I've just worked out that a band 5 entry level nurse takes home around £1400 a month?? Surely this isn't right?

Another blow is soon coming for nurses

The union reps had a meeting with staff today in regards to the 24/7 NHS thing.

One thing mentioned was that in July reps are meeting with the government bodies to discuss the scrapping of unsociaable hour pay. It will be being scrapped, and instead what has been offered is 10% on every hour of unsociable pay, instead of what it was previously. Also, unsociable won't be from 8pm anymore but from 10pm.

What a joke. I know nurses who have worked these unsociable hours for years, it's factored into their lifestyle choices and now will be unable to afford what they've had over the years. One woman here will have to take a second job to cover her mortgage, that is how much she is losing thanks to this.

Oh Dear and I was going to do the return to nursing course and get my PIN back. I'm working as a HCSW at the moment, band 2 and take home 1200 to 1300 a month after tax includes enhancements 37.5 hours a week.
If they are doing away with it all I'll earn less as a SN than I do now. I was hoping to drop my hours to 30 or less a week.
I must keep my eye out for something else to do.

Squinkie. I have considered letting my PIN lapse and trying to become an HCA instead. After comparing payslips with a senior HCA colleague, she came out with £200 less a month than me for working the same number of shifts. I don't think it's worth all the extra responsibility and stress for that much money, and if they take away unsocial hours enhancements it will be even less.

Scrapping unsociable hours is a disaster waiting to happen. There will be a mass exodus as experienced nurses defect to the private sector, emigrate to a country where nurses are still valued or simply leave nursing altogether.

Every single one of my colleagues has said they will leave the NHS if they take our enhancements.

Another looming problem with the NHS is that so very many experienced staff are either retiring or about to retire. On the one hand they are not training enough staff to replace them and also, it's the sheer amount of knowledge and experience that is leaving. I have been qualified just 5 years but, I am already one of the longest serving in my department. It's ludicrous.

Loss of unsocial payments is a step too far for myself and colleagues. Nobody wants to work christmas anyway. Like stated above many of us have taken out loans etc based on this money. But as stated before the government wants the nhs to disintegrate

There will be no staff left on the wards if the scrap unsocial hours pay.

Why on earth would you put up with working nights and weekends if you get nothing extra for doing it .
They are going to be in massive shit if they do- its bloody rough trying to recruit and retain staff because of the conditions as it is.

I would earn less than my neighbours do sitting at home all day

I know a few band 5 staff nurses who got 9-5 jobs in the community at band 6 level only to end up back on the ward a few months later because they realised that losing their unsociable hours had made them worse off even with the promotion. It really does bump up your pay. Yes, Nursing has always been poorly paid but in the past you had job security, unsociable hours enhancement, decent pension etc to make you feel like you weren't being completely screwed over. Once it's all being eroded what is there left to attract people to the profession other than a desire to care? I wish that desire to care and make a difference was enough but its not.

I am a HCP & in my part of the service a few of us have been volunteering to cover the relatively new weekend working at the enhanced rates talked about on this thread.
The duties that are not covered by the permanent volunteers are covered by agency staff which cost significantly more than we are paid (& I think we are well paid for our weekend work, especially Sundays).
I think that if the enhancements are scrapped then costs will rise significantly in our department & the wider NHS will be going to hell on a handcart!

No-one will want to work Christmas, new year, nights, weekends or bank holidays without unsocial hours pay. It really makes up your wages.

You really all need to strike.

This won't just be affecting nurses either apparently.

It's absolutely ridiculous. And sickening. Just how much they're willing to take away.

As a too band five for many years ( have now left nursing i) I took home about £1900 \ month shift work.

We rely on Agency staff atm even with permanent staff getting their enhanced rates for W/E ,nights etc.
Every one will go to Agency they will be paying us twice as much anyway
I have seen colleagues leaving in droves to do agency or work in AUS/USA
Where they have a ratio of 1:4 ( RN /PT)
I chatted to a nurse today who ,in her last job was 1:15 ( acute medicine)

Its all going to go tits up - just a matter of time !

Just wanted to add, in response to some of the comments, I am also in my final year of nursing training and I wasn't really aware until this year what the pay was after tax, I knew what it was before. However it hasn't put me off for two reasons. Yes it might not make me a millionaire but it's more than I would get in a boring admin or supermarket job like I was doing before. It means I get to use my skills and things I'm good at to be in a job I actually enjoy. Also, there are so many opportunities for progression, chances to earn more money! I don't regret doing my training for a minute, it sounds cheesy but it's made me grow as a person too, opened my eyes to so many different things. There is more to it than money.

(Hadn't realised it had turned into a debate, must learn to read all the comments!! )

Sorry Roscoe but you do sound so young. Of course it's more than just the money, but without that money in years to come you'll be struggling to pay the mortgage, insurance, kids activities, holidays, childcare, you name it. While friends with other degrees earned same time as you, are earning what you should get with enhancements or even more than that.
I trained in the 80's the money is stupid low without the enhancements, for the levels of responsibility SN's have.

do we really have to put such a downer on people who are happy, excited and enthusiastic? We don't know if she'll struggle or not. All these changes should be enforced before she is working, she'll learn to live within her means, within the means her wage allows.

of course only time will tell if they decide to implement more changes, but after this there's really not much more they can take away from nurses.

" a downer"
Do you mean the reality of nursing as it stands today?
Where you work 14.5 hour days when you are only paid for working 12.5?
When nurses are leaving the profession in droves to work abroad because the conditions are actually reasonable and humane ?
Where nurses who are paid extra duty payments are facing having the salary they rely on cut despite the fact they work nights/weekends/ christmas day and so they will no longer be able to pay their bills.

Wake up !

Haven't I made it quite clear I know the realities of nursing and have supported my nursing colleagues? Haven't I already argued on behalf of nurses to convince people that you all have it tough? I already know what you're saying to me.

What I am saying is that yes, it is reality for a lot of them, but there's absolutely no need for people to be disheartening student nurses before they've even bloody started their jobs. Don't you think they already know how shite it is, it's everywhere they turn.

I've had a student nurse speaking to me about how their mentor has upset them because they've turned round and said 'quit now whilst you can'. What a lovely thing to say to someone who has given up so much time, money and effort to do what they want to do. And also patronising.

And let me clarify I am not saying the reality of nursing isn't tough, and isn't unfair, I'm not saying people don't need to know the realities, but what I am saying is there is no need to crush people's positive attitudes. Positive attitudes is what we need if the NHS nursing is to survive. :)

And yet the young nurses spend three years working hard for a degree that will pay them a pittance for all their knowledge, while their friends who did a business degree/accounting/biology whatever will be paid their worth. But thats OK because it's more than the money after all, you are a caring person and do good? So will be punished for it by earning less.

Reading some of these posts makes me realise how lucky I am to work where I do ( charity funded hospice, partly NHS funded). We are relatively well staffed, my managers are good with flexible working and there is a lowish staff turnover.. Many staff have worked there for 10+ years. Our workload is ever increasing and very stressful and or pay is lower than the NHS but generally I think we have it better than many.

It's not right squinkie no-one (or rather I know I'm not) is saying that. I'm just saying it doesn't do to dishearten someone who knows what they're in for but still has the heart to show enthusiasm.

I for one am sick of hearing the rhetoric 'well you do it for the patients' or whatever, it's so condescending and it's exactly what the government plays on; the compassion of people who go into nursing :(

Not all are young btw, there's a student at my hospital who is 60 odd.

Squinkie what do you think the average salary of someone with "a business degree" is? I would doubt they take home anywhere near the average nurse's salary (which I'm not saying is necessarily wrong). Or biology.

Accountancy is a seriously difficult post-graduate qualification that is only generally open to the top graduates. So not really fair to compare it to nursing. Accountants are also extremely familiar with 60-70 hour weeks, 16-20 hour days more often than you'd believe, and pretty crap starting salary (well below 20k if you're not Big 4) when they are trying to get qualified.