Traveling Nurse: Checklist (Salary and Benefits)
Several years ago, I decided to leave my job as a charge nurse at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital and travel the United States as a traveling nurse. The idea of getting paid to visit the beaches of Hawaii and California or participate in the culture of New York City had become too attractive. Looking back, there are several things I wish I had known before signing up with my first travel nurse agency. Here’s a checklist of some of the things I wish I’d known from the start:
salary
Being a traveling nurse is very different from being a hospital employee. First, itinerant nurses are paid considerably more per hour than regular hospital staff nurses. Although you may not see it this way, hospitals reward traveling nurses with higher hourly pay because of the “sacrifice” the nurse must make to uproot herself from her home and her family. I didn’t necessarily see the Huntington Beach, California sun on my days off as a sacrifice, but that’s the way hospitals view travel nursing.
Make sure your travel nursing agency is willing to negotiate the highest pay rate for you before you sign a contract to do a travel nursing assignment. Don’t just accept the first offer that comes along; you may be able to do better. Remember, itinerant nursing agencies are paid to fill hospital nursing vacancies. If one agency can’t fill the vacancy, another will. As a result, you need to make sure your agency is working toward the highest hourly pay rate possible and not just trying to beat the next agency to fill a vacancy. One suggestion I would make is to check with several different agencies and see which one offers you the highest payout rate. You can even create a bidding war between the agencies for your services.
Second, most hospitals will pay for (or at least help pay for) your move to your city. This is also an issue that you will need your travel nurse agency to negotiate for you. Third, most hospitals will also pay you a monthly housing stipend. In many cases, the stipend will only be paid if you are renting, but not if you purchase a home in your new assigned location. The stipend is often tax-free.
Check list
You can also ask your travel nurse agency these questions:
(1) Does the agency guarantee my assignment in writing?;
(2) Are my hours guaranteed?;
(3) Do I get paid weekly, bi-weekly or monthly?;
(4) Does the itinerant nursing agency or hospital pay me?;
(5) Will the hospital pay for my move? as is usually the case?; Y
(6) Will the hospital pay a stipend for my lodging? as is usually the case?