do travel nurse make LOT'S of money?????

[chtal7]

now I been working for 4 years which 3 years in the ER...making 30$ an hour CAD.....now they said it would pay like 28-32$ an hour as travel nurse....now i'm confused....cause i tought travel nurse did make a lot of money....i want to pay all my student loans...

if you don't fit in for the free taxe on rent....can someone tell me how much it really cost for the rent.....

help me please
chantal

[AmandaWIRN]

Even if you don't have a tax home (like me), your housing is still free, you just have to pay taxes on whatever your company spends on housing- for example, if they spend $1000/mo on housing, you'll get approx $250-300/mo in extra taxes deducted from your check- still cheaper than paying your own rent.

As far as pay goes, for ER, most travel jobs pay between $28-35/hr (more or less in some areas of the country). If you were making $30/hr with only 4yrs experience at your permanent job as a regular staff nurse, I would say you had to have been near the top of your pay scale. I've been a nurse for 4 years, and worked permanent in ER in WI, and I only made about $23-24/hr, so taveling was a big increase for me. I also pull in a lot with overtime- my company pays me double-time for overtime, so $60+/hr adds up pretty quick, but not every company does that, and the availability of overtime varies from assignment to assignment.

I started traveling to pay off debt as well, and I would say, as a rough extimate, I make about 50-75% more than I did as permanent staff (including overtime). I figure I'll have most of my loans paid off after 2-3 years of traveling, then I'll settle down somewhere.

[Anmutasc]

I think it is a myth that we make more money, I lost about $6 an hour going from a permanent job in Boston to a travel assignment in San Diego, and even my new rate for san francisco is still below what i was making back home. The way you can really make money is when you do your taxes after traveling. You get a meal allowance per day and lots of write offs so you can walk away with like $5,000 back in taxes. Plus you dont' pay for housing which is great and the apartments they put you up in are usually top quality.... do it for the experience, the new friends, and fun. As for money, may not be that much more lucrative.

[giedre11]

I think another thing to add, what I found out {at least with my company} is that you only get paid for six holidays out of the year. When I worked permanent for the state there were many more holidays than just six. Another thing working as a traveler, is I don't get insurance unless I pay for it, and it's not cheap. If I don't go to work {call out sick} I don't get paid. No work, no pay! I also don't get any paid vacation, although I can take off of work in between assignments for as long as I want...if I have enough money saved up to pay my bills. My rate of pay has been from $8.00/hour, up to 30.00 per hour. As a traveller you are often not well liked by the regular staff because they view you as making so much more money than them, and I've found that YOU are usually the one that gets pulled first, and YOU are the one that usually gets the heavier assignment. I would {and do} look at travel nursing as the posts stated above, for the experience and for seeing different parts of the US. Don't forget too, you can only take so much of your personal belongings with you when you travel. You usually have to either re-buy certain things {think bed} or coffee pot, etc. unless you happen to get a furnished place. Some of the housing is pretty bad. I have been pretty much on my own as far as finding housing goes. If you do go into travel nursing, don't do it because of the "big bucks".

[AmandaWIRN]

I think another thing to add, what I found out {at least with my company} is that you only get paid for six holidays out of the year. When I worked permanent for the state there were many more holidays than just six. Another thing working as a traveler, is I don't get insurance unless I pay for it, and it's not cheap. If I don't go to work {call out sick} I don't get paid. No work, no pay! I also don't get any paid vacation, although I can take off of work in between assignments for as long as I want...if I have enough money saved up to pay my bills. My rate of pay has been from $8.00/hour, up to 30.00 per hour. As a traveller you are often not well liked by the regular staff because they view you as making so much more money than them, and I've found that YOU are usually the one that gets pulled first, and YOU are the one that usually gets the heavier assignment. I would {and do} look at travel nursing as the posts stated above, for the experience and for seeing different parts of the US. Don't forget too, you can only take so much of your personal belongings with you when you travel. You usually have to either re-buy certain things {think bed} or coffee pot, etc. unless you happen to get a furnished place. Some of the housing is pretty bad. I have been pretty much on my own as far as finding housing goes. If you do go into travel nursing, don't do it because of the "big bucks".

A lot of this stuff depends on your company. As a traveler, you should never have to pay for insurance- most companies offer free insurance that starts on day 1 of employment. Some companies also offer vacation pay. Also, most companies have great private housing. All of my housing has been in nice gated communities with pool, workout room, etc. & is also fully furnished. If you are not getting decent furnished housing & free insurance, I'd shop around for a better company.

[Terry Brown]

Try Emerald Health Services and ask for a quote on a pay package - can't hurt to see what they have to offer and compare to other agencies. Person I would talk to would be Suzie Oakley at 800-917-5055 x 103

[giedre11]

A lot of this stuff depends on your company. As a traveler, you should never have to pay for insurance- most companies offer free insurance that starts on day 1 of employment. Some companies also offer vacation pay. Also, most companies have great private housing. All of my housing has been in nice gated communities with pool, workout room, etc. & is also fully furnished. If you are not getting decent furnished housing & free insurance, I'd shop around for a better company.

True, much does depend on one's company. However, a lot of the "free" insurance is so bad that nobody I know takes it. Private housing found for you by the company is often not worth the trade off for monthly housing. I guess it just all depends!

Edited to add: you can always stop by the local police station, explain your circumstances, and ask what neighborhoods NOT to rent in!

[AmandaWIRN]

True, much does depend on one's company. However, a lot of the "free" insurance is so bad that nobody I know takes it. Private housing found for you by the company is often not worth the trade off for monthly housing. I guess it just all depends!

Edited to add: you can always stop by the local police station, explain your circumstances, and ask what neighborhoods NOT to rent in!

I'm not sure what the insurance for other companies is like, mine is free, and it is excellent insurance- absolutely NO deductibles, very low co-pays, etc.

[lovelife]

Amanda RN WI, what company do you work for? I am from Wisconsin Originally also. I have been traveling for the past year with my husband. Sounds like you have a good company to work for.

[lovelife]

As far as the money for travel nursing. Coming from state of WI starting rate of pay for new grad rn is $ 21.00 per hour. My take home pay was $1100 for two weeks. Doing travel nursing I started out at $1100 take home a week, and now I am up to $1500 per week take home/ $6000 per month take home/$72,000 per year TAKE HOME. The money is a HUGE benefit and makes all of it worthwhile. Plus, you get to travel and experience things and have less responsiblities. :houra: