Are You Happy With Your Paycheck?

So – um – how much money do you make?

That’s a question that’s not heard too often. There seems to be a cultural taboo against such a query but admit it: you’d really like to know what other nurses earn.

I found some answers in a recent trade publication that surveyed 7,500 nurses about their salaries. I was surprised to learn that the average salary had decreased about $3,000 since the survey of 2007. The numbers have gone from $59,650 a year to $56,785, partly due to many nurses who have topped out their salaries, according to the experts. (To remain competitive and retain the most experienced nurses, some employers are offering better benefits like upgraded health care plans.)

As a matter of interest, nurses in California earn the highest average salary—$71,474 a year—but the average cost of housing in the state is about $614,000. In the San Francisco Bay Area, housing costs as much as $845,000. (These numbers could be a bit lower by now, with the real estate market being what it is.)

New York and Delaware take second and third place, with salaries averaging about $63,000 and $62,000 respectively.

On the opposite end of the spectrum is Tennessee, where nurses earn, on average, about $44,000 a year. Home prices in the Volunteer State, though, average about $150,000.

There are quite a few states in the mid-$50,000 range: Illinois, Florida, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and the District of Columbia.

I was a bit miffed to learn that only 55 percent of employers don’t offer shift differentials.
And perhaps no surprise: male nurses make more money on average than their female counterparts—about $53,792 versus $50,615.

Are you happy with your paycheck?

Do you think you’re earning what you should?

Here’s your chance to sound off.

Tell us what you think.