Why do nurses get paid so little?

In theory, but it is very unlikely. I'm talking in realistic terms. The vast majority of nurses with more than 3 decades of experience are bound to hold senior roles. I don't mean the very top of the hierarchy, but they certainly won't maintain the same lowest rank throughout the entirety of their professional lives.

as a registered Nurse with well over a decade in the profession i can assure you that the grading pyramid is such that there is no provision for anyone to be promoted beyond band 5, there are perhaps 4 times as many band 5 roles as there are for the rest of the profession put together ( bands 6 - 9 and VSM)

When did I ever say anything about nurses not progressing further than a certain band. Of course nurses don't earn as much as doctors, so it's perfectly reasonable to assume that the majority of nurses don't earn beyond a certain band.

As far as I know, band 5 salaries are already pretty decent. Beyond the 25k mark is that correct? Plus the added benefits. Perhaps from a student perspective that doesn't sound like much (most students have the naive conception that they deserve to earn bucket loads more than the national average because they have degrees.. which is entirely wrong. Not when more and more people are getting degrees nowadays).

25k is already around the national average, and the vast majority of registered nurses with at least a decade of experience, like yourself, are earning at least this. Senior nurses can earn as much as 97k+ I believe. The prospect of advancement with many years of service is actually pretty good.

are you deliberately being a troll here ? exactly how much knowledge do you have of the career structure of Registered Nurses?

there are substantially fewer posts at band 6 and above then there are at band 5
this is pure and simple fact.

are you deliberately being a troll here ? exactly how much knowledge do you have of the career structure of Registered Nurses?

there are substantially fewer posts at band 6 and above then there are at band 5
this is pure and simple fact.

Fair enough. But still better fringe benefits than many private sector counterparts on similar salary levels. Full pension for '40 years service' doesn't only apply to nurses, but many other public sector roles. Private sector pensions are nothing compared to public sector pensions (including Nurses), and though many private sector salaries are greater than that of Nurses, Nurses have excellent job security compared to many of their private sector counterparts. Yes I admit Nurses have been laid off in the past, but not to the extent of the proportion of private sector workers made redundant, nor to the same frequency. I'm not defending the private sector (in fact i'm not taking any sides), I'm merely using it as a benchmark.

We've also established that most nurses do earn above the national average. Also keep in mind that many nurses in fact aren't graduates. Though nowadays it is often a requirement, many are eligible to study to become nurses whilst on the job (for instance health care assistants seeking advancement).

I agree that Nurses should not be paid more for the simple reason: supply and demand. They already have comparatively generous benefits (as you've mentioned yourself: full pension after 40 years of service is actually pretty awesome. You've neglected the fact that, after so many years of service, a Nurse is bound to be at a senior level and thus command a decent salary as well).

Supply and demand is how the economy works. Indeed nurses work very hard. But so do people who work in the culinary industry. So do stockbrokers. So do teachers. Not all earn lucrative stashes of money, but at the same time not all are exactly 'poor'.

Healthcare assistants can't seek advancement and train on the job to be a qualified nurse. They would have to still do a degree.

Healthcare assistants can't seek advancement and train on the job to be a qualified nurse. They would have to still do a degree.

Yes they can. They do it through the Open University.

I think that things are about to change. There is a great shortage of nurses in the UK in 2015 and employers are having to increase the salaries that they are offering nurses and the benefits, in order to attract nursing staff to work for them. This is good news for nurses and is long overdue.

That is a stupid, unnecessary and degrading comment-and not in the least bit funny.

so was your response to that comment ****ing hypocritical nerd

There are large numbers of Nurses, there is relatively low demand for Nurses.

So there is no reason to offer them higher salaries as they are desperate for work.

The only time we would see an increase in wages is if the demand for nurses increased, or indeed - if the number of nurses willing to work in the profession decreased - which isn't going to happen any time soon.


People are not paid relative to what they do for society (ie; social value) --- they are paid instead relative to the demand/supply of their labour.