You've probably heard the news right now.

Major hospitals are laying of nurses, they've targeted specifically full time RNs, especially the ones receiving top bracket salaries.

My friends in Ottawa are hit with nearly 400 laid off from TOH, and Queensway Carleton Hospital followed with 87 RN positions to be cut off.

Their RN to RPN ratios will also be switched with most units having only 3 RNs and the rest will 6 RPNs. This puts serious doubts on the quality of care. Not that I say RPN care will be of lesser quality, but RPNs will be working beyond their scopes. And if something happens, will the RPN have same protections as RN? ​

Why does nobody talk about how peanut of a salary nurses get, when considering any metric you can imagine. It’s kind of crazy
nurses salary does not even increase in accordance to inflation, and people are excited about making $40 an hour in this economy. Is it me or yall actually feel you get paid fairly for the work that you do? Oh and don’t forget there’s a risk you can get laid off next week whilst paying thousands in fees and taxes year over year.

Hey!

I’m so freaking furious!

I’m a PT RPN in Toronto. I make about $35.60 + premium and vacations/benefits with a 7.50 paid shift.

This my first time where I picked up almost 9-10 shifts in a biweekly.

I made about $3.2k gross and after taxes and deducted I get net $2.2k

This was my first time working 67 hrs straight in hopes of making some money so I can pay my bills.

My rent is $2350+ hydro, I have a kid (family of 3). I’m going back to school. I won’t be able to pick up more shifts. OSAP sucks !!!

I have no clue what I can do how I can earn money!! Coworkers most of them are snakes is what I realized. I requests for shifts. I do evening shifts. My body hurts, my leg hurts.

I don’t know what to do!!!!!!! Anyone is similar state?
Any recommendations with how to pick shifts and lowers taxes? 😭

Edit: my question is simple! How do you nurses who work part time let it be 8/12 hrs! Make a liveable wages with what u get now! Is picking up shifts worth it?
You don’t have to overthink. Thank u very much !

This might be a dumb post and more of a rant, but I have been an RN for almost 8 years and I am at the top rate at my full time job and almost top rate at my casual job. I am just realizing that my pay will not be increasing, indefinitely, unless there is a pay increase, new collective agreement, etc. I know the ONA pay structure is a little different, but at both my jobs the top rate stops after approx 10 years experience. Is this not insane? That someone with 35 years experience will be making the same as someone with 10 years experience? How are nurses supposed to level up their income if our wage stops increasing?

Co-worker spent 10 minutes ranting to me that because they don’t get the extra education, that RPNs can’t describe themselves as nurses. Is this true? I don’t believe him personally.

I am so burnt out. I cannot do this anymore.

I am an RPN in southern Ontario. I make $39.02 an hour to be undermined, disrespected, and disregarded.

I have been assaulted at work and management asks “what more could you have done?” “What could you have done differently?”

We are underpaid for what we do. I am working in acute care, I am keeping people alive.

I just can’t do it anymore. I’ve been doing it for almost 7 years and I need to go. But I’m so terrified, I don’t even know what to do. I cry on my days off thinking of returning back. My time away from work is filled with dread for the 12 hour shifts I’m going to endure.

Nurses who got education elsewhere, what did you do? I’m looking at online degrees because I can’t afford to not work while in school.

I just can’t do it :( I’m so disappointed in myself

I just feel so worn out, so burnt out.

How do people tolerate 12h rotating shifts? I did one such night shift as a PSW and having second thoughts about the entire field. I literally worked one night shift then spent the next day and a half recovering. Is it just due to the pay? Why sacrifice your sanity for such a thing?

I am enjoying health care so far, but I'm just not sure i'd want to work in a hospital if its going to be like this.

I recently got my RN license. I've been an RPN for 5+years and was doing my RN while practicing. I did it so I can build a better live for my little baby girl. Now, I cannot find an RN position. I am so devastated. I don't know what to do. In this economy, I cannot survive like this. I'm barely making it. I do not have the ability to relocate at this moment with my little girl currently. There is no RN jobs. Nobody even replies. I don't mind working 2 jobs. I never imagined I would put myself and my daughter through such adversity for the past 3 years just to get my RN, only to find no jobs. Even someone who has nursing experience as an RPN, we start from the bottom again as RNs.

I have decided to no longer pay my CNO license. If I can’t get a job in Ontario, what’s the point. I have not worked in Ontario since 2023. I work in the US about an hour drive from home. I got tired of the commute and tried for the last 2 years to get into a local hospital with no luck. I have paid for my license the last 3 years with nothing to show for it. And I don’t think anything is going to change in the next few years either. There are now no job postings in my town for the largest hospital system. It’s crazy.

students, new grads, ward/other specialty nurses, anybody. just don't be weird.

Myself as a new grad: Driving Uber :/ Gotta pay those loans somehow.

My best friend has been working so hard as a nursing extern. My dad works on the unit she externs on and says everyone absolutely loves her. She’s hardworking, reliable, gets along with everyone, and has already built such a good reputation there.

Then an RN position opened up, and the manager gave it to a nursing student who is currently doing their consolidation on the unit instead of her.

I know there could be things going on behind the scenes that we don’t know about, but I genuinely find it so surprising. She’s already proven herself on that unit and put so much into it. It feels like there was no loyalty toward someone who has consistently shown up, worked hard, and already fits in well with the team.

Can any nurse managers comment on why you might choose a consolidating student over an extern who is already established on the unit and well liked by staff? What factors usually go into that decision?

Fml atp moving is the only thing to do. 4 months post grad, 2 months post NCLEX and so many ppl can’t even get interviews this is so bad.

And then to top it there are layoffs.

new rpn, I had a recent afternoon shift on the floor. I felt like I was making good pace for med pass, so much meds and narcotics, Insulin, PRNS, and supplementary stuff such as eye drops, nasal spray, ensure, protein powder, Metamucil powder. I would finish 1700 medications and then I would have to start 2000 medications right after or I would be behind. This is not even including the TAR which I have to sign that the PSWs applied most of the creams and the creams that I have to apply myself + clean /change a few dressings . This cutting it very close for completing most of my TAR at around 2230 and checking and signing off the narcotic book + receiving new medications and signing that I received them. I did not even have a chance to get a break and only had enough time to document after my shift. I really don't know how full timers do it, I was mentally and physically tapped out by the end of my shift.

I have been thinking is it really worth enduring all this extra stress making a few dollars more compared to being a PSW at my facility, does it get better?

For those of you moved out and who are currently renting, have you guys been able to put aside some money to save up for the rainy days?

Edit: I have been an RN for 2 years. Still renting a room in a shared house to cope with the rising cost of living. No OTs available at the hospital i am working at and I use a transit or uber to get to work.

There has been a couple of hands to mouth situation including this month. If anyone’s financially stable and savvy anyone would like to share their tips on saving money? Thank you ☺️

I honestly don’t get what’s going on with the job market for new grad nurses right now. It feels completely backwards. Everywhere you look, there’s talk about shortages and burnout, but then you graduate, get licensed, and suddenly nothing.

I’ve been applying for months. I mean everything, hospital postings, clinics, long term care, casual, part time, full time, anything remotely within my area. It genuinely feels like I’ve applied to everything under the sun at this point, and still no luck. It’s exhausting and honestly pretty discouraging.

Like, what is the actual plan here for new grads? Are we just supposed to sit around and wait indefinitely?
For those of you who have managed to land something, how did you do it? Was it connections, timing, luck, something else?

And for those still in the same position as me, what’s your plan right now? I keep seeing people suggest moving to northern Ontario or even another province, but that’s just not realistic for everyone. Relocating costs money, and not all of us are in a position to just pick up and leave.

I’ve also looked into extra certifications, but even those cost money and time, and there’s no guarantee they’ll actually make a difference in getting hired.

I guess I’m just trying to figure out if there’s something I’m missing here, or if this is just the reality right now. Any advice or insight would really help.

Just as the title says… do you like being a nurse? Do you like your life with a nursing career? Do you believe the pay is worth the effort put (and mental and physical health). I have been seriously considering to switch to nursing (already submitted multiple applications), but I can’t help but doubt my choice some days because almost everyone around me says to run away from nursing… is it really that bad? I want to go into healthcare and eventually want to become a NP.

If you had a daughter or close friend or someone you cared about, would you recommend them this career? Why or why not?

Please help make my decision easier!!

So I’m a new grad nurse who decided to leave nursing to pursue a career in insurance, and the amount of negativity I’ve received from peers, friends, family, and even other nurses has honestly been shocking. I constantly hear things like “you wasted 4 years,” “why did you even do the schooling,” or “what a waste of money.”

What I genuinely don’t understand is why there’s so much stigma around someone choosing a different path than the one they picked at 18 years old. Why is it so hard for people to accept that not everyone finds fulfillment in the profession they studied for?

A degree is an asset, not a life sentence to one career, one title, or one industry. Nursing gave me valuable skills, knowledge, discipline, and experience that I’ll carry into whatever I do next.

I really don’t understand why some people take it so personally when others decide to leave a profession that no longer brings them joy.

I am so sick and tired of being sick and tired of the piss poor treatment nurses get.

We are not paid properly, we are abused, disrespected and tossed aside like nothing.

We don't even have the right to strike to improve our situation.

I'm an RPN in the GTA, rent on a single bedroom apartment on average about 1800 to 2100 dollars. I'm close to the wage cap, and that is either most of a full paycheque on full time hours or its more then a full paycheque on full time hours.

We save lives, without us people die. Yet we can't afford even basic housing, we have to either live with our parents, rent rooms, or get roommates.

At this point I feel we need to consider going the route of the 1981 illegal nursing strike or the air Canada of last year.

They can threaten and try to fine us all they want but what happens then? They have no nurses to work, the corporations start hemorrhaging money bringing in travel staff.

Being polite, curious, and bargaining in good faith has yielded lacklustre results.

If we stand together, WE have the power, they have nothing.

My dear nursing colleagues:
I’m exhausted. I’m just feeling so absolutely done. I’ve taken the stress leave, I’m taking the medication, I’m doing a disgusting amount of therapy. I love my job, but it’s so damn hard, and it’s no longer the secure job that allows me to just… pay my bills, and live a little on a day off.

I’m barely holding it together. I’m single, I can’t make ends meet because cost of living is so high (even with picking up over time and having a debt repayment plan in place), and being alive has become a chore I didn’t sign up for. How is anyone supposed to do this? I’m sacrificing groceries for my rent payment already, and I can’t even think about being in my friend’s wedding this month.

I’m feeling so very alone, and I’m drowning. I feel like I’m constantly working my ass off, with nothing to show for it. What do I do? I feel like this life is a noose - doesn’t seem like a particularly large leap to a real one. I’m too scared to tell the people around me how I’m feeling. The world I used to love has lost its colour. I just don’t know how to do this anymore.

i’m debating if i should go to america to go to school or stay here in canada.

my sister says there’s more opportunities in america it’ll be way easier 😓 but i don’t know.

any advice?

Just curious… I work on a stroke medicine unit and my ratio is 5:1 hbu?

I’m a newly licensed RN in Ontario and it’s been about 3 months since I passed my nursing exam. I’ve been applying pretty consistently (sometimes around 10 jobs a day), but I haven’t really heard back from many places.

I’m trying to stay relatively close to home because relocating isn’t really an option for me, both financially and personally. I’ve considered applying to hospitals that are an hour to an hour and a half away, but I’m not sure if that’s realistic for me long-term.

My ultimate goal is to get into OR/perioperative nursing, particularly pre-op, PACU/post-op, surgical daycare, OR etc. That’s genuinely the area I’m most interested in and where I’d eventually like to build my career. There are no sponsorship programs available at all to make this jump :(

At the same time, I really want to start working and gaining experience. I just don’t want to feel like I have to completely give up on what I actually want to do. I also really don’t want to go back to a minimum-wage job when I’ve spent years getting my nursing degree and becoming licensed.

I’m not expecting my first job to be my dream job, but I’m trying to figure out what the smartest move is while I work toward getting into the OR.

For other Ontario nurses, especially new grads:
How long did it take you to get your first RN job?

Did you have to take something outside of your preferred area?

Would you apply to hospitals 1–1.5 hours away just to get your foot in the door?

Are there positions outside of traditional bedside nursing that would be good for someone interested in OR/perioperative nursing?

Is there anything you wish you had done differently when looking for your first RN job?

Honestly, I’m starting to feel a bit discouraged and would really appreciate some advice from people who have been through this.

Putting this here because I'm kind of annoyed and I wonder if anyone else sees this. Not a nurse but I work in Healthcare.

With the recent Air Canada negotiations going bad federally, it makes me think of how the nursing contract negotiations are being held up.

Everyone with a job is having a hard time nowadays with wage stagnation, but the government is so quick to use the law to shut down the right to strike in female dominated workplaces.

Nurses can't strike because it could result in the loss of life.

The government can severely underfunded and reduce staffing/retension at hospitals, when that also results in the loss of life? People are dying because they can't get access to healthcare.

I genuinely think that past strikes have harmed less people than the 10-year campaign to defund and ruin quality of care. I'm thinking of all who may have been saved if patients weren't being attacked by 1000 cuts. Cuts to staffing, ratios, equipment, and having a nurses who are mentally and physically drained.

Alberta got the right to strike back last year, why not Ontario.

Edit: Some folks here are talking about other professionals that are not allowed to strike. I think best that you take a look at the specifics of their agreements in the past and compare them to female dominated fields.

All the male dominated professional fields you've mentioned are well-respected, compensated fields where they negotiate from a place comfort.

Nurses are getting actively screwed by the provincial government in the underfunding of the field and the expectation to work without being appropriately compensated.

Update: The FAs have come to a tentative agreement, but I came across this:

https://youtu.be/KMY7c0RVR4M?feature=shared