relocating from an area that compensated fairly to an area that’s offering an average hourly rate of what I was making as a new graduate. Have any of you come across this issue? How did you deal with it? Any tips on how to get compensated fairly?
I'm thinking that I probably have more questions for you than answers, so I'll just throw a few things out there to consider.
The very first thing to consider is to clearly define what "fair" looks like to you. What criteria are you using and are you applying them equally to your job search vs just looking at the $/hr.
You don't mention where you are relocating to/from. That makes a Huge difference! If coming from the West Coast to just about anywhere else, you Will most likely be taking a pay cut, and depending on the area it could be significant. That's just reality and has nothing to do with "fair". Are you talking about an area relatively close to where you are now, and if so, have you looked into or asked about why the pay difference?? Maybe coming from a larger city to a more suburban area? That would make some difference.
How long ago did you graduate? If going 'back' to that level, was it 2-5 years ago, vs well over 10 years. That would make a big difference as well.
Example: when I first started out as a new grad some 43 years ago, I was making about $22/hr. When I retired in Oct 2021, I was up to about $68/hr, more if doing OT hours. Didn't have an advanced degree and no desire to get one since there was no financial incentive to do so, and I wasn't interested in going into teaching at a university, becoming management, or advanced practice. Also, by the time it becoming the "thing to do", I was also close to retirement, and so again, no incentive or drive to do so.
You have a lot of factors to consider --> cost of living in the new place might also be a lot less for things like housing, taxes, insurance, gas prices, groceries, etc. The term "Fair" here is also relative and not specific. Is what you're getting now pretty much in line for similar jobs in your immediate surrounding areas?? In the new location, is that true as well ... most similar jobs in a specific geographic area paying similar wages?? If not, inquire as to why the difference. Do they pay more for advanced degree certifications? Some larger hospitals will, and many suburban ones won't.
So for example: If you're currently making $60+/hour in California and heading to the midwest or southern states, you're going to take a dramatic pay cut. You'll also be significantly cutting the cost of a lot of, if not most spending categories. it may all balance out in the end.
Make a list of ALL of your income for your current place. Then make a list of ALL of your expenses ... daily, weekly, monthly and yearly. Look at the place you're thinking of and do the same. You can literally look up what it would cost to purchase most things, online .. ie: cost of gas, insurance, car registrations, housing rent/purchase, groceries, utilities, etc.
Look up what the TOTAL tax burdens are in both as well. Some states don't have personal income tax. That may or may not be offset by taxing things like groceries or having higher property taxes. You can't judge your tax 'burden' by one category alone .. you have to look at the total. This will take a little work, but it's worth it.
Only by doing a side-by-side and Honest comparison, are you going to be able to get the bigger "picture". You may surprise yourself and find that moving to the new area might get you more "bang for your buck" when all is looked at as a whole picture, and not just the wages.
So could some areas improve in their pay strategies? Sure. Will they? Eventually. Just understand it's what the local economy is doing, not what another facility is paying in another state. That would be apples to oranges and not a "fair" comparison. So again, only by looking at the 'bigger picture' will you gain an understanding of what it will cost you and whether or not you're being "fairly" compensated or not.
I hope this helps and answers at least some of your questions! :)
