Some UH nurses are facing a pay cut as the health system adjusts to conditions after the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic created a shortage of nurses to care for very ill patients.CLEVELAND, Ohio — More than 300 University Hospital nurses are facing pay cuts as the health system makes post-pandemic staffing adjustments and tries to fix two years of budget shortfalls.
Effective June 16, staffing services nurses on night shift will see their pay drop from $75 to $65 an hour, a 13% cut, UH said. Those on day shift will have their pay reduced from $60 to $55 an hour, an 8% drop.While this change represents an adjustment in wages, it should be noted that this hourly pay is still significantly higher than hospital/department-based full-time nurses,” the UH memo stated.
Nurses hired through the service take assignments throughout the UH health system, filling in where nursing staffs are short-handed, UH said. These nurses are considered freelancers and don’t have set schedules. UH staffing services nurses cost up to twice as much or more than full-time nurses based in a single hospital, UH said in a follow-up statement.