RVNs and Vet Technicians do not get nearly enough compensation for the work they do for vet practices in my opinion. They are the pins holding all the cogs together, and much of our work as vets would not be possible without them.
According to the 2019 RCVS study, out of the nearly 25% of RVNs who said they were planning on leaving the profession in the next 5 years, 77% of them noted that pay was the main reason for this.
So if RVNs decide to set up as locums, can they really expect as much of a salary boost as people make out to have? What does the salary trajectory for most RVNs look like in permanent positions? Join me to find out!
The Current Salary Climate for Nurses
RVN’s typically get paid low to mid 20k’s when they qualify and anecdotally less as an REVN (equine). And with the current living costs exponentially rising, this gives extremely little breathing space for savings or emergencies.
According to the recent SPVS annual survey, the median pay package across the sector for vet nurses was £24,227, rising to £31,031 for head nurses.
I spoke to Molly Fiander (founder of Management for Locums) who is a locum RVN. If you’re reading this on her Facebook page, you’ll certainly be familiar! She described how when she qualified, she could only scrape together savings of £50 per month, and despondently felt that her long term goal of buying her own house was virtually impossible with her nursing salary in a permanent job.
When asked about the likelihood of pay-rises helping things financially, she said it was extremely unlikely to expect a pay-rise that would get her anywhere near the £30k mark.
From experience in my own workplace, a busy equine clinic in the North of England, the Head REVN earns around £27k/per annum, she has had 2 pay-rises in the last 4 years since qualifying when she started on £21k. However, when you factor in accumulative inflation over those 4 years, (rate according to the Bank of England) she’s only had a real pay increase of £3k.
Financial Immobility
As we’ve already heard from Molly, buying a house was out of the question on a permanent nurse salary. My practice head nurse too, recently bought a house but vehemently argues that it would not have been possible on a solo permanent nurse salary and without help from family.
The ‘couple bias’ raises its ugly head here. The idea that people who are in couples, automatically have a greater financial advantage in society. If veterinary nurses can combine their finances with a partner potentially earning more than them, then the chances of buying property are much higher than those who are single.
Yet in a role, with so much responsibility, so emotionally exhausting and requiring a huge amount of training – should these amazing people really be denied basic financial goals such as buying a home without being punished for being single?
A Harvard study did show that it is the lack of control workers feel over their work and lives that causes the biggest stress, not the work itself. Which one of the reasons (alongside no practice politics) why locums are seen to be happier in the workplace environment.
Research also reveals the strong link between financial wellbeing and mental health. The statistics show that: Half of people in problem debt have a mental health problem (Money and Mental Health). Almost 40% of people with a mental health problem say their financial situation worsens their mental health problems (Money and Mental Health)
How Does That Compare to NHS Nurses?
Newly qualified nurses entering the NHS at Band 5 will get a starting salary of £25,655 (2022). This can grow up to £31,534 after 4 years of experience. When human nurses move up to more senior roles, they jump up a band. The Band 6 (Senior Nurses, Deputy Ward Managers, Health Visitors and various specialist Nurses) pay range goes up to £39,027 however it is estimated that across the UK, the average nurse’s salary is between £33,000 and £35,000.
Essentially on average this is £10k higher than our veterinary nurses. Although almost impossible to compare the jobs directly, both involve lots of studying and hours in clinics to qualify, physical labour, stressful workplaces, long shifts requiring constant attention to detail and compassion for patients.
But should one role be worth £10k less?
A Dangerous Job!
The other thing that comes into the equation is whether nurses (and vets for that matter!) are fairly compensated for the danger they put themselves in on a daily basis.
According to the 2019 BEVA survey, equine vets are in one of the riskiest civilian jobs and although nurses weren’t included in the study, in my opinion carry as much danger as us vets. For every high risk procedure we’re carrying out – upper airway scoping, nerve blocks, castrations, dentals – there is usually a nurse holding the horse with us. It doesn’t stop with horses! Cat scratches, dog bites, zoonotic diseases… this is not a normal office job.
So Do Things Look Better for Locums?
So what can nurses do to boost their financial wellbeing? Making the move to locumming could be a great option. Molly managed to go from distant house dreams to a significant proportion of her house deposit saved after locumming for only one year!
Better hourly rates and especially for night shift work can really help out RVNs struggling financially. And all on your own terms regarding when and where you choose to work.
Hourly rates will definitely vary depending on years of experience, what kind of relationship you have with the practice, day shifts vs night shifts, skillset and training. However even some of the cheaper rates for locums are 70% higher than the normal hourly rates for permanent nurses.
Daylight robbery you might say? Well not quite. Yes it might seem wholly unfair swanning into a practice, working a shift alongside other just-as-qualified nurses, yet earning a serious amount more than them. However, as locum nurses you are filling gaps for practices who might really struggle otherwise and working shifts that no-one else wants.
It is also worth mentioning that you are also not receiving benefits such as annual leave, or workplace pension scheme enrolment, RCVS membership, equipment or CPD that your permanent colleagues will be.
If you took a basic £22/hr rate and converted that to full-time hours – you’re looking at a salary of base £42k. When you minus fees, holiday and tax, you’re looking to take home around £33-34k.
Better Permanent Rates
A step in the right direction is that Medivet recently announced all of their RVNs will be on a minimum base salary of £30,000 per year. Not only that, but they’re also providing each RVN and SVN with a £750 CPD budget.
This is a really positive sign that hopefully the industry is recognising how important veterinary nurses are and that we need to reward them appropriately!
The Bottom Line
Moving to locum life can bring with it a wealth of benefits and plenty of financial ones. Freedom to diversify income in property, investments, side hustles as well as actually earning a basic income that is keeping up with inflation and the cost of living crisis.
This in turn can massively improve your overall wellbeing as financial stress and strain can hugely effect our day-to-day lives. Knowing about how much to charge for locum work and how people balance shifts and life is something you can easily find out about on Management for Locums page!
ThisVetCan 