Hi

My husband and I are moving to Calgary within the next 6 months. I have a job as a Registered Nurse and my husband will find work once we arrive.

My employer has kindly sent me a copy of the UNA pay scale for nurses but I wondered if any other nurses had experience with regards to pay in Alberta or Canada. Do they place you on the bottom of the pay scale the same as a new grad nurse or are your skills and experience portable? I have been qualified as a nurse for 11 years now and am trying to figure out where on the pay scale I will fall.

We can then start to figure out how much we can afford each month for housing etc.

Thanks

With all due respect why not contact your employer and ask what your starting wage will be?

Hi

I have been asking them for the last couple of weeks now and have so far got no response, obviously there's a big difference in the pay scale, the bottom would be $65000 per year and the top $95000 per year, so it would be really helpful to know!

What you have to do, if coming to Alberta Health Services, is get evidence from your UK manager and/or pay office that provides proof of *how many years/hours* of experience you have. That's the only thing they want to know, and they will place you on the payscale according to that.

Until they have that, they will place you at the bottom of the scale to start with. Mine took a while to sort out, but once they had what they needed, I ended up on the top grade (I qualified as a physio in 1982!), and gave me a lump sum of back pay as well, which was nice!

Thank you so much Alberta Rose, so any idea with 11 years experience where I would be placed on the scale, I qualified in 2002 and have been working as an RN/RM since then.

Are you in Alberta?

Hi, I'm in Calgary, and currently on sick leave having treatment for breast cancer! I don't know where 11 years experience would put you on the pay scale, but I would suppose it to be quite high up.

Where will you be working? I am in "Home Care" now, but have worked at a few different centres.

It surprises me, in the current climate, when they've been laying people off, that you have a job offer 6 months in advance. They usually tell people to apply once they get here!

AHS has its ups and downs. I think it is run by clowns, by and large, but I have to say I have been well looked-after since my cancer diagnosis, and the unions are quite strong. I'm hoping to return to work in the fall, although I have a provisional return in January 2014!!

I'm sorry about your illness, that sucks, but good that you're being well cared for!

I'm going to be based at South Health Campus in maternity, apparently they have been advertising my position since December last year with no suitable candidate found, until me!!

I'm really excited, i've worked in Canada before, in Vancouver when I was in my mid twenties, but this is a whole other ball game now, moving with a husband and a three year old, makes it somewhat more scary.

I've figured out my monthly outgoings and think they will be $3000 per month roughly, my husband won't be working initially so we'll be relying on my salary, will I be able to get by with those kind of outgoings?

Hope you're feeling better soon!

Katie

Hi

You will need to have a 'letter of portability' filled out by your UK employer.
You should have been sent one by the Calgary employer.
This will display the level on the payscale and years of service you have.

The HR / payroll will then determine where on the payscale you will be.

Hope this helps

MJ