Re: moving to orlando
 

Yes, the benefits were always fantastic. What I wrote is the norm for the last few years in NYC area. I've friends who are RN's at Mt. Sinai in Manhattan and daughter's sister-in-laws who work in Westchester County Hospital in Valhalla and the other in White Plains Hospital.

Re: moving to orlando
 

As long as I can remember (RN since '89) 12 hour shifts have been the norm. I have worked all over the US and my experience has been very few nurses want to work 8 hour shifts, every other weekend, and no guarantee your two days off each week will be together. With 12 hour shifts, it's 3 x 12hr's a week, and usually every third weekend.

Re: moving to orlando
 

Exactly how it once was in the NYC area and might be for some hospitals but not all of them. Deb, Kathy and Patty all worked 12 hour shifts 3 times a week with one weekend per month. One is a RN in CCU, one was an RN in ER and one is a RN in a cancer care unit. At 36 weeks you qualified for benefits, i.e. healthcare. Now they can only work 2 12 hour shifts a week with O/T not to exceed 6 hours in any week keeping your hours to 30 and therefore you no longer have healthcare benefits. Patty left CCU in White Plains to work urgent care 5 days a week at 8 hours per day and receives benefits, the same rate of pay as she got in the hospital and is thrilled with the change. Deb who worked in the cancer care unit left the profession altogether. Kathy is still the only one still hanging on. A friend in Pittsfield, MA worked for Berkshire Medical, not as a nurse, but even there they changed the hours so that work is less than full time thus eliminating benefits.

In the 60's and 70's Yonkers, NY hospitals and Mt. Vernon General sponsored nursing candidates from the Philippines. St. John's Riverside, Yonkers General and Mt. Vernon General were teaching hospitals for nurses. They housed them, feed them and schooled them towards their RN certification. If they achieved that they were then sponsored for green cards. At one point Mt. Vernon's nurses went on strike when the trainees discovered that they were being paid less than the training nurses who were US citizens.

Hospitals are out for the bottom line and that is year end profit.

Re: moving to orlando
 

I agree, I would go further and extend that and say any business is looking at the employee as a 'widget.' Applied to visa sponsors this means -we can get them cheaper and they are less of a HR problem because we can easily let them go. In higher ed and I'm sure other industries in CA we always smile when a new out of state hire is brought in. Usually midwest or East coast because we know invariably they were the cheaper option. Cheaper west coast salaries dazzle and then the reality sets in when they are here. For example, I would not even consider moving to the San Francisco bay area unless I was earning $200K a year. But that's me and many survive on a lot less, but imho that's what they do -survive.

All these factors should be in the OP's mind when considering their options in FL, its probably cheaper than the Bay area but some costs are constant. Healthcare, daily household costs and private schools are going to be quite a large amount to supplement since the UK does a great job of providing for its citizens in many areas where the US does not.