Image credit: BCHealthCareers.ca Brennan Day, MLA for Courtenay-Comox and Critic for Rural and Seniors Health, is raising serious concerns about the BC NDP government’s latest announcement to recruit nurses from the United States, calling the plan “more about headlines than headcounts.” According to WorkSafe BC, the average salary for Registered Nurses and Psychiatric Nurses in British Columbia is $93,852 CAD, with a take-home income of approximately $70,919 CAD for a single person. In contrast, nurses in West Coast U.S. states like California, Washington, and Oregon earn an average of $153,593 CAD per year, with a post-tax take-home of $117,577 CAD. “That’s a $46,658 difference in take-home pay,” said Day. “We’re asking American nurses to take a 40% pay cut, cross the border, and move to a province where housing is scarce and our own nurses are burning out in record numbers. This isn’t a plan. It’s wishful thinking.” Day says the math speaks for itself: making $46,658 more south ...
A discussion on political, economic and social issues in British Columbia, and Canada