registered nurse - medical / surgical

registered nurse

licensed practical nurse

nursing assistant

examiner

State of New York

After 20 years in private sector, I moved to Albany and spent 8 months working for the state ITS as a contractor before getting multiple canvas letters thru Civil Servants exams. I feel working for the state as a contractor really helps when it comes time for canvas letters / interviews. Don't forget many state exams are merely the state issuing you a grade based on your experience and resume. I joined as a grade 14, which is not a high salary. If you do IT work, try to get in as a grade 18. Alas, my first offer was at 14 so I took it. The best things about this job .... the low stress, the security of belonging to a union, lots of time off, and good but inexpensive healthcare. The pension plan isn't as good as it used to be, but is still competitive as a Tier 6 employee. I contribute 3% of my gross... although I cant chose how it is invested. It's a 401a which is a little weird. I start with 41 days off a year (5 personal, 12 holiday, 12 sick, 12 vacation)... Sick and Vacation have to be accrued first. But that's incredible. I used to make literally twice the salary in NYC metro area, however they basically own you, and I had approx 20 days off in total (sick, personal, vacation, holiday). My 2nd year with the state I will get 42 days, 3rd year I get 44, 4th year I get 47.... this goes until my 7th year when I will have 69 days off, AND THEN I START ACCRUING AT A FASTER RATE. 70 days off a year? That's like being a teacher and having your summers off. The Empire Plan / Emblem Health is very good in my opinion and is $110 a month for individual. Guaranteed raises every year... 6 levels in a pay grade, you go up 1 level per year. After that you can get a yearly bonus or get promoted to a higher pay grade.

The work itself is straight forward, some antiquated systems. I have more slow days than busy days. My manager is very nice, checks in on me every couple of days. Lets me work independently. Very important to remember every state agency is going to have its own culture and it's own challenges. ITS does things a lot different than OGS  vs OHIP vs DOH... etc etc. There are too many agencies to generalize what each one is like, so I focused on the benefits, because that's really why we're working. I plan on staying with the state because it offers a lower salary but much better work / life balance than private sector. I spent 11 years at a fortune 100 only to have my job offshored, and then 7 years for a fortune 500 which was the one I had pathetically little time off. No thanks. I'll stick to my 37.5 hour work weeks and lots of PTO.

I have worked at this place for about two years,and I absolutely hate it...I am currently looking for a different job right now because this place is absolutely terrible...Yes there is opportunity for advancement in the medical feild,but it's not worth it.You deal with way too much working here, especially higher ups who treat nurse assistants,and nurse technicians like s**t.The nurses make you do all the work,they are lazy,and all they ever do is sit at the nurses station,and laugh and talk,or be on their phones nonstop, and they eat at the nurse station,while you as the nurse assistant is running around doing vitals,cleaning patients,stocking the rooms,doing fingersticks,and answeing call bells nonstop.Don't even get me started on being a sitter aka (ust)...worst job ever.You will literally be stuck in a room with a patient that is crazy.Like literally someone that needs to be in restraints,or you will sit with patients that get aggressive,and scream and curse ,and hit you all night.The nurses barely if never,give the patients medication to calm down, or help relax the patient,and  by the time they give the patient medication they finally fall asleep because you have been fighting eith them all night.The nurses get mad when you ask for a break from sitting in a room with a patient for 8,12,or even 16 hrs.Some floors dont even give you a break at all!!!Staffing is a joke because they are so disorganized,and never know what's going on.You get moved all over the place.There is no structure there.You will be mandated often.If you work an 8hr shift you can be mandated to work up to 16hrs...good luck trying to have a life,or love life working here.I really wish someone would have warned about how bad they treatmen is here,because I never would have applied to work here if I knew I was going to be dealing with all this.This job will make you go crazy.It will give you depression,and make your anxiety go through the roof.Please do not apply here.Maybe other hospitals are better,but this hospital is terrible.Oh yeah they pay every two weeks,and they take a lot of money out of your check.Parking is not free,even the though this hospital can afford it.They are just greedy and money hungry.

Retirement is Tier 6 now. Read into how bad it is before you apply for the legendary state retirement.

Breaks are never a thing, especially if you're sitting. They will be quick to terminate you if your eyes close for any reason regardless of weather or not you've had a break. Charge nurses discretion, so it pays to be liked.

Management responds to employee complaints by creating policies and training that last a few weeks, but they never address the toxic culture and miserable work environment. Management is completely disconnected from the workforce, it's them versus the unions and they typically side with PEF members (RN's). Ineffective management aren't demoted or let go, they're moved laterally or given creative titles, often allowing them to continue mismanaging a new area.

Nursing staff come and go as soon as they get a few years under their belt, or their educations paid for. We had many generations of nurses and managers on my unit. The "lifers" are truly miserable in their roles. Nurses and nursing assistants alike who have moved on will tell you that unsafe assignments are definitely a thing here.

Nursing assistants are told their personal safety is important, but are ill equipped to perform their job functions. Assaults by patients are not uncommon, but are acknowledged by management as part of the role of the nursing assistant. The employee is also always at fault, be active in your union because you will need them sooner or later.

Some people ARE happy there. They seem to make the right friends and follow the tide ascending through the ranks, but there's not enough room on the ship for everyone so a good number of folks leave on sour notes. It's a drastically different picture than their nursing recruitment sells you.

I spent a decade there, and didn't realize until I left how unhappy that job and that work environment made me. No benefits are worth the toll that place will take on your soul, perhaps even your sanity. There are better places to work that will give you a sense of fulfillment, take Upstate for what it's worth (for education, a few years of experience) but don't put down roots.

The court appointed me letters of administration after the first lawyer that I hired filed paper work with the court. They did this in a timely manner and provided additional copies of the letters of administration in the same prompt fashion. The job that was required of me through this appointment was a tedious process that is finally nearing its final stages. The first year was primarily spent searching for assets that belonged to the estate, transferring any international liquid and non liquid assets to the United States, paying off creditors, and making strides in appraising the different elements of the estate. The second year which will come to its final close on October 24th, 2014 has been centered around art appraisals, filing taxes, and collecting sufficient funds to pay federal and state taxes as per the requirements of the IRS. I learned the art of negotiation, the ability to negotiate terms with different professionals whom I sought out for their services in aiding this process. I learned about the law as it pertains to people and the massive responsibility you have to uphold especially when it involves a great deal of objectivity in order to avoid bias associated with family. The hardest part of the job was keeping track of all the small elements that were vital to constantly keep in check in order to ensure that taxes were filled in a timely manner. It was also difficult to find professionals whose interest in the case were in line with my own. The most enjoyable part of this process was learning the colossal amount of information about trusts and estates and how the law figures in a way that outlines the majority of rules set in place for the relationships with professionals and family members throughout the process.

A typical day at work allerting dispatching  of visible safety issues while driving my bus,  about possible hazards on the road  involving car accidents or  building structures , road block involving Emergency vehicles, which is all apart of my daily routine when working on the road.  I learned how to communicate clearly so  that others listening can also be advised of these hazards too. I manage my time very well on the road to reduce the possibility of wasting time getting one destination  to another. My workplace is very friendly and but busy type of job.  The hardest part of my job is not knowing if some of my riders parents have relocated and in doing so informed out business office of this action, in the incident a child gets stranded on the bus with no keys for entrance or the possibility of a wheelchair individual with no way to verbally communicate and no one at there old residence to greet them.  The most enjoyable part of my day is seeing my students get home safely and know that I made that possible.

I started out working for Montgomery, county department of social services, assisting in processing applications for the elderly on Medicare, and finding them eligible or in eligible to participate in more programs to benefit them. I processed their renewal every year, did the spend down to achieve full Medicaid, for some of that, had higher incomes in others, processed their applications for a Quimby slim B or QI, one, and did this on an annual basis. I moved from the county to New York State, working the other side of the fence, and assisting the elderly who is benefits, were removed or lowered without any prior notification, and whose benefits were removed or reduced arbitrarily. We are talking sometimes about , home health aides, 24 hour care being reduced to 12 hours, and things of that nature. Basically with New York State, what I did was set up hearings for these people to have an attorney, represent them in a legal way, to get their benefits reinstated for them. 

OPWDD provides funding, technical support and regulatory oversight to non-profit agencies providing services to Intellectually / Developmentally Disabled residents of New York State.  

The work environment is culturally diverse and generally easy-going. 

Staff are expected to consistently make progress on all work assignments, behave in a culturally competent and politically correct manner and adhere to all NYS labor laws. Staff are expected to complete a number of required annual training courses, self-monitor their time and attendance, and request time off in advance as much as possible.

Each division, bureau,and office has its own culture and way of doing things. I found it best to ask about anything rather than muddle through. 

Many people find the most difficult part of a civil service position is getting promoted as it usually requires passing examinations and multiple interviews.

A typical day would start by opening and sorting the Judge's mail.  I was in charge of all pre-trials and telephone conference calls.  I maintained files for the pre-trials, set up conference calls and took notes throughout the pre-trials and conference calls that were later converted into Summaries for the attorneys attending.  I worked with no supervision, created correspondence for the Judge's signature, memoranda to file on updated status to a file.  I worked with attorneys and litigants as well.  I worked with the Commissioner of Jurors and was responsible for the trial calendar as well and the trial notifications to all attorneys involved.  I learned the extreme importance of details and time management in this job.  All of my co-workers were very helpful and nice to work with.  The most enjoyable part of my job was sitting in on numerous trials, taking notes, and discussing my observations with the Judge.  I am also a Notary Public of the State of New York.

What is the best part of working at the company?
You get to choose the hours that you like to work so example part-time and full-time they have cases in between certain hours if you want to do 3 hours 5 hours 6 hours 7 hours and so on so that's good for me

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Well it's not really stressful for me it depends on your client and if you and your client or meant to have a good relationship

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Well it depends on what they want you to do and everyone is different they might just need a little bit of work done they might just need a lot of work done it depends on the client so the work environment for me is good

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Well I'm not working in the company itself I'm not the one hiring people but I have been hired by NY CD PAP and everyday I look forward to going to work and helping the ones that need help

I worked for the NYS Legislature and it is not a job that can be summed up as typical.  The Legislature calls upon its employees to do a variety of tasks depending on what you were hired for.  If you have a certain background you may find yourself involved in many activities that might be outside what you thought you would be involved in when you were hired.

    The ot for the faint of heart, you must be tough and ready to work when called upon day and night!.   There are rewards and your performance may be duly noted at times,  but the Legislature can be a hard task master and if you are not flexible enough for it demands, get out!   I had good times and I had stressful times and after while I really did not want to do anything else the Legislature had become myg home, my surrogate, my babysitter.  The Legislature was a part of my inner being.   It not for the changes that eventually occur in upper management over time, I suppose I would still be there.  The is no other organization like it.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Registered nurse - medical / surgical 4 salaries reported	$67.63 per hour
Registered nurse 7 salaries reported	$90,067 per year
Licensed practical nurse 3 salaries reported	$1,617 per week
Nursing assistant 2 salaries reported	$25.25 per hour
Examiner 31 salaries reported	$59,074 per year

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