How Much Salary Nurses Earn in Nigeria
You want to know how much Nurses earn in Nigeria after minimum wage was increased? then read on, This article unveils to you the nurses salary structure in Nigeria. It is not news when people opine that nursing is one of the most respected courses not only in the medical faculties but in any university as a whole. Aside the fact that Nurses are respected, the discipline is seen as one of the most reliable and secured professions in Nigeria.
This article is a wholistic review of how much salary nurses are paid in Nigeria. Here you will find how much nurses in federal hospitals are paid, how much nurses in state hospitals and health center are paid as well as salary of nurses in private hospitals in Nigeria.
Unlike other courses where after graduation, the graduates get stranded, the employment rate of this profession is quite high either by the government or the private sector.
In cases where they don’t get a job, they are usually industrious and start something for themselves.
The joy of helping in health delivery and the salary packages and packages packaged for nurses are some of the two reasons that made the course one of the most sort after in Nigeria. this had led to a stiff competition.
The business of health care delivery is not a child’s play. Students discover this after being admitted. The training received at the medical schools is tough, preparing the students for the business of saving life and health care delivery.
Salary Structure of Nurses in Nigeria
The salary of nurses in Nigeria working under the Federal is based on the Consolidated Health Salary Structure (CONHESS). On general, nurses working under the federal government earns more compared to their counterparts working under the state government or most private hospitals.
Nurses in Government Hospitals
- Entry level with 0-2 years of experience: N80,000 – N150,000
- Mid-level with 2-5 years of experience: N100,000 – N180,000
- Experience with more than 5 years of experience: N150,000 – N250,000
Nurses in Private Hospitals
- Entry level with 0-2 years of experience: N60,000 – N80,000
- Mid-level with 2-5 years of experience: N70,000 – N100,000
- Experience with more than 5 years of experience: N100,000 – N180,000
Looking at the above salary, it can be said that Nurses practicing in Nigeria earn less than their counterparts in other part of the world. In the United Kingdom, nurses are some of the highly paid professionals in the country, while over here, the salary looks like an average or a little above what others earn.
However, aside the pay listed above, there are other benefits and entitlements in form of allowance they earn. Some of these include:
- Rural posting allowance: This allowance is only meant for nurses deployed to the rural areas such as villages to work in government health facilities located there.
- Hazard allowance: This allowance is paid to nurses who exposed to some forms of classified hazards in the course of discharging their duties.
- Call duty allowance: the call duty allowance is paid to nurses working in federal hospitals or medical centres who have performed a call duty as seen on the call duty roster.
- Shift duty allowance: the shift duty allowance is the allowance paid to nurses that run shifts such as the day and night duty shift.
- Specialist allowance: for health care professionals who have attained the position of consultant
- Teaching allowance: the nurses that teach nursing students at the teaching hospitals and medical centres are entitled to this allowance.
- Clinical duty allowance: this allowance is paid to academic staff in the university who provide clinical service in hospitals.
- Non–clinical duty allowance: the non-clinical duty allowance is paid to all health professionals offering health services in the Federal Ministry of Health or Federal Health Institutions.
According to a study, about 50% of practicing nurses in Nigeria earn between N100,000 to N300,000 after the minimum wage was increased. The study also finds out that only 105 of nurses in Nigeria earn above N300,000 in Nigeria. it concludes that the average salary of Nurses in Nigeria hovers around N50,000 to N100,000.
Please take this just as a guide as the study have one major flaw. Just like any other socio-economic study, for the study to be deemed correct, the sample size must be large.
This study however made use of a sample size less than even 10%. Also, the sample was done in a particular part of the country keeping nurses who earn remarkable higher or even lower out of the sample.
However, this can be taken as a means to know what you will expect in the industry. While the nurses salary structure in Nigeria this 2020 cannot be said to be mouth-watery like other professionals in Nigeria, the discipline is seen as one of the most reliable and secured.