Magee RN Pay Data + Analysis
◼︎ THE BIG ISSUES
Something isn’t adding up with our wages...
Over the last few months, we have submitted multiple requests for information to UPMC corporate regarding our wages, recent raises, and other critical compensation data to inform our ongoing negotiations. Because of our status as a union, UPMC corporate was required by law to provide us with the information we requested.
Our analysis of the wage data shared with us by UPMC corporate confirms many of the issues we hear from our coworkers about compensation at Magee: mid-level career plateaus, inconsistencies across experience levels, salary caps for senior nurses, and a general lack of transparency around the current compensation and raise model.
We wanted to share some of the data with you to review for yourselves.
There appears to be no clear correlations between the wage a nurse at Magee makes and their years of licensure, step on the career ladder, education level, department, specialty, or any other factor that might typically influence one’s compensation.
By looking at all inpatient nurses across Magee with 10-15 years of experience, we can see clearly just how varied wages are.
The median hourly wage for a nurse with 10-15 years of experience is about $52.40, with the minimum recorded wage for this experience group being $37.30 and the maximum $58.55.
Even within the same department, there is no clear cut way to understand the current compensation structure — nurses with the same years of licensure and even on the same step of the career ladder could be making completely different amounts.
In some cases, new nurses are even making more than their more experienced counterparts. We know a certain portion of these discrepancies can be attributed to things like education level or experience gained in other ways, however, it does make us curious — why is this happening so frequently?
After 10 years of licensure the average nurse at Magee can expect to see their wages stagnate.
At this point in their careers, nurses have often completed their clinical ladder and will usually take on important roles as mentors, preceptors, educators, and clinical instructors to support the next generation of nurses working and training at the hospital in addition to the time they spend at the bedside.
Instead of being compensated for their experience and the important role they’re playing in the hospital ecosystem, many senior nurses instead find their career stalling.
This plateau is unsurprising when considered in context with data about how Magee and UPMC distribute raises to employees.
According to the data provided by UPMC, the more experienced you are, the smaller “market adjustment” you likely received in January 2026.
Nurses with 0-5 years of licensure received an average raise of $3.16 or 7.8%
Nurses with 5+ years of licensure received an average raise of $1.66 or 3.4%
Nurses with 15+ years of licensure received an average raise $0.86 or just 1.7%
Our current wage proposal reflects our shared desire for a transparent, experience-driven compensation model that rewards nurses’ years of service and commitment to their communities. We believe this model is integral to retaining new and experienced nurses, and essential for increasing staffing at our hospitals to lower nurse-to-patient ratios and improve patient outcomes.
UPMC knows this, and that’s why they have yet to respond to our proposal — not because it’s too unreasonable or too expensive, but because they don’t want to have to defend their decades-long practice of undervaluing experienced nurses.
But time is running out and eventually UPMC is going to have to respond.
The question: Is corporate ready to come to the table with a counter proposal that meaningfully addresses our concerns, or are they going to force us to take escalating actions on behalf of our patients and our profession?