A travel nurse recruiter and travel nurse go together like Buzz and Woody or peanut butter and jelly. They’re just better when they’re working together.
Like all relationships, even the best pairs can have a bump or two along the way. If you’re a travel nurse who’s working with a travel nurse recruiter or looking for a new recruiter to have in your corner, here are a few things your travel nurse recruiter wishes you knew about them.
#1: We’re Real People with Real Lives
We understand that a travel nurse has additional responsibilities outside of work—we do, too! Unless we make arrangements ahead of time, we may be unable to respond outside of normal business hours.
We might be watching our kids’ gymnastics class, coaching a soccer game, or out with friends. We understand that we can often be your main point of contact when something goes wrong, and we take that seriously. If it’s an emergency, we’ll do our best to get in touch right away, but if it’s not, we’ll return your call as soon as possible.
#2: We Are Always on the Phone
We are almost always on the phone. Seriously. Our phones are constantly in our hands, in our pockets, or only an arm’s length away. Sometimes, after spending all day talking to potential candidates, we go home with sore throats, feeling like we can’t speak another word.
#3: We Prefer a Phone Call Over Texts When We First Meet
Even though we’re always on the phone and sometimes tired of talking, there are times that we still prefer a phone call over a text message.
It’s no surprise—texting makes communicating incredibly fast and easy for both of us, especially after we’ve worked together for a while. But for our first conversation during the recruitment process, recruiters achieve more efficient and rewarding interaction in a phone call.
This means we can get to the bottom of your must-haves vs nice-to-haves. We can knock out what we need to in about 20 minutes instead of spending hours texting back and forth.
#4: We’re Aware You Work with Other Agencies
We’ve all worked with qualified candidates who feel like they need to hide that they’re working with another agency or two. However, we know this already! A good recruiter knows that sometimes we may not have every job that fits your needs, and you may end up with another recruiter and agency and their job boards.
We’ll keep in touch—especially if we have worked well together. We know that your assignment won’t last forever, and we’ll be happy to welcome you back with open arms.
#5: Your Happiness is Important to Us
We want you to enjoy your job and the healthcare facilities that you work with. After all, happy travelers are return travelers, and it’s easier for us to ensure you’re happy than to start a relationship with a brand-new travel nurses.
If we’ve heard that a facility is a challenge or that housing is hard to come by at a certain location, a good recruiter will be up-front about it. If we sell you something that ends up being a hot mess after a few days, chances are good that we never work together again.
#6: We’re Not Out to Get You
Similarly, we want this to be a partnership between us. Good travel nurse recruiters don’t want to place nurses in a terrible location with a bad supervisor or a department that’s known for being clinically unsafe.
Instead, they’ll give you all the information up front so you can make an informed decision, rather than feed you a line to get you to sign on the dotted line.
#7: A Ready-to-Go Profile Means a Quick Submission
Desirable jobs can close fast. Like, really fast. If you’re looking for something specific, you need to be ready to go as soon as your recruiter finds the job, so you’ll be one of the first candidates whose resume ends up on the hiring manager’s desk.
To speed things up even more, make sure to grab a recommendation from your most recent managers before you leave those travel nursing assignments.
#8: Applying to the Same Job with Multiple Agencies Isn’t Good
We know we just said good jobs close quickly, so it might seem like you should apply to as many as possible to get a position. That’s true, except that applying to the same job with more than one agency is a bad idea.
If two applications come through, both from different agencies, the hiring manager will disregard both. They don’t have time to figure out who was first or should be awarded the contracts, so they cut them both.
#9: We Can’t Help It When You’re Cancelled
We never want to see your assignment canceled, but the truth is, it definitely happens. It could be because of lowered census after you’ve arrived, an internal hiring campaign for staff positions or healthcare organizations might have over-hired travel nurses. Our hands are normally tied if this happens and your assignments are canceled.
That doesn’t mean we’re helpless. Instead, we can tirelessly search for a new position. If you’ve signed a lease in your location, we can help narrow that search in the same general area so you’re not stuck paying rent in an apartment or house you can’t use.
While we can’t guarantee it will all work out, we’ll work hard to support you and answer questions and concerns you have as you wait.
#10: Sending a Late Timesheet is a Big Deal
One of the benefits of working for many travel nurses is that most agencies pay weekly. That means you must submit your timesheet on Monday so you can get paid that Friday. The agency payroll staff has only a few days to correctly process your hours worked, make sure all the time matches up, and ensure you receive your compensation as expected.
When you send in a late timesheet or write your hours down on a Post-it (yeah, we’ve seen that), it puts a wrench in the process. Delaying your paycheck typically isn’t an option for most agencies, and the payroll staff works up until late Thursday to ensure late travelers receive their paychecks on time.
So, do your payroll and HR staff a favor and be responsible for sending in your timesheet before the deadline. They’ll appreciate you.
Bonus: #11: Expensive Gifts Come Out of Your Pay Package
Finally, come Nurses’ Week each year, you’ll likely see agencies giving away things like Figs scrubs, North Face jackets, and even expensive electronics. That’s so nice! But is it?
In reality, these gifts come out of your pay package. The cost of them is baked into your contract, reducing either your hourly rate, your stipend or license reimbursement and you never see it. You’re receiving less money during your contract, and you’re the one who’s really paying for that gift. If you’d rather have that new pair of Figs (they’re seriously comfortable), there’s nothing wrong with that. We want you to know how it really works.
Looking for an agency that’s committed to treating you with honesty and candor? Triage Staffing listens to what you want and then shoots you straight so you can make a decision that’s right for you. Connect with a Triage travel nurse recruiter on the Triage website.
