What do you do that you earn six figures?

r/financialindependence • u/fidgit86 • 9d ago

It seems like a lot of people make a lot of money and it seems like I’m missing out on something. So those of you that do, whats your occupation that pays so well?

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u/phantasybm 9d ago

Emergency Room Registered Nurse

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u/Fireemotions 9d ago

Firefighter/paramedic

Glad you guys are up there with us. The RNs around here have been getting overtime plus something called double bonus which is apparently $300 in gift cards on top of their time and a half for an extra 12 hour shift

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u/phantasybm 9d ago

Interesting pay style with the gift cards lol.

It’s not really fair though I’m in California so I definitely don’t represent the average pay rate. Really the only RNs that make more than us in SoCal is NorCal.

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u/Oakroscoe 9d ago

Yeah, the gift cards are bullshit. Pay cash or get out.

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u/Fireemotions 9d ago

Amazon or Visa gift cards are basically cash for most people.

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u/monsteez annually max 403b, rIRA, 401a(18% of income) 9d ago

How does this work for taxes? Or are they just gifts??

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u/phantasybm 9d ago

What if it’s a gift card to the gift shop

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u/StoneC0ldSteveIrwin 9d ago

Army nursing pays pretty decent after a few years but you have to be willing to leave the bedside after like 6-8 years in....which is exactly what I'm ok with.

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u/phantasybm 9d ago

Is it correct that once you leave the military if you go to work at the VA as an RN you make great money?

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u/StoneC0ldSteveIrwin 9d ago

Depends on the position...more accurately it depends on the GS level but yeah it's a good gig. Real easy too unless you're in an inpatient hospital. But those clinic jobs are kush and make bank. Plus you can keep your federal pension time going if you buy into the system.

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u/roseblood_red 9d ago

Question, can you work in military as an RN without being military?

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u/phantasybm 9d ago

You can work for the VA as a civilian and work in hospital bases I believe

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u/StoneC0ldSteveIrwin 9d ago edited 9d ago

You work as a DoD civilian if you're on base and working with military. Much easier pt population than the VA, same benefits and pay depends on the GS level of the position. I believe you can go back and forth between DoD and VA system because it all falls under the GS system.

Edit: you can also be a contractor which has decent pay but little to no benefits. Contractor jobs are a lot easier to get because there's more turnover. A lot of people work as a contractor to start and build a network, experience, etc and just keep hunting for a GS position. Then when they find one they try to jump on it

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u/Andy802 9d ago

They do the gift cards so they don't have to pay tax on top of it. If they paid cash, they would need to add the 20-30% tax on top.

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u/phantasybm 9d ago

My old hospital gave us gift cards for thanksgiving and Christmas. Still taxed them on our checks lol

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u/Andy802 9d ago

Different state laws maybe? Or maybe they get a discount through the company the gift card is for. I know they wouldn't go out of their way to do this if it wasn't beneficial for them. My company has surveys regularly about programs like that. The overwhelming response is "pay cash", and they never do.

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u/alisonmg 9d ago

Yup, super easy to make 6 figures as a RN in CA! I’m in NorCal. I actually don’t mind the gift cards as random bonuses. It’s better than yet another pizza party/bagel spread.

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u/moekikicha 9d ago

Where?

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u/Fireemotions 9d ago

Midwest

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u/moekikicha 9d ago

Solid! SO is a FF in the west… just wanted to compare

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u/Hotpocket305 9d ago

You can’t just say nurse without the location. That is not the normal for most states.

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u/phantasybm 9d ago

Except if you read a comment or two down you’d see I did mention the location and I did mention it was not the norm?

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u/Chreiol 9d ago

Where?

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u/phantasybm 9d ago

SoCal

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u/Chreiol 9d ago

Makes sense. My SO is about to go into nursing school and they pay like $22/hr here starting.

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u/swiftlopez 9d ago

That’s rough. Girlfriend works as an emergency nurse in SoCal. Starting wages around here are between $40-70/hr not counting all the stipends like night differential and degree bonuses

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u/Jeff00007 9d ago

There's the cost of living difference people are leaving out it looks like.

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u/MrFahrenkite 9d ago

How long have you been working as a nurse? What did your career look like to get there?

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u/phantasybm 9d ago

Almost 4 years as an RN. 8 as an LVN. Went straight into the ED as a new grad. Went from a small hospital to a large unionized system after year one.