Ask a Travel Nurse: What your travel contract should include.
Last week we touched on the travel nursing contract. This week we’ll take a look at a few things it should include.
A travel nursing contract should spell out the employer’s expectations of you in your job role as well as the things that you expect from your employer. Some companies will have you sign a “work agreement” that stipulates such things as maintaining a professional attitude, following the hospital policies and procedures, and maintaining licensure. This document may cover you for several different assignments over the course of six months to a year or longer. This document is basically just saying that as long as you work for “Travel Company X”, you will uphold the standards of your profession.
A travel contract, on the other hand, will only be for one assignment in a single location. It should contain items such as:
• The name and location of where you will be working
• The unit in which you will be working
• The start date and end date
• The shift and hours you will work (ex. 12 hour nights, 8 hour days)
• The pay rate (including overtime and holiday rates)
• Any start or end travel money to be paid (or your travel allowance cap)
• Any facility or travel company bonuses
• Deducted amount for any health, dental, vision, or other company plans
• Any special rates such as on-call or charge pay
• Money paid for monthly housing allowance or if company housing will be provided
• Any scheduling requirements such as working every other weekend
In addition to these standard items, your contract should also include anything that you negotiate with your company. For example: If you are willing to give up your travel money in exchange for a big screen TV being provided with your apartment. Anything outside the normal provisions on an assignment should be reflected in the travel contract. This is not to say that things that you and your recruiter agree upon will not be upheld should there be a problem, but it is always nice to have things in writing.
Related posts:
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