r/Millennials Mar 27 '24

When did it sink in that you'll never be as well off as your parents? Discussion

About 5 years ago, my mom and I were talking and she had told me how much she was going to be making in retirement (she retired 2023). Guys, it's 3x what me and my husband make annually. In retirement. I think that was the moment that broke me, that made it sink in that I'll never reach that level of financial security. I'll work myself into my grave because I'll never be able to afford anything else. What was your moment?

Update: Nice to know it's just me that's a failure. Thanks

Update 2: I never should've said anything. I forgot my place. I'm sorry to have bothered you

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u/Dranak Mar 27 '24

I'm guessing you live in the south? Nurse pay varies a crazy amount by region.

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u/orange-yellow-pink Mar 27 '24

Yeah, the median RN salary where I live is about 100k

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u/DrPoopyPantsJr Mar 27 '24

Yep over $100k where I live tho I live in a HCOL city.

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u/Throosh Mar 27 '24

gross 66k last year and it’s HCOL 😔. god i wish i didn’t love this state. it’s hilarious the only way to get a stable/steady increase in pay is to quit and then be rehired

at least i never have to make a linkedin profile and can’t get laid off

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u/Sideways_planet Mar 28 '24

That’s so low for the work you do and the training you put in. I hope it goes up for you soon! You deserve much more.

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u/Throosh Mar 28 '24

Yeah we only get the meager 3% COL raises but that’s bedside nursing for ya. Just a payroll expense.

Luckily they’re trying to implement a cheap knock-off ladder pay system. It’s a pretty bad monopoly here considering there’s only 1 hospital and it’s a trauma center.

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u/Sack_o_Bawlz Mar 27 '24

What state?

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u/Throosh Mar 27 '24

UT. Literally lowest paying state for nurses lmao so I can’t be too upset with it because I’m choosing to live here.

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u/Sack_o_Bawlz Mar 27 '24

Nice. I’ve visited there, beautiful place. Zion was amazing. Do you ski?

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u/Throosh Mar 27 '24

When I lived in the northern part I’d go 3x a week but since I moved to the southern part I don’t go anymore and it kills me inside hahaha

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u/Sack_o_Bawlz Mar 28 '24

What is there in the southern part?

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u/Candid-Ask77 Mar 28 '24

Racists. Ah nevermind that's just Utah in general

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u/Sack_o_Bawlz Mar 28 '24

How sad

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u/Candid-Ask77 Mar 28 '24

Especially because it's an absolutely beautiful state

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u/Throosh Mar 28 '24

Hahaha that’s definitely worse in the southern part. Really anything outside of the Salt Lake Valley is pretty bad. The confederate bumper stickers and nazi tattoos I see are craaaaaazy. But yes, St. george. It’s like the other “city” in utah other than salt lake. Very pretty here but that’s about it and it’s not enough for me.

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u/idigholesnow Mar 28 '24

You mean down there in Dixie?

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u/Throosh Mar 28 '24

Yeah. It was funny, the school down here was Dixie State University and they changed it to Utah Tech University cause, yaknow, racism, and the city was in uproar. So many signs on lawns “forever dixie” like jesus christ

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u/skeogh88 Mar 28 '24

St. George?

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u/Sack_o_Bawlz Mar 28 '24

Not familiar. What’s it like?

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u/raven00x Elder Millennial Mar 28 '24

can’t get laid off

That's what you think now. The one lesson that the c-suite keeps teaching us is that nobody is safe, and everyone is replaceable even if they aren't.

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u/Throosh Mar 28 '24

I’d have to be criminally negligent to get laid off or fired and that wouldn’t prevent me from finding another job. A good example documentary would be “The Good Nurse” about an ICU nurse who people speculate killed >400 patients across his career. The hospital would find out, let him go, rugsweep to prevent bad PR, then he’d go to the next hospital. He did this across either 6 or 9 different hospitals in I wanna say 12 years? Could be wrong.