MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Out of the 126,346 job ads posted online during the month of May in Alabama, registered nurses dominated the list by a significant margin, a trend that has persisted throughout the year as employers continue to struggle with nurse shortages.
The latest figures on job ads come from a recent report from the Alabama Department of Labor, which found 6,460 registered nurse job ads were posted during the month of May. The next highest job postings were for retail sales at 4,385, followed by 3,747 postings for retail sales manager positions.
The top advertised qualifications listed in the 126,346 jobs posted in May were also for registered nurses, which at 9,145, includes nurse positions as well as assisted living, consulting and other practices that prefer candidates to be registered in nursing.
Alabama is not alone in facing nursing shortages, with the state ranking a respectable 18th out of 50 states in the number of nurses per 1,000 people. Yet nearly a third of nurses nationwide have said they are “likely to leave their career,” citing larger workloads and longer hours due to staffing shortages as a major factor in the decision.
One potential factor in Alabama’s nursing shortage is pay, with Alabama having the second-lowest median salary for registered nurses at $56,570, ahead of only South Dakota’s $55,660.
The report further shows that the top employer in terms of job ads in May was Huntsville Hospital with 1,176 job postings. Huntsville Hospital has struggled with staffing shortages for years, with more than 1,000 job postings currently listed on the hospital’s website. The next top employer in the state for May was Walmart, with 1,154 posted jobs.
The number of registered nurse job ads dominated monthly reports in April and March as well, as did jobs seeking registered nurse qualifications. This most recent report also represents an 11.1% increase over the number of job posts reported last year during May, 2022.
Some efforts to address the nursing shortage by the legislature were successful this year.
House Bill 113, signed by the governor this month and set to go into effect in September, will provide tax credits for nurses and health care workers who work in rural and underserved areas of the state, areas that have largely seen the worst of nurse staffing shortages and hospital closures.
Sponsored by Rep. Neil Rafferty, D-Birmingham, the bill will provide annual income tax credits of up to $6,000 for health care workers to both train and work in rural and underserved areas for at least a year, areas which house 44% of the state’s population. Rafferty’s bill, along with other bills designed to empower nurses in the state, was rallied for at the State Capitol in April, Sen. April Weaver, R-Brierfield, the only registered nurse in the Legislature, joined the rally in support.