When I left my job at Telecare, a secure residential mental health facility, it wasn\u2019t because I disliked the clients or the work itself\u2014it was because the compensation no longer justified the sacrifices I was making. At the time, I was working full-time in a high-stress environment that demanded emotional resilience, crisis intervention skills, and constant presence. Yet I was earning $22 per hour, despite having leadership experience, additional certifications, and a proven track record of success in similar roles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The turning point came when I was offered a role at a nonprofit that paid significantly more, even for fewer hours. The decision wasn\u2019t difficult. I didn\u2019t feel valued where I was, and the financial gap made it clear: the company\u2019s for-profit model prioritized margins over mission. I wasn\u2019t alone\u2014many experienced staff left for the same reason. The stress stayed high, but the rewards simply didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Compensation in this case wasn\u2019t just about money\u2014it symbolized appreciation, respect, and sustainability. Being underpaid in a taxing job eroded my motivation and loyalty. Once I saw that my skills were worth more elsewhere, I couldn\u2019t justify staying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This experience highlighted how crucial compensation is in retaining skilled workers, especially in fields like mental health where burnout is common. Pay isn’t everything\u2014but when it doesn\u2019t reflect the work or the value you bring, it becomes the only thing that matters.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
When I left my job at Telecare, a secure residential mental health facility, it wasn\u2019t because I disliked the clients or the work itself\u2014it was because the compensation no longer justified the sacrifices I was making. At the time, I was working full-time in a high-stress environment that demanded emotional resilience, crisis intervention skills, and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14795,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/sambezzant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/sambezzant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/sambezzant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/sambezzant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14795"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/sambezzant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/sambezzant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/sambezzant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27\/revisions\/29"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/sambezzant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/sambezzant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/sambezzant\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}