Atlanta-based Emory Healthcare has set aside $100 million to provide raises to its employees after reporting an improved operating performance this year, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
About 17,000 of the health system's 25,000 employees — including nurses, respiratory therapists, and nutrition and environmental services staff — will receive a raise from the fund, CEO Joon Sup Lee, MD, told the publication. Emory began allocating money for pay increases in March.
The raises will be phased in over a six-month period. Sizes of raises will vary for each employee, but some nurses will see up to a $10,000 annual salary increase, according to the report. Physicians, physician assistants and nurse practitioners, who are among the highest-paid employees, will not receive a pay bump from the $100 million fund.
The pay bumps are an investment in Emory's workforce and will help decrease its reliance on high-cost travel nurses and other temporary workers.
Emory operated at a loss through the COVID-19 pandemic, but is back in the black for the first three quarters of the 2024 fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30.
The health system is targeting a 9% to 10% operating margin for the year, which "sustain a three-part mission of high-quality care for a broad segment of population, support for innovation and training the next generation of healthcare providers," Dr. Lee told AJC.