The retirements of those who worked for years in health care continue to raise doubts about the recognition given to demanding professions, marked by physical effort, heavy hours and great responsibility. Between hospitals, nursing homes and successive shifts, many professionals reach retirement with the feeling that the amount received does not match a lifetime dedicated to others.
Sylvie, identified by the French digital newspaper as a former nursing assistant in France, retired at the age of 62 after more than two decades caring for patients in hospitals and nursing homes. Today, he receives R$1,790 gross per month, around R$1,625 net, an amount he considers insufficient given the harshness of the profession.
Over the course of about 25 years, he passed through various healthcare facilities in western France. In the same newspaper, she said that she followed the professional changes of her husband, a salesman who changed companies frequently, which led her to work in different public hospitals, some private units and homes for the elderly.
A career dedicated to intensive care
Born in Sarthe, Sylvie worked in hospitals in Le Mans, Laval, Angers and Rennes. Despite the instability, she explained that mobility brought her experience and new working methods, considering that an entire career in the same place could have worn her out more quickly.
For three years, he joined the neonatology service of a private hospital in Rennes. It was during this period that he felt more clearly the importance of his work, as he accompanied premature babies in a particularly sensitive phase, an experience that he remembers as one of the most memorable of his career.
Despite changing cities and jobs, he never lacked work. She often joined understaffed teams and was well received, precisely because her colleagues knew they could count on her experience, availability and ability to adapt.
In his last position, in a public residence for the elderly in Angers, he received around 2,300 euros gross per month, approximately 1,900 euros net. She retired in October 2020, before the most recent French pension reform came into force, and said that she welcomed this new phase with enthusiasm, as she was finally able to dedicate more time to herself, according to the source cited above.
“My pension is insufficient”
Currently, the former assistant receives a pension of R$1,790 gross per month, around R$1,625 net. Having worked under different statutes, he is a multi-pensioner, receiving benefits from several funds, including AGIRC-ARRCO and the National Pension Fund for Local Government Employees, CNRACL.
Still, Sylvie understands that the value does not correspond to the weight of the career she has had. The retiree points to long working hours, physical effort, prolonged standing, lack of room for error and little recognition as factors that make the pension difficult to accept given the work done.
Despite this criticism, he faces retirement with serenity, according to Le Figaro. After many years caring for others, she says she wants to make better use of her free time, travel and take care of herself, maintaining the idea that rest has arrived, but without erasing the feeling that the profession remains undervalued.
How much do nursing assistants earn in Portugal?
In Portugal, the situation has already changed compared to what existed a few years ago. In the National Health Service, the special career of health assistant technician was approved by the , with effect from January 1, 2024, covering workers who were previously frequently classified as operational assistants in the area of health care provision.
The basic entry remuneration for the special career of health assistant technician corresponds to level 6 of the Single Salary Table, set at R$ 983.00 gross monthly. This value also appears in recruitment notices for 2026 in the SNS, such as that of ULS do Médio Tejo, which indicated 983.00 euros per month for an auxiliary health technician.
As in France, in Portugal this profession continues to be associated with physical effort, shift schedules and permanent contact with demanding situations in health services. Even though it is an essential role in supporting patients and clinical teams, the discussion about salary appreciation, career progression and the future value of retirement is still far from over.
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