Are you satisfied with your current employment situation as a nurse?

DDRoute · Apr 10, 2000

I can understand your frustration re: LPN wages and lack of opportunity growth. I too am an LPN with 16 years experience in a long term health care facility. There is a huge wage discrepancy between the RN and LPN. There is no difference in the job duties where I work, so where is the justification for the pay scale? Because of my experience, I am asked to orientate these RN's when they start employment in this facility yet the pay scale remains the same. The CNA's, depending on their experience, are able to make more than a starting LPN, yet an experienced LPN is topped out $2.00 short of a starting RN. Something is really wrong here! I don't understand why education is used for the payscale difference between LPN and 2 year RN, yet 2 year RN and 4 year RN is the same payscale. Why aren't these higher educated nurses complaining about this? ( I only say this because education is used as the determing factor where I work)

Originally posted by MaxNurse:
I'm seriously thinking about going back to school and getting my RN. I've been a LPN for 6 yrs now. At first I loved it, then reality set in LOL. It's true the stress is high, we're understaffed and the pay is low. I make $10/hr. The RN's where i work start out (0-5 yrs experience) at $15.00/hr. What I'm mostly fraustrated as an LPN is the lack of opportunity to advance (without returning to school for a RN degree). Seems LPN is a dead end road. With a RN you have the opportunity for Supervisor, DON, ADON and so on. It seems not to matter if you have an associates or a bachelors degree. I was a CNA prior to being an LPN and I decided to go back to school when i felt i was at a dead end road then as well.
One thing I've noticed reading the posts, and i dont understand it, is why is there such a big pay difference in LPNs and RNs but not LPNs and CNAs. Where i work like i said a RN makes $15+, LPN $10-11 tops and the CNAs $8-9/hr. Seems the gap should be smaller between the LPN and RN. A CNA trains for 100 hours in my state, a LPN for 1 1/2 yrs and an RN for 2 years. A CNA doesn't have the responsibility of meds, IVs, other invasive procedures and so on. So why's there such a small wage difference. Also where i work the only difference in LPN and RN is a RN can hang blood. So why's there such a large pay difference? Just curious.
Also i've read in some of the posts that people didnt get into nursing for the money. That may not have been the biggest reason, but for most of us it has a big influence. Not many people work for the fun of it! Working in the medical field is a big responsiblity, we're dealing with peoples' lives and I feel we should be well compensated for it! One mistake could cost someone their life and us our license. Seems this too would cause for some kind of legislation demanding staffing in facilities to be more adequate for patient loads.

[This message has been edited by DDRoute (edited April 18, 2000).]

CANRN, MSN, RN · Apr 10, 2000

If I were you, I'd think long and hard about spending out big bucks to get your RN degree. Being an RN is more than just the pay increase, and it's more than just 'hanging blood'. An RN is responsible for everyone who works with her as well as for the patient's or residents under her care. The pay increase is not that much when you think of the responsibility and the liabitlity increase that comes with the credentials.

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