VA Nurse Salary

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · Dec 30, 2014

Thanks for the advice, but I will be working in an outpatient clinic M-F 8-4:30(no shift work). Too bad to hear that some nurses did not get what shift they were hired for. I am really hoping that this will be a good move for me. I would love to be there until I retire in 20 years.

It's good that you found a job in a CBOC as a VA employee; many of them are now contractors. Nice to have the VA benefits, etc, while working in an outside clinic :)

Tufnel1 · Mar 15, 2015

Trying to determine salary at the VA in Salisbury NC. I have 5.7 yrs as a med/surg/tele RN with a BSN and currently working on my MSN/MBS/Heath Administrator. Only certs are BLS & ACLS.

Also how long do you have to be employed before you can move to other positions within the VA System?

Thanks so much!!

Jtkknj · Mar 15, 2015

Trying to determine salary at the VA in Salisbury NC. I have 5.7 yrs as a med/surg/tele RN with a BSN and currently working on my MSN/MBS/Heath Administrator. Only certs are BLS & ACLS.
Also how long do you have to be employed before you can move to other positions within the VA System?
Thanks so much!!

Probably $65,761 as RN2 step 1.

Title 38 Pay Schedules - Office of Human Resources Management (OHRM)

Tufnel1 · Mar 16, 2015

Thanks. But... Wouldn't an RN2 be for the 2 yrs exp with a BSN then steps up for additional yrs as a RN?? I'm confused about the step part?

And any idea how long I would have to wait to move in different positions thru out the VA system.

Thanks Again!

jeckrn, BSN, RN · Mar 16, 2015

Each step in the first part of a grade is 2 years in length. The later steps are 3 years in length. A RN with 2 years experience would be a step 1. When it comes to a new hire your years of experience will not always translate the same as if you have been working there a while. An example is a new hire with 6 years experience might be hired as a step 2 but a RN who has worked at the VA since being a new grad would be a step 3.

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · Mar 16, 2015

Each step in the first part of a grade is 2 years in length. The later steps are 3 years in length. A RN with 2 years experience would be a step 1. When it comes to a new hire your years of experience will not always translate the same as if you have been working there a while. An example is a new hire with 6 years experience might be hired as a step 2 but a RN who has worked at the VA since being a new grad would be a step 3.

Guess this would be an excellent example of "This is how VA works....except when it doesn't"!

At my facility, the steps for a new hire are determined based on what the hire is earning (financially) at the time they want to bring that hire on board, at least in large part. The number of years of experience don't translate easily at all into Steps; they are all over the map with that one. A Step can be played with for hiring purposes, and doesn't have to change just by how many years one is at VA either. Annual "COL" increases from HR have nothing to do with Steps; you'd receive a percentage increase each year regardless of what's happening with the step. And then, of course, the Step no longer matches up with the salary when you get COL increases but not a Step increase.

My take? Don't focus too much on any of that. Ask for what you want regarding pay, and negotiate accordingly. If you are outta your mind with what you think you're worth (or what the job is worth) then they'll let you know that, rest assured. But if it's within reason, AND they want you on board....anything Step related is negotiable.

PMFB-RN, RN · Mar 16, 2015

There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to the step and grade new people are hired into at the VA. I see some really awesome nurses brought in low, and terrible nurses brought in high.

Another issue the VA in this area has is bringing experienced nurses in as nurse ones, regardless of the step level. In all of the other hospital in the region nurse ones are incompetent. They are typically new nurses who would not orient new people, serve as charge, and not counted on to handle the worst patients typically admitted to that unit. At the VA there are very experienced nurses, highly competent, serving as charge, orienting new nurses, serving as a resource to other nurses and still only nurse ones.

Experienced and competent nurses are often insulted to be offered nurse one, regardless of the pay offered with the step levels.

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · Mar 16, 2015

There doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to the step and grade new people are hired into at the VA. I see some really awesome nurses brought in low, and terrible nurses brought in high.
Another issue the VA in this area has is bringing experienced nurses in as nurse ones, regardless of the step level. In all of the other hospital in the region nurse ones are incompetent. They are typically new nurses who would not orient new people, serve as charge, and not counted on to handle the worst patients typically admitted to that unit. At the VA there are very experienced nurses, highly competent, serving as charge, orienting new nurses, serving as a resource to other nurses and still only nurse ones.
Experienced and competent nurses are often insulted to be offered nurse one, regardless of the pay offered with the step levels.

It's my understanding that one can only become a Nurse II if one has a BSN (ok, there's another way, but way too long to post!); ADNs with a billion years of quality experience are Nurse I, BUT can be a higher Level and Step that gives them more $$ than simply being a Nurse II.

So I see plenty of Nurse I's with the highest Level of 3, and a Step that makes them worth more than they would be otherwise.....still, it is a stupid system of roman numerals and other miscellaneous grades!

pfchang · Mar 16, 2015

The two posters above are correct and even this info varies between facilities. There are very experienced RNs who do not have BSNs who are hired as Nurse 1. It's very unfortunate.

PMFB-RN, RN · Mar 16, 2015

It's my understanding that one can only become a Nurse II if one has a BSN (ok, there's another way, but way too long to post!); ADNs with a billion years of quality experience are Nurse I, BUT can be a higher Level and Step that gives them more $$ than simply being a Nurse II.
!

An RN with an ADN and no bachelors degree CAN be a nurse II in the VA. Many, many are. A BSN is required but an education waiver can be granted. Who gets these waivers seems to vary widely by facility.

Speaking only for the Minneapolis VA I can tell you that an experienced nurse without a BSN can not be hired as a nurse II, but will normally be promoted to nurse II in their first or second year at the VA with an education waiver if they prove to be good nurses.

They miss out on many, many really great nurses because of their insistence in bringing in every non BSN RN as a nurse I. It's insulting, even if the pay can be matched.

It's disheartening to be a highly competent RN, but only be a nurse I and find yourself propping up and supporting much weaker RNs on your unit who are nurse II, or even nurse III by virtue of their degrees. Even more disheartening is that it's the veterans who end up suffering for it.

It is also my experience that the VA, or at least the one I have experience with, makes absolutely no attempt to assess the competence of their nurse hires.

RNsRWe, ASN, RN · Mar 16, 2015

An RN with an ADN and no bachelors degree CAN be a nurse II in the VA. Many, many are. A BSN is required but an education waiver can be granted. Who gets these waivers seems to vary widely by facility.
Speaking only for the Minneapolis VA I can tell you that an experienced nurse without a BSN can not be hired as a nurse II, but will normally be promoted to nurse II in their first or second year at the VA with an education waiver if they prove to be good nurses.
They miss out on many, many really great nurses because of their insistence in bringing in every non BSN RN as a nurse I. It's insulting, even if the pay can be matched.
It's disheartening to be a highly competent RN, but only be a nurse I and find yourself propping up and supporting much weaker RNs on your unit who are nurse II, or even nurse III by virtue of their degrees. Even more disheartening is that it's the veterans who end up suffering for it.
It is also my experience that the VA, or at least the one I have experience with, makes absolutely no attempt to assess the competence of their nurse hires.

LOL, when I wrote "(ok, there's another way, but way too long to post!)", this is what I meant! :)

Yeah, I know about education waivers, but honestly they seem to be given out like they were the Holy Grail here! Being a Nurse I, and hoping to get a waiver to be promoted to Nurse II, you might as well forget it (speaking from what I'm seeing here, of course). You can be the best danged nurse on the planet, but unless you come up with a BSN, you're done. They will tell you you're outstanding.....BUT....you haven't met 100% of requirements for a waiver.....meaning they found one box to leave unchecked when it comes to "meets criteria for promotion".

I totally understand making BSN the desired achievement for RNs, but to penalize those who do not have it who DO prove themselves, year after year, as valuable nurses (High Satisfactory to Outstanding in all evaluation categories) is an atrocity.

At least in your VA they give credit to those who prove themselves BY promoting them in a year or two. Here....not so much. Definitely not "many many" ADNs who are Nurse IIs; I bet I couldn't come up with more than a couple/few over the last ten years, I kid you not.

As for competency with hiring, I am with you on being at a loss on how that's truly determined. Some VAs, I see, have pre-interview med/pharm tests; at least that's a start. Really, there's no way to REALLY check competency, much like any other facility in the US: you hire based on resume, interview, recommendations and/or gut instincts.

It's not until they get here and start working (just like any other hospital) that you find out how the hiring manager did!

PMFB-RN, RN · Mar 16, 2015

LOL, when I wrote "(ok, there's another way, but way too long to post!)", this is what I meant! :)
Yeah, I know about education waivers, but honestly they seem to be given out like they were the Holy Grail here! Being a Nurse I, and hoping to get a waiver to be promoted to Nurse II, you might as well forget it (speaking from what I'm seeing here, of course). You can be the best danged nurse on the planet, but unless you come up with a BSN, you're done. They will tell you you're outstanding.....BUT....you haven't met 100% of requirements for a waiver.....meaning they found one box to leave unchecked when it comes to "meets criteria for promotion".
I totally understand making BSN the desired achievement for RNs, but to penalize those who do not have it who DO prove themselves, year after year, as valuable nurses (High Satisfactory to Outstanding in all evaluation categories) is an atrocity.
At least in your VA they give credit to those who prove themselves BY promoting them in a year or two. Here....not so much. Definitely not "many many" ADNs who are Nurse IIs; I bet I couldn't come up with more than a couple/few over the last ten years, I kid you not.
As for competency with hiring, I am with you on being at a loss on how that's truly determined. Some VAs, I see, have pre-interview med/pharm tests; at least that's a start. Really, there's no way to REALLY check competency, much like any other facility in the US: you hire based on resume, interview, recommendations and/or gut instincts.
It's not until they get here and start working (just like any other hospital) that you find out how the hiring manager did!

I knew you were talking about waivers. Wanting to hire only BSNs is fine. However if the veteran patients are suffering from a lack of competent nurses, while highly competent RNs go un hired because of wanting BSNs they it's a crime of incompetence in administration.

I only work intermittent at the VA, I was hired with an ADN and got promoted to nurse two after a year. Had I not been I would have left and I fill critical shifts in a key roll requiring skills that are hard to come by.

I think my local VA does it's best to mitigate the effects of the BSN preferred policy they have forced on them from D.C., but a lot remains to be desired.