LPN Starting Salary

bmh-lpn · Feb 18, 2008

salary here is not very good compare to what i have seen on this thread. i have been an lpn now 17+ years. i live in a rural area about 1-1/2 hours from a major city. my first job, :yeah: i worked at the hospital as an ob nurse. we were paid $2 above minimum wage. i started at $7.50 (with night def.) after two years, i made $8.50/hr. i did stayed home a couple years too raise a couple of babies. went back to work at a nursing home. lack of staff and leadership there. long hours and nights again, i made $9.50/hr. i left there shortly later & went to work at a medical clinic as a nurse on duty. i worked for 30+ doctors with scheduling, refills, insurance/referrals, screening calls, ordering test, coding, physician find, filling in for there regular nurses and just helping in whatever was needed done. i was paid $6.50/hr (told it was d/t the benefits they gave us & being day shift. we were given free dr appts, meds, even had my gb removed for free. :yeah: benefits made up the difference). then they were taken over (sold out) by a large health company and all our good benefits were wiped out. had to buy higher price insurance. took away our profit sharing, matches with 401k's were a thing in the past too. we had cut in our hours. i did survive 3 rounds of lay offs before the ax finally fell upon our dept and was told that they were going to an answering machine system to replace our dept. patients have to leave messages on a recording now. i did get up to $10.24/hr after 10 years there. was told i (we) made too much and they laid off most of the lpns. i think there is 2 lpns left that agreed to work for lower rates & because their dr's preferred lpn's over the ma's & cnas. all the rns and most lpns were replaced with cnas and mas. they make $6.50/hr (starting). i now sub at the local schools since then. i also make more pet sitting client's pets as a professional pet sitter! i give insulin to cats now among other things! but i do miss working as an lpn. anyway... thinking about checking out working either in corrections or state hospital setting? but here they have mandatory over time (double shifts) and most lpns i talk too don't like it either. so what to do? i feel i am getting out of practice as an lpn and feeling a bit rusty. :cry:

cmyersRN · Mar 22, 2008

Hi,

I'm in an ADN program and will graduate with my RN in December. I just got my LPN license this month and moved into a LPN role in the nursing home I was working at as a CNA. I get paid $15.50/hr with a $1.15 PM/weekend differential. This seems to be pretty good for a new LPN in midwestern Wisconsin. I would make more, however, if I were working for one the county facilities, but I enjoy the facility that I work at.:wink2:

WIRN2B

Diahni · Mar 24, 2008

A couple of things - let's face it, you have to be happy, or at least content in your environment. Like the TV ad says, "Priceless," eh?

As for salaries, it looks to me that the large national corporations are able to offer more, no matter where you live.

Diahni

teresadkinslpn2rn · Mar 24, 2008

lets see if anybody can beat this...11.65/hr to start with, after 1 year 12/hr...in a hospital, med/surg unit. serious and...sad!!! glad i moved now.

I can beat it! Sadly....$11.10 to start new grad!

GPNnowwhat · Mar 24, 2008

I just went to my first interview for an LPN position today. 1st shift starts at $18/hr then $19.50 for 2nd shift and $21.50 for 3rd.

I cant believe some of the numbers i have seen on here.

teresadkinslpn2rn · Mar 24, 2008

I do love my job and do receive shift dif after 7pm..and weekends, but even after passing boards I do not receive a raise. This is located in Eastern KY, and driving an hour away would only give me 1 dollar more on the hour...not enough to cover the gas and wear and tear on car.

Trophywife81 · Mar 25, 2008

I am not officially a nurse yet as I am graduating in May, but I recently hired on to a med-surg/ICU step-down unit at an area hospital here in Central Texas.

Pay rates for new LVNs are as follows:

$15.18 for dayshift

Add $2.50 if working nightshift

Add $3.00 if working on the weekend.

iwanna · Mar 25, 2008

Starting salary all depends on where you live and what area of nursing you are doing. I started at nursing home back in 1997 at $8.33 hr. Then, at hospital in drug rehab starting wage was $9.32 an hr. in 1998. My ending wage there in 1999 was $12 an hr. I had freq. raises for the short time that I was there. I did not leave voluntarily.(our unit closed) These positions were in PA.

In OH, I started at $12 an hr., in 2000, at psych hospital. I left in 04 and was making $15.97 hr.

I have not been working since 04 d/t health issues. However, I am returning to field now. My recent interviews were at hospital working in quality improvement(no pt. care). The starting wage was $12 hr. And, my other interview was at a jail for $16 hr. These positions were in PA.

So, it varies depending on area and the position.

alliemb222 · Mar 26, 2008

I graduated in December of 07', Started my first LPN position at a doctor's office at $17.00 an hour, plus a raise after training I believe. I started full-time with benefits. Not bad..Id rather work somewhere that I would enjoy my job, rather than LTC and hate my job, plus the responsibilities of many elderly lives at one time.

HeyHeyitsMaay · Apr 8, 2008

I live in NEPA (Bloomsburg) and just saw an ad on careerbuilder for LPN starting at 12.00/hour. With absolutely NO COLLEGE and only a high school diploma, I was making 500.00/week with paid benefits as an office manager before I decided to go back to school.

This is SERIOUSLY disturbing for me. I'm starting school in August, and paying 12k total in tuition. My pell will cover most of that, so I'm not too worried about paying off my student loans. But as a single mom with 2 kids, 12.00 an hour is a joke. I am SERIOUSLY disheartened. I'm not sure if I can stay in Pa. if this kind of starting pay is going to be what I'm looking forward to. :crying2:

Diahni · Apr 8, 2008

I live in NEPA (Bloomsburg) and just saw an ad on careerbuilder for LPN starting at 12.00/hour. With absolutely NO COLLEGE and only a high school diploma, I was making 500.00/week with paid benefits as an office manager before I decided to go back to school.
This is SERIOUSLY disturbing for me. I'm starting school in August, and paying 12k total in tuition. My pell will cover most of that, so I'm not too worried about paying off my student loans. But as a single mom with 2 kids, 12.00 an hour is a joke. I am SERIOUSLY disheartened. I'm not sure if I can stay in Pa. if this kind of starting pay is going to be what I'm looking forward to.

DOZ:

Hang in there, 12 sounds very low, particularly if you are considering all your hard work in school - Yes, it is a joke. Please look around more! I have seen jobs at Kindred Care, a well-run company that has LTC and retirement places in Mass. and other states that have starting pay well over 23 and higher for second shifts and weekends. Remember that once working, you can continue online to get your RN. I've discovered the pay is around ten dollars an hour more than the LPN. On the other hand, with two kids, that's a very busy schedule. Keeping looking, please. Twelve is just about what cnas make. Will the nursing shortage help to raise pay?

I think the answer to that is "the squeaky wheel gets the oil."

Where else are you looking? Do you go to indeed.com? They seem to run quite a few jobs, as well as have a salary search engine so you can compare what you're offered to the going rates. Good luck!

Diahni

systerm · Apr 10, 2008

Seeing salaries that like makes me mad. Surely a trained LPN professional deserves a far better pay than that.

I think it is very important to boycott employers that offer that kind of miesly lousy wages, I dont care what their excuse is, b/c there are a millon excuses that can be used any time for not paying nurses what they should be paid, so I dont even care discuss that aspect.

It would make even more sense to team up with a business oriented person and start up your own care facility/service if that is the best some employers can do.

Personally I would not put up with that. I would do what it takes to have my abilities, time, knowledge respected. I would either move, keep on sending out resumes, or further training.

Wages like that are degrading, devaluing and if not criminal. Stand up for yourself and your mantra is: I am a nurse, dont mess with me! :nono: In fact, what employers should do is this: :bow: b/c we are worth it. Not the Clairol girl.