Is It Possible An LPN Can Make More Then An RN?

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I'm an RN. I work for a well known national home care agency. Somehow payroll mixed up our paychecks; I got her (she is an LPN ) hourly rate of pay on my paycheck and she got mine.

I found out she was making $23.00 an hour but I am making $21.00, and we both work on the same cases, so the acuity level of the clients is the same. She has been with this particular office for 2 years. I been with this office for 5 months. How do i approach the clinical manager about how unfair that is? (We also have the same level of experience)

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She's been there longer. She could have gotten a yearly raise that bumped her up before you even started.

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Specializes in School Nursing.

tread cautiously !! most employers do not like it when you confront them about someone else making more $$ trust me, i speak from experience :uhoh3:

praiser :heartbeat

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Specializes in Chiropractic assistant, CNA in LTC, RN.

I agree with both posters. Mentioning the salary of others is usually a HUGE "no no". She's been there 2 years so she most likely got a nice raise. If you like your job and want to keep it I'd keep the knowledge to myself. Is it possible she is working without benefits? That would make her pay higher too.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, ICU, educator.

perhaps she also has more years experience in general. As others said, I wouldn't say a word to anyone.

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Specializes in LTC Family Practice.

Yes in certain rare instances LPN's will make more money than RN's. An LPN who has YEARS of experience could very well be making more money than a new grad or 1-2 year experience RN...now don't get your knickers in a wad, those of us who've put in years and years of work SHOULD be making more than a new grad RN or LPN. I'm sure in a few years you as an RN will surpass the LPN wages.

And as others say, if you like your job it's a big no no to discuss others wages. A big mistake was made by accounting that let you in on private, privilaged info, so if you like your job...don't discuss it with anyone, buck up and realize that over the years your earning potential will far surpass that of an LPN's.

Years ago I was doing agency work at a large well known teaching hospital, I was on nights and my floor super was a brand new grad just turned loose on the floor. Because of my agency status my scope of practice was less than what would have been normal for an employee LPN. We had a patient come to the floor that needed a foley cath inserted...sigh, this woman had never put one in and never seen it done, I on the other had been doing the procedure for years. But because of my "temp" status I couldn't do it and it was up to her to insert the foley. Soooo, she called her night manager and was told to do it. So to be pro active and do what was best for the patient interests, I voluntered to to "talk her through it". Which I did, she managed to do it without too much trauma to the patient. Yet, when she gave me my eval for the night, she requested NOT to work with me again:mad:. I'll assume she was embarrassed that OMG an LPN knew more than she did and didn't want to be reminded of it by seeing me again. Fortunatly the night manager figured it out and refused to submit the report and made one of her own...Now my point of this long story is; Should she have been making more than me...I think not. I'm sure one day she surpassed my wages but not then...not that night.

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This is funny. What a shame a little lowly LPN is making more than a great big RN. Never mind that she may be a valuable asset to the company. Have you ever thought maybe she is a GREAT nurse who has excellent skills and dependable? Maybe she is I don't know..........very good at her Job. Are you saying that just because she is an LPN she MUST be making less than that RN?Maybe when she was hired she was smart enough, even though she is an LPN, to make sure her pay equaled her value. I know it is hard for some people to process the words smart and LPN in the same sentence.

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I once worked a job where one of the techs was making more than any of the LPNs. We found this out when a fax containing everyone's salary was accidentally faxed to the floor- instead of to the mgr's office.

The tech was not a good worker. The reasons for her high hourly wage were simple: butt kissing and cronyism.

It happens.

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I had no clue there was such a stereotypical disparity between the ideal of an LPN vs. an RN. It has been interesting for me to be an LPN while going through RN school. Telling some people I'm an LPN and telling others I'm an RN student....really an interesting sociology experiment, but not fun to see how I'm treated as the "LPN", I'm treated better as the student! Ridiculous.:confused:

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This is funny. What a shame a little lowly LPN is making more than a great big RN. Never mind that she may be a valuable asset to the company. Have you ever thought maybe she is a GREAT nurse who has excellent skills and dependable? Maybe she is I don't know..........very good at her Job. Are you saying that just because she is an LPN she MUST be making less than that RN?Maybe when she was hired she was smart enough, even though she is an LPN, to make sure her pay equaled her value. I know it is hard for some people to process the words smart and LPN in the same sentence.

I do not think the OP meant that at all. I would be surprised, for example, if I found out that a staff nurse was making more money than a nurse practioner. The staff nurse may (or may not) have been "smarter" than the NP, had great skills, was a great nurse and be dependable....which was not why I would be suprised. NP's generally make more money than staff nurses....in the same vein RN's generally make more money than LPN's.

Relax folks.

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Some people are so annoying. No one is degrading an LPN in their post so cut out the "poor me" whining. She has the same experience as the LPN. As a RN, we go to school longe, held to a different, more involved job description AND home health agencies get paid more for RN's so it makes SENSE that RN's start out at a higher wage. The LPN is already making $2 more per hour than someone who has been there 1.5 years less. If logic comes into play, and an LPN doesn't start out at the same pay scale as the RN, that must be one heck of a raise for her to be paid more at this stage in the game. We are taking about a $4+ per hour pay difference from when she probably started. Bottom line is you are probably not being paid fairly at this place for your "highly" RN work. After all, without an RN, I guess the initial assessment visit wouldn't get completed for the LPN to go work it.

But yes, it is very possible to make more as a LPN with years of experience. I know this because I was one and I made plenty more than others I knew. The difference was in how many years of experience I had.

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At the hospital I worked at a few years ago resource cna's made more than staff lpn's and resource lpn's made more than staff rn's. So yes it is possible, but speaking to your particular situation. Normally I would say mind your own business and maybe she is a good negotiator and negotiated a higher salary. But in this case, you have the right to ask a question about pay since they are the ones who gave you the wrong paycheck. I would probably take it to my Mgr and say something like this. I opened what I thought was my paycheck and was happy because it was more than I expected but then I realized it wasn't mine at all. Ask whatever questions you like- making no specific mention of that particular person and the cases that she works but a general, I thought rn's made more than lpn's. Why should you be the only one uncomfortable. Let your manager squirm around for an answer. I wouldn't advise you to tell anyone about this or even discuss it with the person whose check you received. I would ask though, you might not like the answer, but ask and then move on.

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