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

Nurses General Nursing

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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)

I would look for another position in another company. Seriously.

Disrespect is disrespect, and this company excels at disrespect toward their external employees. The OP should move on down the road. She is an RN and deserves respect as one.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Geriatrics.
I don't know how it is now, but when I went to LVN school, RN was only 1 semester longer-and the pre-req's were very similar. not a huge difference in education.

It's different now.

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Specializes in Med/Surg, Geriatrics.
Depends on the cooks experience, her work ethic, and her skill level. Hypothetically lets look at a cook employed with the same facility for 30 years and new grad LPN? Should the facility pay the new grad more just because she passed the LPN NCLEX and went to school?

Are you asking if a nurse should get paid more than the unskilled laborer? Seriously? The answer is YES.

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Don't know if anyone mentioned this as I have not read every single post but perhaps you, the RN, are doing the job of an LPN and are getting paid as such? Perhaps the LPN's salary is higher as she has been with the company longer? The one thing fresh in my mind as a recent grad is that RN's can ASSESS, meaning it is in their scope of practice. Assessment however is not within the LPN's scope of practice. My first job out of nursing school was administering flu shots for an agency and the nurses, RN or LPN, all got paid the same as we were all doing the same job.

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Don't know if anyone mentioned this as I have not read every single post but perhaps you, the RN, are doing the job of an LPN and are getting paid as such? Perhaps the LPN's salary is higher as she has been with the company longer? The one thing fresh in my mind as a recent grad is that RN's can ASSESS, meaning it is in their scope of practice. Assessment however is not within the LPN's scope of practice. My first job out of nursing school was administering flu shots for an agency and the nurses, RN or LPN, all got paid the same as we were all doing the same job.

This is not the case with the OP.

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Depends on the cooks experience, her work ethic, and her skill level. Hypothetically lets look at a cook employed with the same facility for 30 years and new grad LPN? Should the facility pay the new grad more just because she passed the LPN NCLEX and went to school? I agree in most circumstances RNs should get paid more. MY QUESTION IS WHY IS IT SO HARD FOR SOME RNS TO BELIEVE THAT A HARD WORKING, DEPENDABLE, COMPETENT , VERY EXPERIENCED LPN IS WORTH THE SAME OR MORE THAN A RN WITH LESS EXPERIENCE? Again, I do understand that many RNS simply have more training and skills, but I am talking about the RNs who are not specialized, who do NOT have BSN or Master level degrees. In those circumstances I personally do not think the pay gap should be so big.

Because the OP very clearly stated in the first post that they had the same level of experience, with the lpn being at that specific agency 2 years more.

No one has said that an lpn with loads of experience couldn't get paid more than an RN with less experience....you're the only one who brought that up.....sounds like a chip on your shoulder truthfully.

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Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
There really should be an allnurses.com for LPNs.

Great idea. But then you'd have to call it somenurses.com -but why stop there? RN students, LVN/LPN students, and CNAs also are members of allnurses. Somenursesstudentscnas.com? A bit unwieldy. Hey, I know :idea:. . . why don't you start a thread with that as a topic? True, you may get a blast furnace of feedback from the majority of nurses, registered or otherwise, but I suppose it's possible a few might agree with you that our differences are greater than our similarities.

You, as a soon to be RN or whatever you are, will really need to sharpen up your language skills. Good communication skills are very important for you professionals to learn. Others may become confused and conclude that you are ancillary staff! Looking forward to finding out what the rationale was in posting your pompous little one-liner. TIA !!

PS There already is a forum called LVN/LPN Corner. But most people don't mind if we get out of our playpen to hang out with the big boys and girls sometimes. :uhoh21:

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I was an LPN for ten years, so I know all about the insecurities and limitations of the title. There would be less cattiness if it was a website of peers. Shall we invite the nursing assistants and mental health associates?

The comment was meant to stimulate thought not lead to additional negativity.

I have been a member to this forum for a number of years now, but until the site increased it's membership to include practical nurses the comments were centered on nursing, not job level and scope.I am sure the reasoning was to broad the perspective of the topics discussed, instead it has gone haywire.

There should not have to be a mention of whether you are an RN or LPN, what is the purpose? If we can center on nursing and leave the rest behind, we should be able to move on to the next step.

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Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.

Dear sayitgirl, I am not insecure, and I've been lurking since 2004 and member since 2005. I am not aware that allnurses started as an RN only site. Generally speaking, I like having the mix of backgrounds as I think everyone can learn more from those behind us or ahead of us on the path. I might just get bored to tears without all the "help meeeee" posts and questions from newer-bies that I can answer if it's constructive for me to do.

You aren't the first person to complain about the mushrooming amount of information that some people find very disturbing. So I can see your point if that's your frame of reference. I'm sorry if I misinterpreted your meaning with the comment. Thank you for responding. It is an obstacle in our path for us to focus on our bruised egos, etc. and not mutual learning in a positive manner.

So I bid this thread a not-so-fond adieu, I wish you well. And yes, I am an LVN. Take care!

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I know its a deadhorse..but each state has its own scope of practice for LPNs and RNs and that is the best way to determine how you work. NYS changes its scope like it changes it underwear...lol. And even if the state says you can do something, your facility may say no. There are many jobs that can be done by both a LPN and RN so the pay difference could be very close. There are jobs that a RN has to be present (i.e. any central lines) so the pay rate is going to be a lot different.

You must not only know the scope as a LPN, but also as a RN. Delegation will not work, if you do not understand what those under you can do. It has nothing to do with being egotistical, stubborn, nasty, etc. It has to do with state law and what could cause you to lose your license.

We ALL have important places within the health field and we could not do it without each other.

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Specializes in Vents, Telemetry, Home Care, Home infusion.

Thread closed as run its course.

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