LPN Undercutting...

Nurses LPN/LVN

Published

I'm going to preface this as a rant... I'm not sure when this happened but when did LPN salaries get so low? I finished school in 2010 and got my first job at a LTC facility making $17.50. My second job $21.50 and there after I did agency work for a year varying $19-25/per hour. Now I'm looking for a job to tide me over while I finish school, I got a corrections nurse offer of $17.00! THE HECK?

In varying postings I'm seeing $15-16 salary ranges on career builder. *sigh* It has always seemed we've struggled for our place in the sun, now the $ aspect is more evidence of this. I'm gearing up to get my RN now but geez:sniff: I have a few LPN colleagues who're older and not in a place to finish school, the undercutting has been devastating to them. It seems there's less and less money at each new job.

BTW I'm in Cincinnati, Ohio and I know we have a nursing glut here... It seems that's the problem?

Specializes in CEN, CFRN, PHRN, RCIS, EMT-P.

50,000??? LVN-RN programs can be ha online from accredited schools for a fraction of that!!

Specializes in Hyperbaric Medicine and Wound Care.
50,000??? LVN-RN programs can be ha online from accredited schools for a fraction of that!!

A fraction? Not hardly. Once you factor in the ENTIRE expense, it's very easy to run you upwards of 50k.

Specializes in CEN, CFRN, PHRN, RCIS, EMT-P.

50K is nonsense, which LVN-RN program are you talking about?!

Not to burst your bubble, but RN pay has taken a huge hit too. $18/ hr. is average for a RN in my area now, whereas pay used to average in the mid-20s

LVN-RN program at my community college is less than 5K. 50,000 is ridiculous!

Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
50K is nonsense, which LVN-RN program are you talking about?!
Be cognizant that the person who is quoting the $50k tuition for LVN-to-RN programs is in California, which is the land of private-for-profit bridge programs with expensive tuition.

In addition, the California BRN does not accept any online LVN-to-RN programs.

Wow, where do you live? I live in a rural area on the east coast and the average LPN pay is $9.00-15.00 an hour! Unless you've been an LPN for years, then you might make around $21.00 an hour if you're lucky...

Specializes in Telemetry, Case Management.

I've been an LPN for literally 30 years and my pay has been stalled in the $20-22 range for over 10 years. Even tho I have hospital experience in almost all areas except L&D, surgery and cardiac ICU, and feel I am an asset to any team, it appears a seasoned LPN isnt considered nearly as good as a fresh, inexperienced BSN who doesn't have much thinking on her feet confidence.......Grrrrrr!

Specializes in Hyperbaric Medicine and Wound Care.
LVN-RN program at my community college is less than 5K. 50,000 is ridiculous!

Maybe if your lucky enough to secure a slot in one. Bridge programs at community colleges in California have up to FIVE YEAR waiting lists. There just aren't enough RN's willing to teach. Which is sad. I would think that it would be a decent way to end a nursing career. Give the last five years of it back to the profession and impart your learned wisdom to a new batch of RN's.

Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
There just aren't enough RN's willing to teach. Which is sad.
Perhaps more RNs would be willing to teach if the salaries for nursing educators weren't so pitifully sad.

Wow! Those are crazy low salary rates. $16.00 is the starting salary for CNAs at my current workplace.

I've been a LPN for around 1.5 yrs now. My first job I got in December 2012 starting was $21.00. My current workplace, is $24.00.

You said it was for a corrections nurse position? Im not too sure what your job duties enlist of. But the salaries I'm mentioning are from rehabilitation centers/nursing homes. Maybe you should try getting a job there cause the pay might be higher. Good luck

Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
Wow! Those are crazy low salary rates. $16.00 is the starting salary for CNAs at my current workplace.
Then again, you're in Staten Island, which has a high cost of living compared to the geographic regions where the nurses with the "crazy low salary rates" live.

In most cases, pay is dependent on the cost of living. A person doesn't necessarily need a lot of money to survive in cities where a 2-bedroom apartment can be rented for $400/month or a 4-bedroom house can be purchased for $100,000.

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