LPN to RN... ask for a raise?

Nurses General Nursing

Published

Hello, I have been an LPN for about 2 years working for the same Home Health Care company for a year and a half, I recently graduated with my Associates degree and passed my boards to officially become an RN. I am still on my same case that I have been on, but is it wrong of me to expect a raise now that I am an RN. I mentioned this to the recruiter on my case and I was pretty much given the runaround about budget cuts and so on and that maybe I could expect a quarter raise... That felt like a slap in the face after going to school for a year and spending $25,000 to become an RN to be told that I may earn a quarter more! Keep in mind I have an excellent attendance record and have great rapport with the family. So my question is am I asking too much to ask for more than a quarter raise for going from LPN to RN but working the same case? And how do I go about negotiating a pay raise?

Could this be a communication issue? I cannot believe that someone would offer a 25c increase, so by saying 'a quarter' did they perhaps mean a quarter of your hourly pay?

You may want to clarify this point before making any rash decisions.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Geriatrics and Quality Improvement,.

last but not least, in a court of law, you are held to your highest licence ability. even if you are accepting lpn pay, if something goes wrong, you are held liable as an rn, because you have the education. and, no matter how nice the people are, if something does happen, your name will too appear in that litigation.

in respect to that, contact your private nursing licence insurance company, which im sure you have being in home care, and notify them of your licence upgrade too. if you dont have it, im sure you may now find it worth the $100 a year.

if you choose a different agency, you will have a rn footing to stand on.

if you stay with your present company, you will be facing an assignment change to accomodate rn jobs.

if you stay on the present assignment, with all things unchanged, you are valued as an lpn only, and i cant see why an agency would want someone with your good work history(as you said) to not be reliable and efficient in the rn role. if they chose to budge, then they are officially stating their value in you.

good luck with all that.

:jester::nurse:

Up Vote Up Vote ×

I have worked on home care cases where there is a flat rate paid for the nurses, didn't matter if they were an RN or an LPN, it was what the insurance company paid and that was it. If there are other RNs on the case and their salary is higher then you should get that rate too.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

At my old facility, staying as a RN would have maybe got me a $1/hr more. I was at the top pay of a LPN and low pay of a RN. So it really depends on their pay scale. Do they have a pay scale you can look at? As others have stated, it your position is a LPN position and you scope hasn't changed, you may not have any room for negotiation. I would at least explore the options of a new job in case they don't budge or can't budge.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Transgender Medicine.

Leave

1
Up Vote Up Vote ×

If you are still working as a LPN and they are not moving you into an RN position, then I wouldn't expect a raise. If they are not going to move you into an RN position and you want to make more money, then you need to start your job hunt.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Start applying elsewhere. I wouldn't even want to work for someone, like this, based off of their mindset, alone. I wouldn't even give them 2 weeks notice. They don't seem to care much for their employees.

What day and age is this when employers so nonchalantly suggest a 25 cent raise to REGISTERED PROFESSIONAL NURSES?....and we put up with it? It's no wonder that the nursing field continues to spiral downward.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Med/Surg, Ortho, ASC.

"What day and age is this when employers so nonchalantly suggest a 25 cent raise to REGISTERED PROFESSIONAL NURSES?....and we put up with it? It's no wonder that the nursing field continues to spiral downward. "

Pretty radical statement....the nursing field is spiraling downward because an LPN goes back to school? An LPN performing an LPN's job functions earns an LPN's wages. If the LPN chooses to educate herself and become an RN (on her own initiative; NOT at the request of her employer) and still performs the LPN job functions, she will still earn an LPN's wages.

What if I were a bank teller, earning bank teller wages and I return to school to earn my MBA, qualifying me for the bank manager's position. Would I expect to continue to work as a teller but have my earnings bumped to the level of the bank manager's? Certainly not. I would seek a new position commensurate with my new degree.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Community Health, Med-Surg, Home Health.

While I certainly agree that you should receive RN pay, it may not be possible to do so while keeping the same case you are currently working on. I say this because from what I gather, when the agency accepted that case, they probably sent an RN to assess and gathered that the appropriate care for that particular patient can be safely provided by an LPN. I have a friend who keeps both licenses, and he routinely accepts homecare assignments as an LPN, while working in ICU as an RN. He stated to me that he does this because it does pay well, and because the care is not complicated, he'd rather keep that case and make steady money rather than take a complicated home care case.

You might have to ask your agency if they have any assignments that require RN skills. Just be prepared that this is a patient who may be less stable, but you are on your own with no code team for assistance if the patient bottoms out. Of course, the same can happen with an LPN...it is just that it may be that only more stable patients are given to LPNs.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
"What day and age is this when employers so nonchalantly suggest a 25 cent raise to REGISTERED PROFESSIONAL NURSES?....and we put up with it? It's no wonder that the nursing field continues to spiral downward. "

Pretty radical statement....the nursing field is spiraling downward because an LPN goes back to school? An LPN performing an LPN's job functions earns an LPN's wages. If the LPN chooses to educate herself and become an RN (on her own initiative; NOT at the request of her employer) and still performs the LPN job functions, she will still earn an LPN's wages.

What if I were a bank teller, earning bank teller wages and I return to school to earn my MBA, qualifying me for the bank manager's position. Would I expect to continue to work as a teller but have my earnings bumped to the level of the bank manager's? Certainly not. I would seek a new position commensurate with my new degree.

Where in the WORLD did I say that the nursing field is spiraling downward because an LPN went back to school?

If the OP is still performing LPN duties, I see your point. Otherwise, I stand with my comment.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Community Health, Med-Surg, Home Health.
Where in the WORLD did I say that the nursing field is spiraling downward because an LPN went back to school?

If the OP is still performing LPN duties, I see your point. Otherwise, I stand with my comment.

I agree. I think that the OP should see if she can obtain an RN case at the same agency. If they are still offering only a quarter for the extra RN duties, THEN, I would leave. I just suspect that because the case was budgeted and submitted to insurance for LPN services, that is why there is no pay raise. It is almost the same as if I applied to work in a store...I may be an LPN, but that particular store requests a cashier.

To the OP; I strongly suggest that you at least ask for an RN case before you leave and see what they offer you. In addition, sometimes, these cases pay according to what insurance the client has. If it is a medicaid case, they will pay the LPN or RN much less than private insurance. When I did home care, I didn't accept medicaid cases at that time because I had bills to pay that could not have been met with the medicaid salary.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Thanks for everyone's comments :yeah: I have stuck around with this company for about 4 months since receiving my RN and still no RN case's available, they pretty much only utilize RN's for SOC's and for that they require a year experience as a RN. So.... I have finally decided to move on and I have an interview tomorrow with a Hospice Company for a case management RN position and I am so excited!!! :lol2:

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Add a Comment