VA Nurse Salary

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Hi! Can anyone provide me with good info on the starting pay for VA nurses? I am applying in both Kansas (Leavenworth VA) and Missouri (Kansas City, MO VA). The salary range for both locations is about $46,000-$88,000. I know salary is based on experience, but I'm wondering if most nurses start somewhere in the middle. I have about 1.5 years med-surg experience. I can easily make more than the $46k at my current hospital position, but I'd like to work for the VA and the benefits can't be beat! Just wondering if I'll have to take a big pay cut. Thanks!

Specializes in burn ICU, SICU, ER, Trauma Rapid Response.
One thing you need to look at is what is your long term pay look like. With the VA you will know what you will be making in 5-10 years down the road because of step increases; will you get pay increases at the same rate at your present position? Also, how does the cost of your benefits compare. Your offer might be 10K less a year but after your cost for health insurance, retirement, etc. what is the difference in take home pay. Once you factor these and others the VA might be more attractive or the offer could be even worse then what it looks like on face value.

I am not an NP, just a regular RN. I have worked for the VA and keep up with their pay and benefits (made easier because they are online). I was able to do much better in a non va hospital.

FYI step increases are pretty much automatic every other year so you can see how much you will me make in the future. Going from Nurse II to nurse III is MUCH more difficult and would typically require that you get a doctorate AND effect real change across the hospital. For example the APN who started and brought, nurse placed PICC service to the hospital got promoted to nurse III. Another APN who designed and started the nurse residency program (also her doctorate project) got her nurse III.

If you want to see what the VA pays at the Minneapolis VA (will be VERY different than at other VAs) you can look here:

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That is not as good as I thought! Seems years ago the pension was structured differently?

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Specializes in EMT, ER, Homehealth, OR.

The federal government retirement change around 30 years ago and is not as good as it used to be. In the old plan you did not pay into Social security or collect it. Under the new plan you collect Social securit. Where I worked at the federal retirement plan along with the TSP plan was better then the civilian facilities since they only offered a 401k plan.

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Specializes in OB/GYN, Psych.
I am not an NP, just a regular RN. I have worked for the VA and keep up with their pay and benefits (made easier because they are online). I was able to do much better in a non va hospital.

FYI step increases are pretty much automatic every other year so you can see how much you will me make in the future. Going from Nurse II to nurse III is MUCH more difficult and would typically require that you get a doctorate AND effect real change across the hospital. For example the APN who started and brought, nurse placed PICC service to the hospital got promoted to nurse III. Another APN who designed and started the nurse residency program (also her doctorate project) got her nurse III.

If you want to see what the VA pays at the Minneapolis VA (will be VERY different than at other VAs) you can look here:

Contact

Why is the pay at the Minneapolis VA so different from other VAs? I am one state over (WI) and the pay is far lower....

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Specializes in burn ICU, SICU, ER, Trauma Rapid Response.
That is not as good as I thought! Seems years ago the pension was structured differently?

Yes, it used to be 2% per year. Same formula. However the VA did not contribute to social security. Fine for those who already qualified for SS from previous, or post VA employment.

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Specializes in burn ICU, SICU, ER, Trauma Rapid Response.
Why is the pay at the Minneapolis VA so different from other VAs? I am one state over (WI) and the pay is far lower....

Every VA pays differently. Some more (a few) and some less (most). If you want to see what an area pays look on USA jobs and find an RN listing. Usually the pay quoted is the range between Nurse I, step I and Nurse II, step 12. You can compare the top and bottom to the same pay grades in your area and calculate the percentage difference.

The VA does local "wage surveys". It seeks to be neither the highest or lowest paying hospital in the local area. Usually you will find the VA wages to be about in the middle of what other area hospitals are paying their nurses. However there can be some serious lag time in VA pay relative to surrounding hospitals in the case where local wages are going up or down.

FYI the Minneapolis VA pays the highest, relative to the local cost of living, of any VA in the country. That is also reflected in the pay of surrounding hospitals. It's why I work in the area, while living in even lower cost of living Wisconsin.

If any of you are interested in working there I have been reliably informed that the quality of their recent applicants is pretty poor. This is the VA's own fault. The absolutely refuse to hire any nurse without a BSN as a nurse II (though you can be promoted to nurse II without a BSN later). This means that for many experienced nurses they are not competitive, not even close. It shows in the quality of the ICU nurses they have hired over the last 5 years or so. A few good ones and a lot of not so good ones. Meanwhile their ICU are frequently staffed with VERY inexperienced ICU nurses. A couple weeks ago my hospital got a STEMI transfer from them because they didn't have a single nurse trained to implement therapeutic hypothermia working that night. The have been doing it for 3-4 years but their training is so far behind, and so many of their night staff are brand new that they can't keep even one trained RN on each shift.

A couple lights ago I got a text from a buddy who works there saying that not one of the RNs in MICU that night has been an ICU nurse for a year yet.

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After reading all the previous postings In this thread I am a bit confused as to why I was given a level 2 step six. I have an MSN and I am an air force reservist. Seems like my step should be a bit higher?

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After reading all the previous postings In this thread I am a bit confused as to why I was given a level 2 step six. I have an MSN and I am an air force reservist. Seems like my step should be a bit higher?

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Specializes in burn ICU, SICU, ER, Trauma Rapid Response.
After reading all the previous postings In this thread I am a bit confused as to why I was given a level 2 step six. I have an MSN and I am an air force reservist. Seems like my step should be a bit higher?

Every experienced nurse I have ever talked to about it felt exactly the same.

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I know this is an old thread but didn't want to start another since this already exists. What can a BSN nurse with 2.5yrs exp expect to start at? The range for my area was 51-97k. I have no idea where I would fall and can't find any charts to figure out pay ranking. Thanks!

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Specializes in burn ICU, SICU, ER, Trauma Rapid Response.
I know this is an old thread but didn't want to start another since this already exists. What can a BSN nurse with 2.5yrs exp expect to start at? The range for my area was 51-97k. I have no idea where I would fall and can't find any charts to figure out pay ranking. Thanks!

Every VA pays differently. Would haev to know what area you are considering. In Minneapolis VA you would probably start as a Nurse I, level 3, step 5 or 6

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North east area. What would nurse 1 step 3 pay?

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