Your work. Your records.
Respiratory Therapist Workplace Records
Respiratory therapy combines equipment work, monitoring and coordination with other clinicians. An employment concern should describe the workplace instruction and reporting sequence without becoming a clinical case review. Identify the general setting, assigned duties and supervising roles, leaving individual treatment information in the care system.
Call now(800) 800-5555Free initial case evaluation. Representation depends on work state and case eligibility. This guide explains record preparation; it does not determine whether a legal claim exists.
A record map for your role
What to organize first
Assignment sequence
Identify the role directing the work and any change in duty or handoff during the shift.
Support request
List when you requested help or clarification and the instruction that followed.
Personal documents
Group your own schedule, pay and employment feedback while excluding patient and device data.
Start with the work you actually do
Assess, treat, and care for patients with breathing disorders. Assume primary responsibility for all respiratory care modalities, including the supervision of respiratory therapy technicians. Initiate and conduct therapeutic procedures; maintain patient records; and select, assemble, check, and operate equipment.
O*NET classifies this occupation as Respiratory Therapists (29-1126.00). Its description covers a typical occupation, not every workplace or individual job. It does not establish employee status, overtime eligibility or employer misconduct.
- Set up and operate devices, such as mechanical ventilators, therapeutic gas administration apparatus, environmental control systems, or aerosol generators, following specified parameters of treatment.Source task 397 · updated 08/2026
- Monitor patient's physiological responses to therapy, such as vital signs, arterial blood gases, or blood chemistry changes, and consult with physician if adverse reactions occur.Source task 400 · updated 08/2026
- Read prescription, measure arterial blood gases, and review patient information to assess patient condition.Source task 401 · updated 08/2026
- Relay blood analysis results to a physician.Source task 408 · updated 08/2026
A reference point for your pay records
May 2025 wage estimates by state
Compare your pay records with published BLS estimates for Respiratory Therapists (SOC 29-1126). These describe an occupation across employers. They are not a required pay rate, an overtime calculation, or evidence of discrimination or unpaid wages.
Select your work state to see its published pay range. No personal pay information is requested or sent.
The 25th and 75th percentiles mark the middle half of the estimated wage distribution; the median is its midpoint. Actual pay can differ with experience, employer, location and duties. Hourly and annual figures are shown as published, without converting one into the other.
All published state estimates for this occupation
| State | Hourly 25th | Hourly median | Hourly 75th | Annual median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $27.64 | $31.81 | $36.98 | $66,150 |
| Alaska | $40.66 | $47.09 | $48.69 | $97,950 |
| Arizona | $33.98 | $38.36 | $41.38 | $79,780 |
| Arkansas | $30.34 | $35.51 | $37.75 | $73,870 |
| Connecticut | $38.74 | $40.98 | $47.12 | $85,230 |
| Delaware | $39.85 | $43.79 | $46.64 | $91,080 |
| Florida | $36.16 | $39.02 | $42.30 | $81,160 |
| Georgia | $35.77 | $40.24 | $48.89 | $83,700 |
| Hawaii | $41.42 | $45.30 | $49.12 | $94,210 |
| Idaho | $34.92 | $37.72 | $38.48 | $78,460 |
| Indiana | $32.58 | $38.33 | $40.85 | $79,730 |
| Iowa | $31.09 | $35.94 | $38.81 | $74,760 |
| Kansas | $31.10 | $37.01 | $39.06 | $76,970 |
| Kentucky | $30.34 | $34.98 | $38.33 | $72,750 |
| Louisiana | $30.98 | $36.17 | $38.53 | $75,240 |
| Maine | $34.88 | $39.65 | $41.60 | $82,470 |
| Michigan | $34.49 | $38.39 | $39.91 | $79,850 |
| Minnesota | $41.56 | $47.46 | $49.53 | $98,710 |
| Mississippi | $27.47 | $30.42 | $36.46 | $63,270 |
| Missouri | $31.15 | $37.69 | $39.92 | $78,390 |
| Montana | $32.39 | $39.03 | $41.02 | $81,190 |
| Nebraska | $35.38 | $39.22 | $41.41 | $81,590 |
| New Hampshire | $40.53 | $46.13 | $48.64 | $95,940 |
| New Mexico | $30.30 | $33.11 | $37.41 | $68,870 |
| New York | $46.00 | $51.83 | $61.00 | $107,810 |
| North Carolina | $32.70 | $38.51 | $42.22 | $80,090 |
| North Dakota | $32.12 | $39.06 | $40.66 | $81,230 |
| Ohio | $36.19 | $38.42 | $43.45 | $79,920 |
| Oklahoma | $32.27 | $37.88 | $40.20 | $78,800 |
| Pennsylvania | $32.18 | $37.74 | $42.12 | $78,490 |
| Rhode Island | $39.92 | $41.78 | $49.28 | $86,900 |
| South Dakota | $29.81 | $32.81 | $38.16 | $68,240 |
| Tennessee | $30.61 | $34.68 | $37.81 | $72,140 |
| Texas | $33.50 | $38.24 | $45.04 | $79,540 |
| Utah | $33.76 | $38.77 | $41.24 | $80,650 |
| Vermont | $38.17 | $40.30 | $47.22 | $83,820 |
| Virginia | $37.89 | $39.86 | $45.56 | $82,910 |
| West Virginia | $30.71 | $33.01 | $37.19 | $68,670 |
| Wisconsin | $37.89 | $40.48 | $46.40 | $84,210 |
| Wyoming | $32.78 | $38.14 | $39.54 | $79,330 |
“Not published” preserves unavailable or suppressed source cells. “Above reporting limit” preserves a top-coded source value without inventing a number. A missing state estimate does not establish service eligibility. The data describe wage and salary employment; they do not measure self-employment income.
Source: BLS May 2025 state workbook · OEWS tables · BLS technical notes. Use your own schedule, pay statement and compensation terms to identify the question you want reviewed.
Clarify the assignment and handoff
Record the equipment or care activity in general terms and the person directing your role. Note reassignment, requests for assistance and when responsibility passed to another clinician. Separate your workplace observations from judgments about a patient’s response or the correctness of treatment.
Connect workload with your records
Describe preparation, monitoring, documentation and required coordination relevant to the disputed period. Compare your own schedule and time submissions with these duties. Do not infer hours from clinical timestamps alone or copy patient activity records to recreate your workday.
Keep clinical evidence controlled
Do not retain patient charts, blood-analysis results, images or device records in a personal employment file. Identify the record type and general date for handling guidance. Keep your own warning, training acknowledgment and report to management separate from clinical conclusions.
Choose your next step
Review the workplace retaliation guide, unpaid wages guide, or discrimination guide if those concerns fit your experience. A job title alone does not establish a claim.
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