Can a company pay a new hire more then someone with the company already?

Probably yes.  Unless you have some sort of agreement (could be a collective bargaining agreement, or can arise from an employee manual) with your employer which limits its right to pay its employees whatever it wants (i.e. a contract which provides that employees are supposed to be paid by seniority, or guarantees that you will be paid more than any new hire, or something similar), or unless you believe that you are being discriminated against for a statutorily prohibited reason (gender, race, religion, etc.), an employer can pay a new hire any amount (above minimum wage) it and the new hire agree on.  There is no legal requirement that the employer pay its more experienced employees more.