Here's The Federal Law on Mass Layoff Notice
Posted By: NightOwl on 2009-05-09
In Reply to: To the "laidoff" employees - A Californian
http://www.doleta.gov/programs/factsht/warn.htm
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I google federal layoff law. sm
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=federal+layoff+notice+law&aq=f&oq=
Can click open articles.
Companys should at least be reported to the Federal labor department so those coming up from behind. Sadly people need to be MADE to be decent to their fellow humans
60 days notice before a layoff? sm
People get laid off at the last minute all over the country. Maybe I am not understanding your post correctly? It does sound like to me that you are saying you must have 60 days notice before a layoff though. If that is indeed what the post is saying, there is no way or every company in the US is breaking the law!
Notice is a courtesy, not a rule and they don't give you notice when they fire you
Giving a 2-week notice is common courtesy, and in most all my jobs, I have given them that courtesy; however, a company never gives someone notice when they are firing them. In my opinion, if a company does not treat their employees right, they do not deserve to get any notice at all.
As a matter of fact, I just left a company without notice. I felt horrible about doing it to my team but not to the company. While they never messed up on my pay, I was under constant stress. They treated several other people horribly and also changed all the terms of my employment contract within months of hiring me, which was going to cost me $800 a paycheck. I am the major breadwinner for a family of five and couldn't hang around a second longer losing that kind of money.
The only reason you would not want to quit without notice is if you want to use them as a reference and/or want the chance to go back to them in the future. I was advised by a recruiter that you should never put anything on your resume that is less than a year, so you really don't want to use them as a reference anyway, and you certainly don't want to go back to them.
Messing with someone's money is a big NO-NO, especially when they are costing you $400 for a second time. Heck no, I wouldn't give these people notice. There are some great companies out there hiring right now.
Feel free to contact me by email if you would like some more detailed information about the companies I narrowed my search down to. I was very sceptical about trusting another company with the bad luck I've had (just as you have) in the last few years, but I think I finally found somewhere I can be happy at for a long, long time (of course only time will tell, but I'm feeling very optimistic).
:) Best of luck to you!
SPi layoff
Get this...after all the big layoffs of the US MTs, this past Friday they sent out an email offering a bonus after 90 days to to anyone who recruited an MT as they are so out of turn on their most important accts. Interesting, eh?
Layoff
I was laid off on Friday. I had only been there since the summer. Hadn't had much work since about December or so.
Because it is a layoff you can apply
now and use your layoff date for the date of start benefits. It takes time to process so you will be ahead of the game. Each state should be able to give you Medicaid information .. as my state has Healthy Kids and it is a separate program from the regular Medicaid. Keep in mind, though, that if you COBRA for 18 months you will have that insurance for as long as you choose to keep it. Make sure the lovely Ms. Neidert explains the COBRA fully to you or turn them in .. they did not explain fully to us and caused a lot of misinformation and people doing things incorrectly.
layoff/rehire
That email offering a bonus was not sent out to everyone. Only a limited number of individuals/
MT looking for work after heartland layoff
Is PMSI a good company to work for? I have not tried them yet.
amphion layoff info anyone?
that is what inquiring minds want to know - specifics
Layoff Email-or lack thereof...
I sent an email to Cathy Clemons this morning inquiring as to where the email is that they promised on Monday night and she said there was a technical error in sending it out and it would be out by noon today, when Colleen Neidert returns to the office! I hope she enjoyed her time off after participating in firing all of us on Monday.
Yeah, the layoff scenario went thru my head, as well, especially (sm)
since I hear this co. has a branch in India.
How soon do we apply for unemployment? ASAP or after our layoff date of 7/7? nm
x
Good company but had layoff in July. Are they hiring?
Very professionally ran company.
Uh, are you sure about Federal? sm
This may depend entirely on the MTSO, but as an SE with MQ, they did in fact withhold federal taxes for me, (but not state taxes.)
So, a federal law
for payment of overtime only applies to whatever hours the facility or company defines as overtime; not all based on a 40-hour week?
It is a federal offense
If the federal government checks the time the employee is producing work from the company software instead of the falsified time sheet and finds it is consistent across the board, the company will definitely be in a huge amount of hot water. I don't work for them and never have. I have my own small company with just me and two more employees, but if this is going on, the employees would have a firm case. They should also document the calls or even record them when they are called to work extra. Just my two cents. I hope this helps.
If you are an employee, they have federal
guidelines to follow to ensure you make at least minimum wage and to reference for overtime purposes.
Clocking in/out does not necessarily mean a loss of flexibility. It does mean some accountability, though.
You can go on line and get the Federal
forms from the IRS. I never did state, they were never that much anyway.
Your federal ID is just your SS number.
I am not an IC at Transcend, but I do some IC work in my local area. All I needed for this was to get a business license in my city of residence, for a home-based business. It costs me $26 a year, but I'm sure that will vary widely depending on where you live. (And that fee is tax-deductible.)
That's all it takes to become an 'established company,' to the best of my knowledge. Instead of a W2 at tax time you get a 1099.
Just call your city hall and ask them how to get a license to set up a home-based business.
If you have a home-based business you can write off all your computer equipment and repairs, and if your accountant is savvy enough, you can even take the home office tax deduction. Mine told me that is no longer an audit red flag because so many people are telecommuting now.
Federal Trade Commission ........ nm
ss
Do they take out for all taxes or just the Federal and you pay your own local? nm
s
WHY NOT MAIL THEM COPY OF FEDERAL....SM
and labor board guidelines regarding employment of independent contractors and the difference between IC and employment status. They cannot have it both ways...have their cake and eat it, too. They don't want to pay taxes, Soc Sec, and benefits for MTs.....but they still want the same control over the MT . Same mentality of most MTSO's....insulting our common sense & intelligence bec. they've soooooooo smart and we're are, collectively, soooooooo dumb!  
Several years ago, they passed a federal law
That law says that companies with over a certain number of employees have to provide advance notice (I thought it was 30 days, but maybe it's 60 days, I dunno)before just closing up shop and doing mass layoffs.
I do NOT think that law would apply to smaller transcription MTSOs with fewer than 50 employees or so.
It would absolutely apply to Medquist, though!
SE doesn't take out federal and state taxes, only
x
Heartlanders-find a Federal resource to help
Although my job has not been displaced, I can emphasize with your predicament. I have seen the decline in pay and benefits as a direct result of offshoring and only being able to find a job with a MTSO who stands against offshoring by sacrificing about 30% of what I had just 3 years ago. Now I have custody of a 2 yo and because I make just barely above the 200% poverty level, I do not qualify for goverment benefits that I have been paying into for the past 30 years; however, because of certain federal funds being administered differently at the discretion of different states, I could move to a different state and the 200% limit would not apply to me!
In researching what benefits ARE available to me, I found the website I have linked below. There are benefits available to persons who have lost their jobs to offshoring but I would like to point out one thing:
ONE of the programs requires that at least 3 OR MORE persons having been affected apply for the benefit. So please for the sake of each of you that are going through your own crises, band together so each of you can find a solution that works for your own needs. Please leave the ability to email each other in your posts so you can network. You need each other's support now more than ever! Find out what you CAN do for yourselves and for each other. What have you been paying taxes for all this time? You deserve whatever benefits you can obtain...you have already PAID for them!
This only pertains to federal health programs
Like VA. It says if the MTSO is paid with federal money, then they are subject to all these things.
ANY federal money - included Medicare and almost
I could be wrong, but I read it to mean ANY federal money which includes Medicare/Medicaid, and there are probably not too many hospitals, clinics, or private doctor's offices that do not have at least 1 Medicare/Medicaid patient. Seems to me they would not be too worried about all the listed countries for off-shoring if it was only VA, since there was already a big stink about off-shoring VA records. But then, as I said, I could be reading it wrong. I guess only time will tell.
Overtime is calculated in Elabor, in compliance with federal law....
We enter our hours into Elabor each day, and OT is calculated. Right now, with a slow workload, I doubt overtime is approved. As a matter of fact, it is not approved.
Does your MTSO take out all federal/state employee taxes? nm
nm
MTSOs have a unique loophole in the FMLA Federal
MTSOs have a unique loophole. I got caught up in it a couple of years ago when trying to use medical leave for my personal medical illness.
Here are the Federal Requirements:
EMPLOYEE ELIGIBILITY
To be eligible for FMLA benefits, an employee must:
• work for a covered employer;
• have worked for the employer for a total of 12 months;
• have worked at least 1,250 hours over the previous 12 months; and
• work at a location in the United States or in any territory or possession of the United States where at least 50 employees are employed by the employer within 75 miles.
The loophole for MTSOs is the last one …”50 employees… within 75 miles.” MTSOs can interpret that to mean “50 employees who WORK FOR SPHERIS” within 75 miles of EACH OTHER. So, if you live in the middle of Wyoming, there may not be 50 employees within a 75 mile radius of your home. Thus, the loophole, which some MTSOs actually do use.
HOWEVER, some employees do have a counter-loophole. States also have FMLA requirements, and the State that you live in supersedes Federal requirements. In my case my Sate does not have the “75 mile radius” requirement, so after I contacted my MTSO and informed them of that, they backed down and approved all the leave I wanted.
Check out your State requirements to see if they are different. If they are not, if you can survive with 6 weeks and want to keep your job, I would not rock-the-boat any further. Personally, I would use those 6 weeks to find another employer who is more employee friendly, if there are any left out there.
Good Luck and Congratulations on the new Baby.
To be independent at Transcend, have to have own company established and federal ID number?
I guess that about tells it all, does it not? In other words not just the required 8 hour weekend but also you have to have established company. I wonder how many fit under that category?
Mass exit sm
Sorry, but I don't think this is the answer. Back in the 70s? 80? (sorry, I forget which) our man in the White House swore he would break labor unions (though he, himself, was a card-carrying member of the actor's union) and he DID. The American workers bought into the "unions have outlived their usefulness" propoganda and now union membership is at an all time low. Without bargining power, workers have nothing...united we stand, divided we fall. And EVERY American worker is falling FAST. Wake up America.
Springfield, Mass. nm
x
Has anyone who received the mass
emailing from Keystrokes received the promised phone call yet? I have not and am just wondering
Breitner in Mass. NM
><
StenTel in Mass.
Sorry, I meant to add that I would like info on StenTel in Springfield, Mass. Thanks in advance.
mass firings
They had a conference call recently for which US editors were asked to call in. When they were all on the line, they were ALL fired! Talk about unprofessional!
Also, when people quit or are let go, they are not being replaced; often, when they ARE replaced, it's not by other US employees.
They are taking the easier, longer-winded docs and giving them to offshore workers to do, leaving the US employees with the more difficult, hard-to-understand dictation to do while at the same time are pushing for more and more production/lines AND stepping up the auditing AND requiring feedback to be done on worse and worse work from overseas - basically resulting in people not being physically able to make quotas nor keep quality at a premium. They then are firing people who fall below what they say are the minimums, not taking into account the conditions which THEY are imposing on us and which make the job more difficult and much more time consuming, and the massive also-time-consuming amount of feedback on crappy transcription (and HA! editing) overseas. It's discriminatory no matter how you look at it, too: There is no way that the work of the overseas 'editors' can hold a candle to that I've seen from US editors, yet the US people are being fired & forced out left and right while the overseas folks are being allowed to keep their jobs and even being promoted.
SPi has been 'testing out' voice recognition on a major account for quite sometime; when they started it, they fired most of the US MTs and promoted offshore MTs to Editor positions.
They are losing accounts like crazy; some they lose on purpose, but others are lost because the clients are upset and/or dissatisfied with the lack of quality, service, etc.
Run, DON'T WALK, away from this unethical company while the choice is still in YOUR hands...before they fire you or sweep you up in one of their recent mass 'layoffs'
and when you DO leave, make absolutely certain that they pay you any unused vacation (AND unused/owed PTO for those prior Cymed employees). They don't do it automatically. They told one person who quit recently that they had just decided not to pay the PTO out - even though they put it in writing in the benefits package cover letter in January! Someone else who left tried to collect unemployment but couldn't because SPi had her listed in another state completely than where she'd lived for all the years she worked for them - she got hired after months but never did collect any of the benefits she was entitled to.
This company represents all the worst of human nature.
Mass Firings
What can one do to protect themselves from these evil doings? How can they get away with not paying out PTO? I am beginning to think that their transcription branch is just not important to them and they don't care what happens to it (at least in the US). It is obviously clear they don't care about the US MT.
Is this the Sten-Tel in Mass?
If it is, then I worked for them for about a year over a year ago. I do not remember that statement in the IC contract. That must be something new. I left that company because their QA would mark something wrong one day and then mark the same thing right the next day. You never knew what you should do and then they would send you nasty emails saying you need to get off of QA or else. I wouldn't recommend working there.
With all of the mass hysteria can we please
I have to be honest... I love my job at TT and when I got the e mail it did not bother me at all. I simply did not sign up to be one of the first to try the VR (I have done it elsewhere and did not care for it personally, nor did my bank account). Anyway, my strategy was to work as hard as possible now, and keep an eye open toward other companies that do straight transcription. If I am forced to do VR, then I would still stay at TT and train as best as possible with a second job picking up the slack of the bills. It would be more hours, but it would have to happen b/c I cannot afford a paycut as I have only me to depend on (no other incomes to help). Then, I came on today and unfortunately, I read all of the posts of panic and hysteria and felt like giving up, going to bed and pulling the covers over my head and or getting an Rx for Xanax....
I understand we all need to vent, but is it possible to try to work together to find solutions or boost each other up while this is going on instead of fighting or getting into a panic? One poster here, I see, is looking for suggestions for companies with straight typing options. That is a good idea... What other positive options can we come up with together so that we all don't go down in negative doldrums. Panic will not help my line count today, but the bill collectors don't understand, nor do my children who depend on me...
Anyway, my approach will be if my check takes a hit, to continue as I am, and if I am asked to train VR without a complaint while I take on another job to fill in the gaps. Does anyone else have any positive ideas to add? If we can come up with a list of options instead of griping, maybe we can all have a good and profitable day with a plan for the future.
Thanks in advance for reading this... Even if no one has an answer to this, at least I got it off my chest...Have a profitable and enjoyable day/weekend.
This law only applies to mass
X
Maybe they think a lot of MTs are going to leave en mass with the new pay plan so they are getting
ready. Have you noticed how they have been dragging their feet to let us know probably until Summer is over so they have plenty of staff. You KNOW they already know what it is so it is just a matter of timing is all. Yep.
I had a feeling there was a mass exodus
earlier this year. I hung in there with them for six months, but they kept running out of work. I asked to be trained on a second account, but it didn't happen. My supervisor was very nice, but it just didn't work out. I also have 17 years of experience, and had 99+% QA scores. I agree with some of the comments above about looking things up, etc. Oh well...
Sten-Tel in Mass. pays this way. nm
s
Also, don't mass mail your resume.
If I receive a resume and I can see that it has gone to a dozen other companies, too, I'm not feeling the love.
Sten-Tel, Springfield, Mass.
Anyone familiar with this company? Could not find any current info in archives. Pros and cons, please. Also, what platform do they use or does it depend on the account? Thank you.
Am I the only one who works for Sten-Tel in Mass?
I am having probs with their QA and wonder if I am the only one dealing with this?
Hoffman Transcription (Mass.)
Anyone work or have worked for the above company, would you please state how you liked working for them, pros and cons, please. Thanks.
Someone said Transtech sent out mass Email
saying which shifts and days they are hiring for. Care to share what they said so I will know whether to bug them. If it is not allowed here on this board no problem and I will apply anyway. Thank you.
Bet a mass exodus is taking place.
cc
This was a mass email, about docking $10 per report.
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