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That is what happens when corporations rule our government. sm

Posted By: nm on 2006-03-13
In Reply to: Pay is getting less and less - claire

In a global economy, quality of life will have to readjust to the lowest common denominator because there are always third world countries that will do it cheaper.

Welcome to the New World Order that Bush told us about!



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The big corporations are the ones mostly
using that awful ASR because they charge the client the same but pay the MTs less. Try the reputable smaller companies.
Amen! All these corporations need to
trim the fat in the middle and upper management rather than by cutting into their REVENUE-PRODUCING EMPLOYEES. We actually have our hands on the product that earns the company money. How many human resource people, supervisors, managers, assistants, etc., do you need?! These companies are way too top-heavy.
LLCs are NOT corporations - There is a difference.

.


Now that the greedy corporations who offshore
our work have driven down our wages, not to mention risking patient safety, it really makes me rethink/regret my career choice. This used to be a great job.
My husband works for one of the largest corporations in the U.S. (not MT). sm
They are paid on the 1st and 15th and his will not post until Monday. They were told that it depends on the clearing house in their region, that their bank sends it any day, even if a Sunday, but if that middleman, so to speak, is closed, it will not go until the next day. Same with holidays.
Why the government doesn't come down on them...sm
Because the government, which was formerly assumed to be the people of the United States, but is now Corporate America only, doesn't have a stake in us, only big business. It is for this same reason that they allow illegal aliens to work all over America without consequnce to the employers who hire them. They make more than they would in their home countries, and a whole lot less than they should in the U.S., but companies want cheap labor and the US Dept. of Labor is there to help them get it. We who sell ourselves in the once respected MT profession for too little wages, at too long hours, without defending our rights to overtime and a fair wage, have just made the sacrifices of so many people who fought and died for those rights, martyrs to a lost cause. Shame on us. I don't work for Food, or Insurance, I work for a decent living wage, and if I can't make it working for one of these Nationial MT Sweat Shops, I quit. I don't blame myself because I know what I am capable of. I have had terrible sound quality, stupid and slow work platforms, unresponsive supervisors, account switching up to 4 in one day, nit-picking QA that I have had to prove wrong (and did) to keep my QA at 100%, and no pay for problems that were their fault. I quit them all. Although I may be Peeing in the wind, I will continue to uphold my standards, and make them uphold the Labor Laws of America. PTC I think we would all be better off it the likes of the poster below who said they did not want overtime because the government just took in taxes would leave the profession. It is hard to believe someone could be so stupid, and if they are truly an MT, then I would be ashamed to be seen with them. I would stake my life on the fact that this poster is a female, because men are not so foolish as to think that after the government takes out their 30% to 40%, the remaining 60-70% isn't worth having. Give me a break!!!
You can get a government grant to pay for
retraining if you lose your job to offshoring. You do not pay grants back.

You can then take a correspondence course from AHIMA for coding for $1500-$2000 plus books, and then take the certification test for around $300. Pay and demand for those jobs are much better, and most of the time they are in-house.
Who do you think controls our government?
this is not a personal attack but I never cease to be amazed at how few Americans CONNECT THE DOTS (all the way anyway)

The corporations call the shots with YOUR Congress/government primarily because AMERICANS are so easily pacified and distracted by the toys these corporations made for that exact purpose.

God-forbid Americans paid (payed?) any real attention to what the government does with THEIR tax dollar and in THEIR good names...

if you think the CORPORATE media is going to educate you on this, well ive got some swamp land you might be interested in...
Our government has mortaged
our souls.  Once the amnesty for ILLEGAL aliens is a done deal and it will be...what will we be American-Mexicans?  Then along will come China and foreclose on their mortgage, then what?
I never heard about that one. If the government
wants to make it madatory, then they have to make financial contributions.
No, I do not think that they will make it mandatory!
That's so illegal. I wish the government would come down on these companies. nm
x
Go to your state government web site
and review the guidelines for collecting unemployment. If you quit for a legitimate reason, some states will cover you. I also wouldn't worry about the reference if it didn't work out. Just put them behind you and find something else. Good luck to you.
Always the government's fault. It has nothing to do with the fact
that 3rd world MTs can work for 3 cpl? You said it yourself. It's corporate greed and they can save a lot of money if they only have to pay ICs 3 cpl even if they didn't get tax cuts. I don't think outsourcing just started when Bush got elected and I don't think it will stop once he's out of office and the directives change.
Go to your state's government website, look for SM
the link to the Treasury Dept (or whatever the place you pay state tax to is called) and there should be the info you're looking for there.
If our government TAXED them appropriately -
so that the profit margin for offshoring work was LESS than keeping it in the US, instead of REWARDING them by giving them TAX BREAKS for offshoring, it would probably move back onshore again. But they're not gonna do it without being forced to. And the government won't force them to do it unless we let our elected official know that US citizens want their jobs back in this country, and if they don't start working towards that end, then we'll vote them out of THEIR jobs.
No, soon the government will increase the minimum wage
and MTs will be the working poor. Sad business this is.
It's only censorship when the government does it, not private individuals..nm
xxxx
just so you know, the government has a free credit report per year
lots of experts say get 1 free credit report from Equifax in January, get 1 free credit report from next biggie 4 months later, and then get 1 free credit report from the other big one 4 months after that - that way you are monitoring all 3 big credit co per year. Forgot the website but do a search - why pay for something the government (and your taxes) gives you for free.
Until OUR government quits making it so lucratime tax wise to outsource...
these companies get great tax breaks to outsource. Google it, it will amaze you.
It still goes back to our government making it lucrative tax wise to outsource
NM
News report government hiring 1000 people - sm
To work on cybersecurity. I wonder if they will address the use of widespread databases like some (they shall remain nameless lest this post get booted) VR vendors use. I hope so. I think I'm going to ask for all the names and addresses who have access to my medical record from my local hospital and see what they tell me.
Not saying this is the rule, but (sm)
It could be a regional thing. I used to do a lot of accounts in S FL and it was pretty ESL-intensive. I then did some N FL accounts and it was the opposite, but believe it or not, the dictators were MUCH worse.

Regions of California, Florida, Texas, and NY probably have more ESLs than other states. I could be wrong on this and probably a gross generalization, but I'm only speaking from experience.
My new rule
With rare exception, I don't do any test without the courtesy of verbal communication in advance with the company advertising. If they can't or won't even speak to you via phone to answer a few simple questions, how do you know if you even want the job?

I don't have *any* problem testing, but if the management can't or won't even speak to you first, it can be a sign of under-staffing/poor organization.


You seem to be the exception, not the rule. nm
..
You are the exception rather than the rule. ....
Most companies pay nothing, or next to nothing. Then you have to consider that you have to deal with the very personal fact that AAMT loves its Indian MTs more than you, and you are just funding their growth...it's just not worth it. I've been on thier boards, I have been a CMT, and I'm more than happy to shred AAMT's pleas to have me maintain their lifestyle. NO SOUP FOR AAMT!

AAMT Nazi.
is that a rule on the website or something?
If so, sorry....didn't know
As a general rule....

75% is a pretty heavy figure on terms of ESL.  That sounds like an account no one else wants to do. 


You are an exception rather than the rule....
I learned on the job too, but that was a LONG time ago. It has been my experience nowadays that you have to pass testing for most nationals to get hired. Those who can pass testing with no experience are few and far between and you are to be commended. This particular person already has acknowledged that she could not pass testing and does not have the knowledge required, and was asking how to gain that knowledge.
What concerns me is that the rule is
Unless you like being banned, then keep on having laughs over the job seeker's board posts.  It happened to me, so I like to tell people that I was instantly banned for pointing something out on a job post.  It is not acceptable no matter what the forum or nature of the job posting.  It is not really up to you or I to decide what is just having a laugh!  The moderator has posted this in the past.  NO MAKING FUN OF THE JOB POSTS.  Someone may want to apply, do you think that there are only American MTs in America?  Do you think only foreign MTs stay in their country?  Even if the job was foreign in nature, that doesn't give anyone the right to poke fun or have a laugh at someone else's expense especially someone who is offering jobs!!!!!!!!!   
Then it must the the exception, not the rule. sm
According to everything I've heard and seen, the offshore work is garbage. That doesn't mean there may not be a service or two in other countries that hires educated MTs, who are proficient in English and conscientious at their jobs. I have worked with people from other countries that did as well as I do. But they are few and far between, and if every company let their offshore work stand on its own, or had it being QA'd offshore, most of the accounts would be back on shore in a short time. JMO
The exception to the rule.
x
There is no set rule. A lot of it depends
on your bank as to when they will accept the money and let you have access to it. If you know in advance that they will hold your check if date falls on a Saturday until Monday, then you just have to adjust to that.
I think you should rule the world
with that attitude. I tell them, I do this, I do that, well goody for you.
First rule: DON'T assume
Can see you are frustrated but don't assume people who *might* have answered your original post saw it.

If you were going to take the time and effort to write a second post - why choose such an off-putting tone?

How about: I know you all are very busy trying to work 24/7 to make HALF of what you used to make - but my first post went unanswered. Would someone KINDLY please point me in the right direction?


Rule #1 about job-seeking: Never, EVER, pay
'background check', NADA. The company should always pay for those things. If not, look elsewhere. I learned that one the hard way a long time ago.
Well, don't look at me, I didn't set the rule. :)
I just tried to 'splain it.

Just another minion here.
exception to the rule
I agree with you completely, but yesterday I had to delete an entire report and retype it. After I downloaded it, I noticed it was totally nonsensical. As I began listening to the audio, I found out why. There was a TV in the background that was actually louder than the dictator and VR was trying to pick up what the person on TV was saying. It made a total mess of it and of course had nothing at all to do with the patient's report, so this was a case of having no choice. Luckily these are few and far between. This morning I had a report with absolutely no corrections needed and it was wonderful! But then I thought, Whoa! If they all get this perfect, I'll be history! So I'll gladly make a few corrections!
Ladies we rule the MT world!!! nm
a
Allstate is definitely an exception to that rule
I know who each of those persons were that posted. I also know that Allstate believes in their ICs working as a team and helping each other. There are no secrets -- in fact, just the opposite. Interactions amongst MTs and QAs is encouraged. Names, email addresses and phone numbers are openly shared (with permission) if it means making help more readily available to other MTs when they need it. Everyone on the company is provided a direct number to reach even the owner/CEO at any time. And by the way, yes all those MTs do work for Allstate, and no they are NOT the same person. I know all of them.
That was the rule when the site was owned
by Sheri..guess it doesn't apply anymore.
You, my friend, are the exception, not the rule.

There are very few people making that kind of money in transcription anymore.  Have you even read the ads posted recently?  Fewer and fewer MTSOs are even hiring employees and when they do advertise, their IC compensation is 7, 8, or 9 cpl.  Even those companies that are hiring employees are doing so at extremely low rates, at the same time overhiring to make sure that their *contract enticements* will be met on the backs of the MTs.  Have you noticed the postings from MTs of, not 1, not 2, not 3, but SEVERAL different companies stating that there is no work??  When an IC is working for 8 or 9 cpl or an employee for even less, and there is no work available, how is that person supposed to make $50-60K annually?


People like yourself will criticize others for their opinions and will brag about your own situation, but when push comes to shove do you state what company you work for that allows such a wonderful wage with your abundant work load?  What is your fear?  That others will jump on board and soon you will be facing the same situation??  Until you have experienced what the *majority* of MTs in this field have been facing, you really have no valid facts to make such a request that other MTs be fired because their situation forces their loss of employment (if they quit because of it), their loss of compensation (if they are docked), or the loss of quality (which will certainly occur) due to the punitive compensation policies in place. 


I don't know about Stentel, but a good rule of thumb seems to be SM
that if you are an extremely fast MT, you will likely not make as many lph doing VR.  However, if you are pretty average speed at transcribing, you may be able to increase your lph significantly with the VR once the system has been trained pretty well.  Just something to think about....
I think they changed that rule a year or so ago. They can post.
nm
Who needs it? We don't. Just don't buy anymore with their silly rule changing.
nm
If I knew the answer, I could rule the world. Too
x
Was always told a general rule of thumb...
60 minutes equals 600 lines, 80 minutes, 800 lines and so on.  The formula did pan out for me.  I was always able to figure out how many lines I would get by how many minutes I pulled from the system. 
You my dear are most certainly the exception to the rule because MQ does not pay that base rate to
start people and give them 11.5 cents after 16,000 lines.
General rule is 3-5 minutes transcription/1 min of dictation.(nm)
x
I betcha it IS HIPAA regs that rule out wireless
Doctors etc. cannot use cell phones to dictate their reports, right? If this is true, I bet the use of wireless to deliver their dictations to at-home transcriptionists is considered potentially not secure. Well, two modems it is for me and I am really glad I asked this question. Thank you all for your feedback.
My thoughts exactly. Need an IC job so can deduct equipment, etc without having to meet 7.5% rule.
My normal company gives garbage as equipment, and I can't meet the rule for unreimbursed employee expense because I'm a high producer and don't have the other expenses that you can add to it.
Maybe it's a "pick and choose" rule.. depends on who is being talked about
I see a couple of names in that post, but haven't seen it deleted yet. Hmmm. Wonder why?