I want a decent job at a living wage and less stress in my life.
Posted By: underpaid and overworked on 2005-12-19
In Reply to: Add yours: All I want for Christmas is - Poll taker
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That's the only way to make a decent wage --
No company. Would never do it again! I prefer stress-free living! nm
x
When we are not making a decent enough wage to buy our kids food and clothes, it is like (inside)
the little kid who wants a toy from another child and runs to his mother and whines "he won't give it to me." Just another way for them to try to force more money out of already tired pockets. I for one will not pay for that until they fight for wages to be increased. Let them go out of business like a lot of us have had to do. Now they want to make us pay for the lack of money they are getting from India because I am sure they aren't buying into it, and believe me I don't hate the Indians for wanting to work, it is not them, it is the American company's greed. When transcription companies can spend millions and millions of dollars to buy each other out, you know it is a lucarative business.
Why are they cramming voice down our throats at half pay? You can't tell me they are taking half pay, plus half pay is not enough when speech is not trained.
Vote for Obama! He says he will close the loop holes for American Corporations to send our jobs overseas.
The sad part is she just might think that $8/hour is a decent living. nm
nm
The result of MTs' efforts to make a living wage are (sm)
And of COURSE we don't want less - we DO want more. That goes without saying. But you see - the type of verbal attack that you and other "Debbie Downers" like you launch every time an MT says, "Wait a minute... maybe there IS something we can do is so typical of the type of thinking that holds not just MTs, but women in general back. I have already checked and made sure my doc's MTSO doesn't offshore. If that changes, my ins. (which is just your average, run-of-the-mill HMO) STILL allows me to go to other providers. If you "don't have many options", have you ever wondered WHY? Could it be that you keep SETTLING for less and less? And could it be that other MTs, when they read the gloom and doom in your post, will think THEY have to settle, too?
As for pulling other endeavors out of other nations, hey - there are quite a few that I think others would LOVE to see pulled out. Such as tech help for just about everything from your PC to your cellphone being sent to places where they can't understand what you're trying to tell them, and vice versa. I have a friend with a Masters degree in software engineering who is working menial jobs right now in order to pay the rent, while he looks for a job in his field that is a full-time, benefitted position, rather than as a part-time IC with no benefits. He says even the part-time jobs are getting hard to find because so many employers are sending EVERYTHING out, including part time.
The old, "Go ahead and try! Why don't you quit MT? Oh, boy - more work for ME!" song and dance may fly for a while, but why sit back and seemingly enjoy watching your profession go extinct, when eventually it WILL affect you, too? Do you really want to sit there all day as an "editor" and stare at work typed by other entities? How boring is that? Where is any ounce of creatitivity? At least when you transcribe, you are producing something of value, and can take pride in it. And at a lousy 3-to-6 cents a line, where is the pride in speech-rec or editing work?
I will stay in Podunk and make a living wage if you will take it to a blog. sm
Is that concept so hard to understand? I you cannot understand that simple idea, maybe that is why the lot of you don't have the sense to do something about your situation other than just whine. Take it to a blog, where maybe between you will be able to help yourselves. Or better yet, think of it this way,,, take it to a blog and then you won't have to navigate around the other posts to whine to each other.
I also want a living wage for MTs. Don't mind hard work and longer hours, just want to be paid
:+
As soon as I notice that someone is causing stress in my life
Relationships are meant to make our lives better, not miserable.
I would be 43 and have no life at this time and wish I was making decent money, but not ;0( ...NM
NM
and vice versa - the people acting like a big city life consists of living in a ghetto
.
All I want for Christmas is a decent job, a decent job, a decent job.
One that's not 95% ESLs, steady workload, steady accounts, good communication, office staff who aren't rude buckpassers, decent line rate, no offshoring, direct deposit, flexible schedule, not having to do 50+ 30-second reports per day, and a platform conducive to speed. I know it's not possible, but a girl can dream, can't she? This is, after all, my Christmas wish list. I never get what I want for Christmas. Why is that too much to ask for? It doesn't even matter anyways. After Christmas, I QUIT MT!!!! Burger King is just down the street, and they give food discounts.
One year and you make decent money? What is decent money to you?
k
Life is life....the haven't bonded the same as if it were a 2-year-old!
nm
I make sure the job is not my life and that it does not take over my life. sm
I have been at this 25 years, even once had my own accounts and worked 24/7 with cat naps to keep going but no real sleep. I really burned myself out. Now I work a regular 40-hour week, but it is not my life. It is a means of making money so I can go live my life. I work for a company that is not all about production. They want us to take our time and do it right. I am doing that, and it feels so good to be able to work at my craft and be allowed to do a good job while I am at work.
But after I get off, I have my family and I take time to have fun and enjoy life. I think that is the key to not staying burned out. You need down time, time to have fun, exercise, relax, etc.
Exercise is very important, too. It rejuvenates the hormone system so you have more positive hormones flowing through your body and helps get rid of stress.
That's what I do.
don't stress too much about it (sm)
It's really not hard to learn at all. It may seem overwhelming, I mean all the manuals they send you about it, but honestly, I haven't even opened them, except during training...which BTW, I didn't get paid for...but that's another issue! Anyways, it's fine...I only use the built in expander also, and I like it! You'll be fine...don't stress over it. Good luck! 
stress
I either play with my dog, walk or read something that requires no brain!
Stress
Does anyone have any suggestions on how to relieve stress? I work 8-10 hours a day, have a 5-year-old and a 6-year-old, and a husband who does not believe MT is a real job, and major financial stressors.
I have been slowly losing my hair over the past 6 years which I believe may be due to hormonal shock (2 babies in quick succession) and then stress and maybe adrenal fatigue.
I am hoping a stress-free living will help me regain myself and my hair! Thanks.
The pay is really good, but the stress so-so!
I do have some great MTs that I QA for and I bless them every day LOL. The title is nice on paper, yes. I don't plan on being in this profession forever, but since I do have some type of supervisory under belt, that will be good.
Hand stress
I've transcribed since 1983. You can lessen hand stress if you observe how you hold your hands as you type. When I was in my twenties I noticed that there was a real difference in the way I held my hands and how the older transcriptionists (they had their wrists up and hands pointing down at the keyboard). I have always had my wrists laying on something and my fingers are going up. I have never had one bit of carpal tunnel or pain whatsoever.
Stress in the office
I'm one of the unlucky ones NOT at home, but still in the office. The stress level in there is making us all sick, both physically and mentally. I would get out of MT and learn to do something else if I didn't think that by the time I finally got through school, I'd be too old to be hired.
Yes, but no. I used to stress over it when we had to eat two meals
between my parents and the in-laws. Then I started hosting, but that was stressful because it was expensive and a lot of other reasons that I won't get into. DH and I got into an argument because he's upset that I refuse to host this year. I've done it for the past several years. We don't have the money and half of our house is ripped apart for repairs, plus I have to work both Wednesday and Friday while all the in-laws are off those days. I don't care. I quit. They can do whatever they want to do. I'm tired of being a people-pleaser.
reduce your stress
i guess you have someone sharing the load. it is hard to reduce your stress level if you are the breadwinner, caretaker, and housekeeper.
STRESS ECHO
Agree with the other poster. More than likely, in my experience, the tech just didn't do a good job and that is why the images are not clear.
What do you do for stress reduction?
I am 100% stressed to the max, all the time. I wish I wasn't so high strung and jittery. So what do you do to relax and reduce stress? I need ideas. 
stress reduction
I have lots of hobbies that I enjoy soI can easily immerse myself in one of those and forget my troubles for awhile. My favorite hobby is scrapbooking. I also go to the gym daily and that helps reduce stress as well.
Less stress so true
A few of us on this particular discussion feel the same way. I have felt only a tiny degree of stress working overnight transcribing. It is the only luxury time just for me. This is why I switched. It is so quiet. I am not scared the kids will bug me or husband or some emergency at school etc. I love my work at night I get the stats and ops and they are so interesting. I must say I would have died early if I kept days and or second shift because the family has needs. Now, at night I am 100% me and transcribing, my productivity is great. So, if I get cancer I would be surprised because I think that stress makes a person open to all kinds of diseases. To you night owls out there enjoy your peace and quiet, this is your "me" time!
job stress. die or get fired.
i am quite upset. one of my co-workers passed away. we here all know it was from job stress, but we are not to admit it and were repremanded so by our superiors. basically it came down to "die or get fired". lucky for her she died before she could get fired.
now i am sitting here at work today wondering what the heck am i supposed to do? we cannot talk about the job stress and that is what did her in, but she was sick and getting sicker and this is why she passed away. she was sick and getting sicker from the stress dawg-gone it.
nobody gets it.
tuesday she told me that a lot of her sickness had to do with wondering if she was going to have a job or not and what would she do if she got fired? she was beside herself with worry. she worked her for 25 years, and was a good employee and excellent Transcriptionist until the new supervisor took over and started ragging on her like a pit bull dog and his prey. and this is a catholic hospital. i guess this is the new christian work ethic.
i need to vent. any comments would be appreciated but since i am at work please make them nice. i have had enough bad stuff happen around here today.
Exactly! The money was great, but the stress...
and long hours were certainly not worth it. I still don't get why JJ or whoever would care about anyone's bb name.  Personally, I have more important things to get my panties in a twist over. We all have our hangups I suppose. 
Stress and long hours
So, you're saying that you got tired of the stress and long hours so you bacame a TRANSCRIPTIONIST! You crack me up. Everybody knows that as a Transcriptionist there is never any stress or long hours.
Morning stress reducers
When my kids were young, there were a few tricks I used to cut down on hectic mornings. I didn't make sandwiches ahead but I did prebag chips and cookies and place is a drawer. That way just had to reach in and grab a couple of bags and lunch was halfway prepared. The night before, kids always picked out the clothes for the next day. And there was no changing minds that morning either, or they lost 1/2 hour of TV time. Also, backpacks got loaded up the night before and placed by the door. A little extra thought and effort the night before made mornings a little less hectic.
LOL! And stress will kill you or make you
now have some incurable, difficult to treat, chronic, crippling, painful disease brought on by stress!
Repetitve Stress Injury
Thanks so much for the help and advice. Yes, I do have the screen eye level but I might be able to adjust a few things. I think the doctor is my next stop however. One thing I notice is maybe I need to get to stretching more between dictations. I have a tendecy to focus on the work for too long.
If you think you have stress now, wait until you are a teacher.
s
Anyone with experience with stress echo?
Does anyone know what it would mean to have a stress echo where everything was normal at rest, person exercised normally to 99% of predicted with minimal symptoms, and at the end of the test echo images were not clear. Tech then said this was the wrong test, and of course, lips were sealed as to what that meant. Anyone with any knowledge of this or experience? Thanks.
Personally, I like the lack of stress and no (sm)
flippin' academic politics, or driving to 5 different colleges each week, teaching one course at each as a part-time lecturer. I've preferred spending my time homeschooling my equally gifted children, writing for a couple of feminist pubs, and working on local grassroots politics. Working at home as an MT allows me to break up my day and do all those things, while being the sole breadwinner. Works for me.
Never said she was big...maybe it is stress, not on an eating schedule, whatever.
Not that she needed to at all; she just did! Sorry!
He's using the puter to relax & de-stress, same as you. - nm
Because those who have someone else to contribute to the household have enough stress?
nm
Turn it in and don't stress. Companies that
have several reports for you to transcribe have different degrees of difficulty. One may be ESL, one may be dictating on a cell phone on his car, one may be trying to do a 15 dictation in 3 minutes, etc. Leaving a blank is definitely better than guessing. They are just trying to get a feel for your skill level. Okay you can't do the ESL or the speedy doc, but you can do the orthopedic doc with ease.
They may need someone for a difficult account and maybe you won't get that job, but they may need someone for clinic notes, or maybe an easier account and you would do well with that. You'll get paid less than if you could so the slurring doc without blanks.
With the slurring doc listen to the report one time time all the way through. Don't try to fill in any blanks. Next go back and listen again, this time trying to fill in blanks. You may be able to get one or two of them this time around.
If you don't pass/get hired at least it was one more experience you have had.
I don't test well. I can ace the transcription part, but if they have questions on the test I may not do well. I had one test that was timed and I was really freaking because I didn't know some of the answers without looking them up and the test timed out on me before I even finished it. They still offered me a position.
One thing is for sure, you won't get the job if you don't turn in the test.
you really should see someone about how to handle stress constructively...
and stop reading the boards for a while. sounds like implosion is emanent.
good luck with that.
I have heard that this can often be caused by stress.
In the early years of my first marriage, my husband soaked the sheets nightly. He was in the middle of a nasty divorce and child custody case. When those issues resolved, the night sweats disappeared.
I want your job. :( simple, ok pay, no stress. LUCKY. nm
It is no doubt stress related
and you can relieve it by getting up using a bungie cord under your feet and pull up and down on it. This stretches your shoulder and arm muscles is a stress reliever. You need to strengthen your abdominals also as sitting weakens the back and abdomen. Get an exercise ball. Those can be great little stress relievers. You may even try standing at your computer by raising the keyboard and monitor. This keeps one awake and refreshed also. Eventually, the pain will dissipate. Take daily walks if you can and definitely stretch every day for at least 1/2 hour. Swimming good, too. Hope this helps.
Low wage
that seems awfully low. For instance if you were making even 9 cpl you would be working for 11.25/hr. Who can exist on this? My current supervisor tells me it takes about 30 or more charts to equal 1000 lines. That would take an entire 8 hours and then some maybe. This is very discouraging. I don't like this platform so far.
WAGE
Of course it is lousy. Illegal aliens in my city make more than that flipping burgers. What an insult to us that someone would offer that amount.
Wage vs Need/Wants
At first glance, yes, $12.00 seems low. However, I live in the northeast and I know I cannot survive on that rate of pay. Maybe in other parts of the country $12.00/hr is very survivable. It all depends on your needs/wants.
At $12/hr you are grossing $480/week, $960 bimonthly. Around here, health insurance coverage for one ROUGHLY averages $50/week. Now you are netting $430/week before taxes. Dental plan? Deduct another $10 or so per week. Down to $420/week before taxes. Figure out your monthly expenses and don't forget that ever present anvil-over-your-head factor for unexpected bills. Also, don't forget you need to save some $$ too - after you buy food and pay the monthly bills! Hmmmm...I am getting this image of a rat on a treadmill.
The question you ask is not simple. You have to figure out if $12/hour is good for YOU. It is just not a survivable wage in this part of the country, especially if you have dependents that eat like horses, go to colleges far away, and you live in a state that taxes you up the wazoopie and only has two seasons: winter and 4th of July.
wage
Oh yeah and the wages being offered are even insulting for a newbie. Can I say how disgraceful this is for "trained professionals" to be offered this. The newbie wages run around 8 cpl...but why at 5, 10 or 15+ years is it fair to still be offered that?? Employers please show us some respect and pay us what we are worth. Remember everything in life is "you get what you pay for." These companies wonder why they have such a HIGH turnover rate, HELLO pay us decent wages!!!! Just think if you broke a typist wage, proofreader wage, English major wage, and everything else we are considered and added it all up it is WAY MORE than we get!
min. wage
Oh yeah it is possible to make minimum wage on some accounts especially when you are a newbie. Start out as a newbie and have one of those hard learning hospitals with a lot of ESLs who you hardly ever type the same one twice and add in many residents. Also add in more than just the basic 4 work types on that account such as psych. discharge summ., echo labs, holter monitor reports, treadmills, etc. that you only do every once in a while and aren't familiar with. With all those factors which I have on one of my accounts it is possible to make min. wage. But I have gotten better it seems. I know some people will say why do an account that is so difficult for you? If I can conquer this I can say I have done something I think. It is just a job and as a newbie I can't pick and choose without much exp. so I put on my big girl pants and do it. Just explaining how you could make min. wage with the right factors.
How did they replace MTs that couldnt cut it as obviously some wont want the stress of it.
:
the stress level, the extreme pressure on the job
The only thing good out of my years in the industry was I had terrific insurance when I got cancer. The bad was, when I got back to work, the whole atmosphere had changed. They thought I should be ready to take on the world, and I was still with secondary illnesses from the chemoradiation. In fact, even today (3 years later), I still have problems.
Yes, holidays are notoriously stress-inducing
I'm the opposite of you; I have 4 brothers, no sisters. Guess who does 95% of the cooking and prep? Not that I mind really, but I guess it would be nice if someone actually VOLUNTEERED to do a little more without being asked. Last year my husband and I did all the cleanup after the meal while my sister-in-law parked her fat butt on the couch. One jerk brother and his equally insensitive wife are not invited 'cause they treat all of us poorly, including my elderly mother to whom he owes a substantial amount of money (talk about some bad karma...long story). So, yes, one's baggage and anxieties seem to come bubbling to the surface at this time of year...why else would suicide rates be at their highest during the holidays? My advice is to concentrate on what you are grateful for and focus less on the negativity....that's all I have found I can do personally. You might offer to help with something and ease someone else's stress a bit. Just try to smile and be a compassionate brother/son/whatever.
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