Minimum wage for down time? sm
Posted By: Tired MT on 2006-03-06
In Reply to:
Was wondering if anyone has any information about being compensated for downtime - specifically how the department of labor views the complete lack of compensation from these companies? How do they get away with expecting you to work a set schedule, logging in, and then just sitting there? I don't know of any other job - employee status - where this would be tolerated. And, this "flex" thing...how many of us can continually log in throughout the day, on a whim? Many of us work 2 jobs, have kids, other obligations, etc. Wondering what my fellow MTs have to say about fair compensation and what they have found out? I think running out of work weekly, if not daily, and then having to work crazy hours just to get some minimum lines in is not only nuts, it could be in violation of some laws here. I think we are at least owed minimum wage if there is no work. Any opinions? I am going to research this.
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minimum wage is Fed
I know some cities/counties and I guess states have their minimum wage requirement to allow a business to operate. I know some cities in NJ (where I live now) won't allow a business to operate unless they pay minimum around $9/hour. But minimum wage is a Federal standard and is set at $6.XX an hour - that is for all 52 states.
And it is illegal for anyone to pay less. Actually, I found out that if you are working for someone on a production basis and it comes out to less than Fed. min. wage, you can actually file a complaint and recoup wages.
Minimum wage in NY now $6.75 hr - sm
Working at Burger King is looking better all the time!
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/01/nyregion/01minimum.html
At least minimum wage
I worked inhouse for a company. We did not have to be there at any certain time, but we did clock in and out to show how many hours we were there. This was, as the other poster said, to make sure we made at least minimum wage. Also, they figured this by the pay period, not by the day.
Not around here you can't. Minimum wage. sm
I live in the midwest in a rural community. Wages are lower.
IC and minimum wage
I have read on the forum where an IC should make minimum wage. Is this no matter what her line count pay equals? I am new to being an IC and have just accepted a position with a service. Is this true with every service? Do they have to pay you minimum wage? Also, if the service is not in the state where you live does this make a difference? I just figured you were paid for what you produced.
minimum wage
7.00 an hour would only require you to type about 90 lines an hour. Let's say minimum wage is $10 an hour, that would only be 130 lines an hour - I do that in 15 minutes even with my ESL doctors... I say if you are only making minimum wage, this is probably not the field for you to be in.
Less than minimum wage
AND a bad platform, and you are staying? There are jobs out there for way better pay, but you have to start looking! With your four years experience, definitely do not settle for 7 cpl!
I have months when I clear $1500 and I have months when I clear $2000....the difference is ME. Over the past 8 years I have learned to work smarter, more efficiently, and that it is a necessity to have the tools to work with. What good is it if I become an expert swimmer but I'm stuck in a bathtub? If my company's platform would not let me do better, then I'd be testing for other jobs. You are the only one who can do a thing about your income situation.
minimum wage
Walmart pays minimum wage with infinitesimal increases over time. Work schedules are constantly changed to keep the employees off balance. The work is extremely exhausting and at least in our local area, they have a very hard time attracting employees, so there are some real tough scary characters working there. Across the street at Target, it's a different story. Employees are well-groomed, happy, and eager to help the customers. The stores are always immaculate, and you never have to negotiate around towering stacks of boxed unshelved merchandise like at Walmart, which has turned into a filthy mess most of the time. Considering that Target's pay scale is not much more than minimum wage, we can assume that there are cultural differences in that company that provide a better quality of life for their employees. If you have a choice in your local area, go for Target.
How much is it? answer is less than minimum wage.
You don't wanna go there. Why would you take minimum wage to
work with the public all day at minimum wage or maybe a little more than minimum wage, leave your family for hours and hours at a time, and use basically none of the skills that you obviously have as an MT.
I find it a bit offensive that you would compare working at Burger King as being a better career than being an MT. I, for one, have worked long and hard on becoming an MT and am learning something new every single day.
Sounds like you need to work for a company who appreciates you and will pay you well. They are out there. You just need to look.
Not every state's minimum wage is the same.
Ohio's is $7.00 now and some states higher than that. I don't understand why a job that requires reasonable skills would need to be paying no better than "state minimum wage".
making minimum wage
I may just be crazy here, but I do not see how anybody could possibly just make minimum wage on this job. At 8 cents a line, that would be only typing less than 75 lines an hour, and even at 5 cents a line it would be less than 130 lines an hour.
Do people really and truly sit down and type for an hour and only make 5.85 an hour?
I am making more than minimum wage.
NJ is $7.15. I average between $13 and $15 an hour, sometimes more, but each hour I work yields a different line amount depending on the type of account I am on. I switch between 4 different accounts. As long as I can produce the same amount of lines everyday I am happy. Sounds like you are to, so not sure why you are concerned if people are making minimum wage in this field or not. Why do you care?
Can't enforce minimum wage for ICs.
based on my skillset, not the skillset of other MTs. That could actually lower my rate. I have never accepted any low rates and never will. I'll find another line of work before I'll accept 7 cpl rates. If that's what a place offers, they get no more of my time, period. Yes, I'm a very patient person and went through many bum interviews before finding the right fit, but it's worth it not to compromise.
Besides that issue, I agree with you 100% about AHDI being a crock. I don't care what other health care professionals they choose to represent as long as they take MTs off their list entirely.
making minimum wage..
Most of the time the company's minimum requirements for your shift would equal at least minimum wage, so if you don't meet your line count and therefore are making less than minimum wage and they have to pay you the difference, they probably are not going to keep you as an employee -- at least I would not think so.
If a state has a minimum wage, how can a company (not MT) pay
that companies have to at least pay minimum wage?
Minimum wage requirements when there's no work, perhaps?
Looks like the Q is having to pony up minimum wage to a lot of MTs when there is NJA and this, I believe, is the highest in CA. Interestingly, CA-based employees of the Q seem to get NJA less frequently than other regions.
CorTmedical - never heard of em, but they need to hear about the minimum wage ... - nm
I know waiters and waitresses make less than minimum wage
but when you add their tips it should come up to at least minimum. I know they figure it that way anyway. What other jobs don't pay minimum?
minimum wage laws cover employees only - nm
x
I work on Escription VR and if you cannot make minimum wage, then
something is really wrong with either you or your system. I make a very good salary on VR. It can be done even at 4 cpl and that is what I am paid. I have occasional straight but 90%+ is all VR. I do not understand people saying minimum wage- that is only 6 or 7 dollars an hour, ridiculous to work for that in this kind of profession.
Unskilled labor doesn't make much more than minimum wage anywhere.
How they can afford to work for minimum wage or purchase health insurance is a whole different issue. I don't want to subsidize unskilled workers benefits by paying higher prices at Walmart or anywhere else. And my dear poster, that's what it comes down to. If you force any company to pay "benefits" (health insurance is not an entitlement) the consumer will absorb the cost or the business will fail. Same with minimum wage going up or taxes. The prices go up to cover the business expenses. I go to Walmart for bargains. If I don't get bargains because the prices are high, I don't shop there. Walmart knows they need to keep prices low and they cannot afford to subsidize unskilled workers health insurance. My company doesn't and I understand the reason.
Minimum Wage, as I read this tears began to well in my eyes ...
You, like some of the other posters, reflect a clear understanding of the downward trend this industry has taken over the last few years and the mindset of those who caused it. You mention so many experiences that resonate with my own. Most notably, I like you, put all of my eggs into this one basket, foolishly believing that this wonderland profession that I had found would last forever. It was a perfect fit for my skills, abilities, and work preference. I was able to make an excellent living and felt that somehow I was making a meaningful contribution to the care of each patient whose chart came to life under my fingers.
It is amazing to me how each year the profession requires more and more knowledge from us, more skill, more ability, more dedication, more resources ... and in direct correlation to what is demanded from us our pay is cut more and more and without apology. I mentioned in another post that I remember when I first got into MT'g some 20+ years ago hearing the Powers That Be constantly resentfully complaining that we made too much money and were no more than glorified typists. Who could have known that one day they would finally all band together and make an industry-wide collective effort to correct what they felt was an unacceptable dynamic?
It seems that everyone directly and indirectly involved in the process of transcription is valued and compensated well for their contribution to the process -- everybody except us -- the ones who actually make the final work product a reality.
Thank you for your contribution to this thread.
For most companies how many hours may part time employees work. What is the minimum and maximum
usually.
What is the minimum lines per week required by employers for part-time for transcription?
nm
Don't know if you can get 400 lpd. Minimum at
s
LOL no it's not, it's because of the alernative minimum tax
x
I keep my IMing to a minimum while sm
I'm working. I have in the past had the neediest people constantly pestering me with questions, I would say 40 or 50 questions a day from a few of them. No more of that.
Legally they cannot pay below minimum
wage. Anyone making below that should check with their state government and make sure that if they do not make minimum wage that this is rectified. Even at the Q, they have to make up the difference to minimum wage.
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.
My minimum is around 1200/day which isn't that hard to get. -nm
x
Minimum line production?
What is the standard for minimum line production for most outsourcing vendors?
Definitely at home if you can transcribe a minimum of 150 LPH. sm
That is usually the bare minimum for nationals. Ask about the national's incentive plan. Is it tiered? The more you type the higher the incentive bonus? Some companies have great communication. Having worked in the corporate world in the past with a 60 mile roundtrip commute, I would never go back. But you have to be realistic. It you sign on for 35 hours a week and do not transcribe 35 hours worth of work, you could lose your benefits.
My rule of thumb is a $100 minimum
Of course, closer relatives and friends receive more, but always at least $100 for graduations, wedding gifts, etc. when someone is an acquaintance.
Most of the ads tell you this, but minimum is usually 150 lines per hour. nm
s
125-150/hour minimum required usually
nm
minimum line counts
Irish, I have been an MT for 20 years, both as an IC for other companies and in business for myself. The truth is that these companies make a LOT of money. They have figured out what a good fast experienced MT working feverishly a full 8 hours a day, can produce, and then they set that as the "minimum", offering the lowest pay. If you ever want to make what you are worth, you will have to get your own equipment or use a service that provides that, and get your own account(s), just what you can handle on your own. Price it about double what you are used to making and do a good job. MTs are way undervalued, and it is getting worse. A really experienced MT can now do SR for half the pay, and it takes even more skill, just less keyboard stroking. That's the truth about this business.
Good luck.
My company minimum is 98.5, my scores are
consistently 99.9. My company doesn't count off for punctuation, although they will make corrections to it. I get daily feedback. I get my corrected reports and I also get access to the audio. The last day of the month we get a report that shows us lots of information and also gives us our QA score. If you drop below the minimum you are given a warning and given 2 weeks to do better. If you do better they will work with you, if you don't do better you get axed.
My work is good, but not perfect. When we get corrected reports there are many categories in which they take off points. Rarely do I have a critical error, but I frequently have minor errors, some just careless, some because account specifics changed and I didn't preview them before starting work and unaware of updates - all that said I still make 99.9, so I would think I would have to make lots of errors or serious errors to get even 98.5 with my company. If you're only making 97% and you are getting regular feedback make a list of errors and keep them where you can see them regularly. If you are consistently misspelling a word or not capping, etc. put it in your expander. You should also do a 100% review with the audio for at least a few days so you can see where you are making mistakes and they will become habit to check for, or when you make errors automatically correct them at the time.
If your errors are because you don't know terminology get a notebook and write down things alphabetically. If you are pretty much using the net for all you reference sources be sure you have some good websites as there is a lot of misinformation out there.
1200 is the minimum at most places for
full-time. Personally I transcribe anywhere from 1700 to 2000 lines in an 8-hour day.
We do get hourly wage
during down-time and the only approved down-time is meetings and computer malfunction. Lack of work was not approved so if there is lots of work available we have no worries, if not then we will be scrounging around for work. I don't have time for that.
I will have to ask my supe if that is how it is because that is how I understand it. If so, I maybe putting in my 2 weeks notice.
lucky you have not been at min wage
Yes MT, you have been lucky, and I would say you probably are not working for Medquist. Lately, those of us who have been working there for many, many years have found our line rates being cut several times while we are being routed only the worst ESR jobs out there as well as always with a different account where we have to study the client profile (CP) before we can even begin to transcribe. Next job, yet another client, yet another profile with different rules to study. I regularly made $30 an hour before, but with the changes, I have now been relegated to min wage. I'm looking for something else, believe me, but after more than 12 years, it is hard to make a change, especially when you have been so demeaned by your company that has put you in this position in the first place.
Minimum wagers DO NOT drive SUVs and
x
Their pay is way low and you work like a dog to make minimum lines.
x
I would give minimum of 2 weeks' notice
and would not want to burn any bridges so would let them know I would be willing to work a little after that if they got in a pinch but would not take the usual amount and only in an emergency type situation. Have been in this biz long enough not to burn any bridges and keep all contacts if possible - you NEVER EVER know when you might need work again. Good luck!
my company 127 lines/hour is minimum
nm
On-call like she says with a flat minimum rate - sm
would be the way to go. My DH used to have to do on-call for some equipment his company had in a local plant here. He was on-call one week out of every month as it was rotated with 3 other techs so they would have a break as this was 24/7 for 1 week. We got the odd call at 3 a.m. which stunk and he had to go in right away to deal with the problem, but he got $400 extra a week for doing this, and it was over 5 years, and he probably got called in maybe 5 times, so it can be worthwhile. He hated it just because he felt tied down that week and could not have more than 2 beers those nights, but he lived, and it helped out our finances a lot. I missed it when it was gone, but by then I was working so it really did not matter. He also got extra if he had to go in in the middle of the night. During regular business hours he did not, but any other time he got mucho extra $$$$ on top of the $400, very sweet deal. I think it would have to be worth my while to be on-call, especially if they happened to call you in a lot. If you do it, I'd leave a clause that the fees were to be reviews and renegotiated/increased as necessary at the end of 3 months or something like that.
Minimum of 6 months, but more likely more than a year. You'll
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