Home     Contact Us    
Main Board Job Seeker's Board Job Wanted Board Resume Bank Company Board Word Help Medquist New MTs Classifieds Offshore Concerns VR/Speech Recognition Tech Help Coding/Medical Billing
Gab Board Politics Comedy Stop Health Issues
ADVERTISEMENT




Serving Over 20,000 US Medical Transcriptionists

We were getting laid-off, wages cut, losing bennies

Posted By: etc. ad nauseum long before recession! on 2009-09-19
In Reply to: No Work - seektruth

Like for the last 5-7 years.


Complete Discussion Below: marks the location of current message within thread

The messages you are viewing are archived/old.
To view latest messages and participate in discussions, select the boards given in left menu


Other related messages found in our database

PLUS, a plumber sets his own hours and wages! As far as MT wages,
x
Better yet, go get laid!!!
:{
Soon to be laid off...
Is there a way to find out which companies keep ALL their work within the United States?
laid off sm

Well I am another statistic.  I started at Milner Voice and Data back in June.  Things started getting very slow about 4-6 weeks ago.  I asked at least a dozen times what was going on and got the answer nothing it was just slow.  I even turned down another job because they told me it was going to be ok and this was normal.


Monday morning I talked to my supervisor and she said nothing.  Molnday afternoon I went to get into the system and couldn't get in.  Went and checked the mail before I called them and got a lay off notice in the mail!  What a way to notify someone especially when I had been asking for weeks.


Excuse was that the bigggest account (not mine) lost 60% of their volume when the hospital decided to not dictate the ERs because of budget cut backs.  Because of that, other MTs taking my work.  Apparently 9 of us were laid off.


I understand cut backs if there is no work, but I DO NOT understand lying when I asked and asked and asked some more.  Because of all this, the place that offered me a job, hired someone so Milner cost me a job.


O well, I have an interview tomorrow at 2 with another company.  We will see! Really bad way for company to treat MTs.   Stay away from this company and TB!


Proscript-Laid off sm

Laid off as a result of not enough work..still waiting to hear from them..


Yep, I got the laid off today too
I've been with Cymed forever too. I did double the required amount of lines to edit, typed when needed and worked the shifts nobody else wanted.  No one is safe with this company.  SPi took a #3 company and have run it in the gound!!  I am hoping they will go belly up before they can say what the...
I got laid off yesterday...duh
...
They laid off all US MT & QA employees.
Period. And they sent all work to India. You simply are one of a few ICs they subcontract to do the few reports India can't get to in time. You are not an employee of Cbay as they don't have any US MT employees anymore.... I do find it odd how defensive you are about it though.
Yeah, I got laid off by them when they sent
all the work to India, save for a few US IC radiology people for stats... I absolutely wouldn't advise working for them. They now own Medquist and are doing the same thing to them.
I got in it about 1970 and was laid off
end of 2007. Per GP's post below, we were well thought of at one time, the administrative secretary would come in occasionally and ask a question regarding English rules and such. Then, somehow, it all changed and we began to be regarded as useless workhorses, nags if you will, and you'd better not look up or stop typing for a moment or someone would say something. I would advise it against it just for what it does physically over time to your hands, arms, shoulders and neck and back. Great way to get out of shape especially if you work 8+ hours a day. It does keep your fingers limber, but that's about all. I can't think of any other profession where you are expected not only to know so much, but keep learning, and steadily getting underpaid. Might as well try to be a Bell telephone operator, going the same way as they did and telegraphers and pony express riders.
If an employee, you'd be better off being laid off.
If they would just straight up lay you off, you could collect unemployment, which in some cases would be more than the money made sitting in front of the computer for 10-12 hours a day.

And, in a bit of a double whammy, the lower the rate you'll get on unemployment should the time ever come that you can actually file, as most states base unemployment is determined on wages over the last five quarters, so the longer you stick it out the harder you stick it to yourself when they start calculating an unemployment wage.

I know someone who worked 8 days in early June 2008 (his previous work was early spring 2007). He has been collecting unemployment since August 2008 in the amount of $175/week. His home is paid for, he can't drive, and with some investments that pay monthly annuities, he is able to live better than a lot of people, without the stress that MTs endure wondering how they'll make their line count.
I got laid off too,. same scenario. sm
There were several of us that got the ax with no warning.
I did 2 weeks ago. My gal was very laid back
and I really enjoyed talking to her.  There was a ton of questions about how experienced in certain areas, you had to rate yourself, and also there was a verbal test, I think 10 questions, thinks like what is hypocalcemia, what MRSA stood for, things like that.  Very easy, had a job offer about 3 hours later.
Is this the company that laid off a bunch of
MTs at Christmas and sent the work to India? 
Cbay has laid off all of their US MTs and Editors
and sent everything to India. They bought up a lot of smaller US companies and slowly transitioned EVERYTHING to India.  What more is there to say about them?  Bad news.
they did lay off- didnt outsource but laid off a lot
They bought another contract and then lost it so had new employees and not enough work to go around
Anybody here been laid off by SmartMed recently?

SmartMed employees received an email about 3 weeks ago that there would be layoffs and/or cutting back on benefits, but no subsequent followup email, so we don't know if the layoffs have occurred already, or if we should still be waiting for the other shoe to drop.  It's a wonder we don't all have bleeding ulcers (no matter what company we work for).  There just doesn't seem to be any respect for our skills or the difficulty of the job.  We are just numbers on a spreadsheet. 


I know this won't be a popular sentiment, but as far as I'm concerned things starting going to hell in a handbasket for all of us with the advent of the Internet.  When you had to go in and work at a facility, be it a hospital or an MT company, they knew who you were.  They had to see you everyday and work with you.  You really were a part of a (visible) team.  I truly believe that made it more difficult to just be let go without a backward glance.


 


I never got the email and got laid off yesterday... strange... sm
I wonder what is going on. Was it the one with all the unemployment info in it?
Aren't they the company that laid off a bunch of MTs and
sent work to India a few months ago.  
I am a Heartland employee that got laid off and I won't support AAMT in any way. nm
x
I was the *half full* type until my company laid me off.
They said identical things as this DRC acquisition. They told us to just keep working as usual and do your best. Three months later (after the Indians had proper training on our accounts), they laid off the whole US MT force. The particular account I was on DID NOT want their dictations outsourced overseas but this happened anyway until this account caught wind and eventually left. These things do happen out there, and all of these people have the right to feel skeptical. These Indian company takeovers happen more often than not. We MTs need to be less naive about things and more weary to protect our occupation.
Let me sum it up for you, 80% of work is done in India, they just laid off a bunch of American

QA people, some of which were hired only a few months before they were fired, and they just now fired a lot of their upper management.  Something is in the wind at Focus and it smells like crap!  Don't work there.  If you do decide to ignore the warnings, don't believe anything they tell you!  They lie to you right up until they call and fire you.


I thought there were posts a few months ago saying they laid off 50-some people. nm

Haven't had enough java this morning...should be "I got laid off today too" and "ground&
Bad day...please forgive me :)
Don't know about bennies but I believe
employee line requirements are 6000 per pay period for part time and 11000 for full-time.

Also, it's spelled Chronicle Transcripts.

They seem to be a good, solid company to work for.
Pay and Bennies

This company is not on the upend pay scale as of yet seeing as how they charge the hospitals 11 cents per line, but they are consistent with work and have promised future raises as they become more established.  I started out in the apprentice program making 2 cents per line for <98% and 3 cents per line >98%.  Some on here scream about working for that low of pay but I just don't feel I'm deserving of regular pay until I have the experience.  After one month I was given a pay raise that brings me up to the regular pay status, so it was well worth it for me.  As for the bennies, I am part time so I can't help you there.  They have many different packages for the type of work and experience you have, so you would just have to submit your information to them to find out what they would offer.


 


I know many on this board have been burned by many a national, but I like CorT and the people who run it.  They are genuine and helpful.  We'll see where the future takes them.  I plan to be on board with them as they grow!


Pay and Bennies
Thanks for the info. Even though the pay sounds low I like how they actually give the raises and it sounds like you are appreciated for what you do and don't get lost in the shuffle. I've been with MQ for 7 years and have only had 1 raise in that time, and that took 1 year to actually happen from the time I started asking for it.  I don't mind MQ that much, it's just that my speciality is ERs and I get very little ER work these days. I also like the fact that CorT is in Ohio, just about an hour and 15 minutes from where I live. I'll check it out further. Thanks again for the info!
Bennies
Yeah well, having work to do is the name of the game. I paid for my benefits at MQ and didn't get anything but a crappy paycheck, went through a lot of my savings to boot. I pay my own hospitalization and I save my money for time off when I want it. Anyone who works for benefits pays for them eventually. Get smart and smell the coffee. And I make more per line than I did at MQ. So, your problem is????
BENNIES
Well, bless you my child for your good fortune. I make 11, I get about 125-150 in bonus money every two weeks because we have so much work, which is my mad money. I can sleep in if I want, but generally keep to my promised schedule. They know I produce, I get a GOOD tax break, and I woulnn't work it out any other way. To each his own.
Then no bennies for you! Be an IC.
x
bennies?
What kind of benefits does MDI-Maryland offer? What kind of transcription do they have - acute care? clinic notes? ER? And lastly, do they have line incentives and is there a cap on them? Very interested...
No bennies because
all MTs are IC/SE status. As far as I know, they have acute care and clinic, not sure about ER. No line incentives but I feel they pay very well. cpl range from 9-11, depending on the account and they pay spaces and punctuation. Software is nice to use, too. Hope this helps. Contact them and someone will respond very quickly. They are wonderful to talk to and will take all the time you need to explain and answer questions.
IC and bennies
Insurance...That is one of the reasons I went back in-house. I had been without health insurance for 3 years and at age 50, felt I was pushing my luck. It sucks, but now I have health insurance, PTO, AND.......a 403B. If I could have those bennies and still work from home, I would be delirious.

Good luck.
Need teh bennies too much! Otherwise
NM
bennies
I've been at DeVenture for 2 years and in no way, shape or form do part-timers get benefits (at all). If you DO, I'd say there's something amiss.
Does MDI-MD have employees with bennies or
is it IC only?  Couldn't tell from the website.  Thanks.
Very decent bennies. If you do ESL, you can get 10 cents
a line with bennies.  Check them out. 
Plenty of work? Any PTO? Okay bennies? nm
nm
Agree with all except the bennies part.
There are several MT companies that offer bennies to employees. Not with IC though.
Any companies offer bennies for
nm
Wow .. where do you get 9-10 cpl with bennies? I have 30+ years of experience sm
and 8 cpl or 8-1/2 seems to be the best I can do. :(
I am not losing anything as those
do not apply to me.
So after losing all that, what did you do? nm
X
They asked about MDI- not Transcend -- different payroll, different bennies....
You obviously do not work for MDI-FL.
Best companies for radiology (pay, work, bennies)?
Any input appreciated - need to leave the convention center...
There are no bennies. They offer IC and statutory status.
Pay is comparable to most of the services. If you want employee status, they do not offer it. They are a good company though.
I'm not quite sure why people keep giving companies who don't pay bennies the nod. sm
I guess it's all relative.  A lot of MTs, because of health problems, cannot get benefits on their own.   There are enough good companies out there, who pay as much as futurenet, who DO pay benefits, thank God.  AND they have direct deposit as well, which is pretty important to some people.  Gosh, even the smallest services have direct deposit.  Not understandable in a company anymore that they don't provide it.  Glad you are happy, but there are better deals out there.
Any info on Diskriter? Other companies FT with bennies?
I keep seeing jobs for home-based MTs with hospital benefits, employed by the hospital system in Florida, etc. I'd sure appreciate if anyone could provide info on this company. I've love to be in a work situation like this again, but know nothing about the company. I'm sick and tired of MQ. Need a FT situation with good benefits and MQs are so expensive and I think the out of pocket is ridiculous compared to what I've always had in the past. Thanks so much.
9 cpl barely passable if an employee with bennies, but -
if you're an IC, don't forget you have to buy your own health insurance, no PTO days, and you have to own & maintain your own equipment. If it were me, I'd be asking 12 cpl, might (just MIGHT) settle for 11 cpl for the right employer, if the accounts are good line-producers.
I agree BeyondTXT is ridiculous, especially if you need to get bennies! nm

QA wages

Anyone out there have any idea of how much a QA person should make per hour working at home?