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60-thou a year is lower middle income if -

Posted By: you live in California! on 2007-05-09
In Reply to: They haven't forgotten about the cost of living. - me

:(


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60K middle income?
Heck, I work for a small community hosp as employee making $35K, which is middle income in rural WI. 
Not the worst, but toward the lower end of the middle.
I was paid late/wrong often. I always tell people if you can afford to be paid late, then it's an okay place to work. If you rely on them being on time and accurate, go elsewhere.

Several of the shift leads are very nice. However, one never answers you because she's busy looking like the production queen. One had more drama than Jerry Springer. The owner answers you when she feels like it or not at all. My training on my account consisted of me doing 3 notes and then I was on my own. I was told I couldn't pend to verify information if it didn't cause more than one blank. I like being left alone to type, but I like to be comfortable with the account as well.

So it isn't the worst company out there but it certainly is not the best.
income the first year
So true. I have been saying that for the last two years!  All we heard about in class is how much money we could make and how many jobs there were. They forgot to mention that those figures pertained to experienced transcriptionists.  I just completed my first year working for a local practice and will probably make about $10,000 after countless hours in front of the computer.  The truth is you go to school for a year or two, and when you get out, you will continue to be schooling for quite some time.  It's several years of investment to actually start earning a real income. I am just ready now to feel confident about taking on additional work, and my goal is to double what I did this year by this time next year. More would be great, BUT I have learned to be realistic.  I wish the schools would be honest about the investment involved.  I like what I am doing, and I feel like I am at a crossroads where I am choosing to continue to go forward, but it's been hard to hang on financially to get to this point. I have other work that I do that I actually thought I would have been in a position to give up quickly after school. Students should be given a realistic picture of the time and investment involved, so they can make an educated decision about going forward with the course.  But, I doubt that will happen.  I think enrollment would drop substantially.  
Last year, received in middle of Feb.
xx
It's not very good. I sold Avon for a year to supplement my MT income
and I didn't make squat. They are the worst. They shorted at least half my orders, you have to pay to ship back items that customers stiff you on. MT is better than selling Avon.
Unfortunately, the "many MT jobs" have very low pay rates, and getting lower and lower. nm
x
It's also their "holier-than-thou" attitude..sm
Who are they, with their condescending remarks and rudeness?  Their just employees, same as MTs, just with different job duties.  Their nitpicking just shows that they don't have enough work to do to justify their salaries, which the MT is paying, by the way. They can't find gross errors so they micro-manage, or nitpick, to show management that they are on the ball. 
me think thou doest protest too much
I wasn't accusing you of slowness or less experience. I was speaking generally. Either you are a bit too sensitive or you are indeed a shill for the VR lobby.
methinks thou dost...
protest too much!
methinks thou dost protest too much! (nm)
xx
methinks thou dost protest too much! (nm)
xx
Actually, it is not a MQ account. They have gotten dozens of MQ accounts over the past 5 years thou
The account that everyone is referring to is high ESL, very Hispanic, in Texas. It is not bad once you get used to the doctors. It is huge and difficult but not impossible and not bad.

They also have 4 other new accounts in acute care they are hiring for and 2 other excisting accounts that are growing.

With all I see on other companies not having enough work, I am grateful for Keystrokes. They keep growing and improving and were the best move I ever made!
No outside income
I do support myself and my child on my MT pay only. I work for a wonderful company, which I will not name because a lot of people on here always have bad comments to make about them, paid by the gross line and can do about 2600 lines in 6 hours. It is just a matter of finding the right company and, for me, having the right attitude. I know comments are going to be made that no one can produce that many lines in 6 hours but remember, they are gross so you have to take away 25-30% of the total line for cpl.
income
I have not made that little of money since the first year I got started doing MT. You consider that good money??? If I made anything close to under $30 an hour I would consider it a very bad production day... I am not trying to brag either. I am just amazed that in this day and age and for what we have to deal with day in and day out, that $24 is good money.
My income is way, way down
due to lack of work, and I see so many people in management resigning and I am worried.
MT IS THE ONLY JOB WHERE INCOME...SM
decreases on a yearly basis, as opposed to other industries where your salary is supposed to increase with each year of experience.
Umm, sales tax is different from income tax
sales tax is a tax added onto goods sold.  Income tax, Social Security, Self-Employment tax is different from sales tax. 
Six figure income??? sm
  Billers and Coders post says six figure income......yea, right!!!   Same post several times.......looks suspicious to me.  Maybe if you owned the company, you could get six figures....
Isn't there an income limit that you

can make and after that you have to pay in?


My gram worked after she started drawing, and I'm pretty sure there are income limits on this kind of thing. 


did you mean to say state income tax instead of sales tax?
taxes for the people who live in those states. I believe all other states require income tax to be withheld for the state it is earned in IF the employer meets the qualifications of the employee's state of residence.

Another good reason to ask a tax specialist.
Never mind. I see that they don't as Florida has no income tax. nm
s
Average annual income!
They all have lines and Keystrokes and little formulas but the average annual income tells it all.
Take out 25% of your gross income every week. sm
As an IC, your tax base is usually 25-30% of your gross income. That should cover all taxes, including state, Federal, and FICA.

Been an IC for 20 years now.
Do you have a second income or can you live on what you make?
I can't live on 2K a month. If that is what you are making, then it is not enough for most of us. Hope you are making more, though since it would give me hope.
You are 100% correct, my income is "extra"
therefore I am in a position that allowed me to decline a job that doesn't work out for me. That is not a slap in the face to you! I hope you were not accusing me of not caring for others because I declined a job. They can have it, I declined, remember? People are really getting off the point here.
Middle of the pack - per se! sm
Not the worst, but certainly not one of the better companies. Good luck.
Its odd, but they are basically a middle man, which
I personally didn't like. It was frustrating at times. Also, in my experience, we got the bottom of the barrel work from the hospital, even more than usual for a national. The pay was low at 8 cpl, which I understand is still the current pay, so I'm sure DiskR gets a big hunk of what the hospital is really paying. Obviously, I know, its business, but it seemed odder than the usual set up of working for a national. I found it would have been more pleasant just working for the hospital, because you are 100% an employee of the hospital and not Diskriter. I just did not care for the whole atmosphere, lots of cherry picking and more than usual politics, but nobody really to turn to, as the hospital didn't want to know from beans, and DR had its own issues. Very  much a stuck in the middle feeling...but not a good one.
Why should I take a Xanax in the middle
of the DAY when I am working?
Xanax is to be taken before 'crawling' into bed, it makes you fall asleep. Do you still not get it?

OMG, are you taking Xanax in the middle of the day when you are supposed to MTing? I bet you fall asleep in the middle of the day and then you cannot sleep during the night. Then you take another one, oh me oh my, you do not even follow doctors' instructions.

And one should definitely NOT DRIVE after having taken XANAX, it makes you drowsy and abstain from alcohol.

All things you do not know!
Scary!

READ THE LABEL ON THE BOTTLE!

Wow! This is toooooo much!
Middle ground
I know how you feel.  Many of us are taking antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications.  I'll bet our collective plight has done wonders for the pharmaceutical industry's profit margin.  I can't tell you what to do, but it won't hurt you to look around and you likely can find a better employee situation with better benefits.  Taking action is a good antidepressant as well.  Try not to be in a slump.  Stay active and proactive.  I know it's easier said than done. 
There is a not enough of a middle class to keep
xx
Paranoia is my middle name...
I don't work for the company you're talking about, but in addition to Tech Support Guy's very valuable advice down below, I would add this thought:

If you are working as an independent contractor on equipment that you provide yourself, I would strongly encourage you to perform your WORK ONLY on a separate computer from your personal activities - emailing, websurfing, gaming, Netflix, whatever.

This will actually serve 2 very useful purposes:

1) You won't have to worry about accidentally wiping out your work computer (and means to earn your living) with a random virus caught via email.

2) You won't have to worry about your general contractor snooping around on your personal computer - they won't have access to it in any way, shape or form to start with!

Wal-Mart, Target, and other places are selling small netbook computers that still run Windows XP on them for under $400, and in some cases under $250. You can hook one of those up to a full size keyboard, and even a full size monitor if you can't work with an 8.9' screen.

Isn't peace of mind worth less than $400?
I was in the middle of training...

I was paid during training and on-time which is another plus for me.  You can read through my post and pick it apart all you want, but the endorsement is there from me personally experiencing the hiring process.  It was quick, easy, and I was offered a good line rate.  You can believe what you want.  I didn't enjoy anything about the death in my family for your smart alecky information; it was my mother who died.


What's the point of your post anyway?  to tell me I am a liar???? 


Transcend offered me my specialty and yes I was training on BeyondText and I was able to get my specialty as well and I was doing great until my Mom died and I had to tend to her affairs.  I didn't think it was fair to Transcend for me to go at as a half-wit at that point. 


my first year I made 16k. Doubled that second year. Going on year 6 with (sm)

two local accounts I earned 23,000.00 and a national I earned 35,400... 58,400 this year.  Don't ask me how many hours, though, I really have no idea.  I'm pretty motivated.  (When people ask me how many hours I work a week I reply as many as it takes  I'd say 40-50/week.  I am also a fitness instructer and personal trainer, about 5 hours a week or so.  Decent money (sometimes under the table!) but mostly I just do it for fun and to be social and wear cute work-out clothes. 


that first year was a rough one... but I consider it part of my education. 


 


I'm pretty motivated. 


Not correct. I have to report the income of my ICs to the IRS. I need either a SS# or a tax payer

ID#, the ICs choice, but that income has to be reported somehow.  I am sure not going to claim it as my income.


 


 


 


I left Amphion for TT and doubled my income
Yes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You file a Schedule SE on your profit income.
and you pay social security and medicare tax .  While you have to pay the full amount on the social security tax and medicare you can deduct half that amount to your adjusted gross.  I really need to find out more about this because if I have been paying too much on my social security tax I really want to know.  Does anyone else know about this?  Are there any IC contractors who are not paying social security tax or only paying 7% as you would as an employee and not an independent?  Perhaps it has to do with how you set yourself up.  Thanks for any info....
How is workload at Futurenet and income potential? sm

I will soon be starting with Futurenet and I wanted to hear from some of the current Futurenet MTs.  Thanks for all the information.  You may e-mail me privately if you wish.


Do you find that you are able to earn a good income with them?
Do you have ample work, or do you often have to resort to MT work to fill the time?
I wasn't bragging about a 2 income household
I was simply pointing out that the MT profession is not the only ones who are taking paycuts.  Wow!  It seems every post is picked apart here! 
Transcend - good, bad, middle?
Anyone care to comment? They have oncology work and it's my thang...
disappearance of the middle class...
actually, we have always been 'poor' so to speak, so all this stuff is not affecting us so much...

I feel sorry for those who are now living like we are, only used to be considered well off; needing to cut back on spending, etc., noticing the pinch as the middle class gets squeezed more and more.

the funny part will be when we have some type of revolution in THIS country, which will happen. history only repeats. you keep people down and they will revolt. america is only going to take so much of this loss of liberties and rights, and jobs, total abuse of power and money against the little guy, etc.
You mean WebMdx in the middle there, don't ya? And biggest co. does not mean best,
s
I'm in the middle of taking the test myself
and I am so relieved to hear that I'm not the only one experiencing significant trouble! I have 10 years' experience, but that is useless when dealing with this quality (or lack thereof) of dictation!
Giggling at middle finger LOL

Not all the middle managers have everyone's email
I personally thought it was nice of the person to answer the questions people were having.

Don't know why it would bother you; the messages are clearly marked, if it doesn't interest you you can pass it by.
It's the middle of the night in India.
xx
I think they wait til the middle of the night...
when they think nobody is watching and hope to get replies before the moderators take notice.
(Middle-management Suit.)

I have to. Hubby is unemployed and it's our only income right now...can't survive on unemploym
x
But still, sales tax has not bearing on State tax or Income Tax. Big difference! nm
x
I just filed 2007 taxes for gross income of $52,341.
NM