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Aflac deduction for employee only ?

Posted By: KS benefits on 2007-07-23
In Reply to: They are very flexible - KSMT

Do you use the insurance?  How much is the annual deductionable also.  Thanks for your help.


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Computer deduction
Curious...I was looking into Transtech and see that they charge to use their computer.  Are other companies doing the same?  I have never run across this before. 
health insurance deduction

Not OP, but self-employed health insurance premium deductions are now 100% deductible off adjusted gross on 1040 line 29 I think. I've been doing it for 5 years, the first year was only 40% deductible I think when my accountant did it and went up every year since then to 100% now. If you're not using that, you're missing a huge deduction if you're paying for insurance as an IC or SE.


In my experience, the only deduction is for keystrokes already in the template.
That is how I am paid - only for the Keystrokes I actually make.
I don't have a life insurance deduction .. $10,000 is included sm
in my health insurance premium, and since I am single, that is enough for me. 
Unfortunately it is not the AFLAC duck though
nm
Keystrokes has Aflac
and it is a reasonable rate, but they are currently working on getting even better insurance.
About how much does Aflac cost per pay?
nm
Was it Aflac? We have a conference call
about it 2/29.  You should have received an e-mail about it last week. 
Thanks...we just had AFLAC enrollment too so I'm probably too late. (nm)

Aflac is supplemental only. KS has Unicare for health insurance. They have been sm
working on getting different insurance, but nothing yet. One that they were working with gave a quote that was a lot more than Unicare, so they started looking elsewhere again.
All KS MTs are employees, no ICs anymore. I have Aflac and regular insurance. sm
I chose the $500 deductible for the regular insurance and have Aflac for supplemental accident and disability, which is taken out pre-tax. I had Aflac through the hospital I was at and loved it. I was happy when Keystrokes started with them.
Thanks..I e-mailed the AFLAC guy but haven't heard back yet (sm)
Meanwhile, I'm going to look for other affordable plans too.  My cousin is a dental hygienist and told me about 2 companies to check into..Delta Dental and DenteMax.  She said they had reasonable plans but I haven't checked them out yet. 
After 90 days full time, you are eligible for health insurance, 401k, Aflac, sm
and life insurance. One year for PTO. Direct deposit right away.

I am happy at Keystrokes, and happy with the benefits. The insurance is a little high, but my husband has a union job and it would cost us more to have him carry all of us.

The HappyKeystrokes poster seems to give a lot of misinformation. I have as much work as I can handle, but I do not type 350 lph or whatever amount she/he claims. I average 200 lph, up a little some days, down a little other days, but that depends on the doctors dictating, my motivation for the day, etc. Spring is the worst as I have hayfever and headphones bother my ears right now.

My check is right, is on time and is direct deposited. My taxes withheld are correct and SS has been paid (unlike somewhere else I worked that messed up my SS and did take out for state taxes). My lead is supportive and I think the company cares about their employees. I am happy with Keystrokes and cringe when I see posts like Happy Keystroker writes, which make us all look like Stepford Wives. This is a job, just with a company that I like working for.

I wanted to paint a more realistic picture.
Statuatory employee versus regular employee....
Can someone tell me the difference between a statuatory employee versus a regular employee?  My company offeres IC or SE status....I am confused about whether switching over the SE would benefit me more than IC status that I have been for some time with them?  What are the benefits and disadvantages of being an SE versus IC?  Thanks for all of your help!
They hire both IC and employee. I am an employee (see message)
and I have full benefits. I am very happy that I came to work here. I came as a statutory employee from a large company. Everyone at MDI has been great to me.
Depends on if you are employee or statutory employee (sm)
Employee, 8th and 23rd of month
Stat. Employee, 15th and 30th month
Diskriter - Anyone go from their employee to hospital employee with them?
Thinking about giving up on being their employee and applying for a hospital employee position through them, they have one in PA right now that looks good.  How is it for scheduling?  Do you keep your line rate or get whatever the hospital pays? Who manages those accounts, is it the same PM and DR that are on the other ones?  I have DR and feel like she doesn't have a clue what she is doing and it is so annoying, but I just don't have the guts to let the company know she needs to step it up a notch because the transcriptionists are not happy under her.  Are QA the same people or through the hospital.  They have 1 QA that is constantly asking us questions on doctors and format, things we should be asking that QA person.  Annoying that new people move up to QA but people who've been there 2 or 3 years get treated like dirt and jumped account to account.
Only employee and statutory employee..no IC
nm
As an employee
I average about 8.5.  They have an incentive if you type 12,000 in a 2-week pay period and that's not too hard to do on their system.  Plus they pay higher on the weekends and at night (which I do on a split shift).  I also figure the benefits are worth it because they use United, which I like the coverage in my area.  All in all I am happy with them and I really like my team leader, that's a big plus to me.
Is this IC, SE, or employee?
nm
Yes they do, also employee and PT
positions were available when I interviewed 6 months ago.
Every employee is different.
I have found OSi to be very flexible.  I personally do not work weekends.  We are required to work holidays if they fall on your normally scheduled days; although, getting paid at 5 cpl extra.  You can also request holidays off, which has never been a problem for me.  I have never been denied on a request.
IC vs Employee
You will pay more taxes as an IC because of SSI, whereas as an employee, you do not (your employer pays half of SSI.)
You said you are an employee? Where?
Where are these 4 companies that pay $8K a quarter for bonuses?!?! Please, do tell!!

And provide enough work for you alone to do that much work?!?! Please, do share!!
When you are an employee, do you
If so, you are better off being an employee. Otherwise, the so-called self-employment tax cuts heavily into your earned income credit. It did for me at least, without having made a huge amount of self-employment income.
You can owe as an employee also

If you filled out your W9 form and put down for 10 dependents you would also owe or if your marital status changed or your deductions changed.  All I am saying is that people think that because their employer is taking their taxes out for them they are not paying their own taxes.   When you handle your own money, you just have to be structured enough to take out what an employer takes out.   See your paycheck before and after taxes and see the percentage you are paying.  When you get a tax refund that is YOUR money that the government has had for a year.   You just underpaid.  You can also overpay as a business owner or an IC and get a refund.   But with the amount of deductions I have, I will never go back to an employee full-time as I would lose another 20% to the government and not ready to give that over.


employee or IC.
 
IC or employee?
I just checked their website and it states they only hire employees? It is possible to be an IC with them?
Yes, you can be IC or employee, nm
nm
Employee
Their platform is very productive and they offer full benefits to full-time employees. For that they do expect you to work an employee schedule as they try to have the coverage issues worked out. There have been some growing pains with work flow, but my experience has been they have been resolved quickly and certainly nothing chronic. They do not pay for spaces but I took that into account negotiating the line rate. The efficient platform and getting paid for headers also helps offset the spaces issue for me.
Is this as an IC, or are you an employee? nm
X
They must be as I don't do employee (nm)
@__@
Sorry.. Employee, soon to be EX, at MDI-FL..

Definitely need to clarify that.


Pay for IC vs. employee

I'm interested to learn the average difference in pay between IC and employee--such as, if as an IC I earn 9 cpl (65 char with spaces), as a regular employee what would be the equivalent?  I'm guessing about 2 cpl less, so it would be 7 cpl as an employee.  I don't need insurance though.


Thank you in advance!


 


IC vs employee
An employer generally pays about 20% in benefits and overhead for each employee which includes medical insurance, paid vacation, income taxes, 401K, equipment, fringe bennies.   So yes, in the example you gave it would equate to about 0.2 cpl.
Employee only. nm
xx
Are you and employee or IC? (nm)
/
An employee. nm
s
Really? I am a former employee of one of those
companies and I know one of them do.
are you an employee? sm
if so they are bound to take out state taxes. If you are an IC, of course not. Oh-- and by the way-- you would have to pay your state taxes yourself anyway :)
P.S. And, yes, I was an employee.

And yes, taxes are ultimately the responsibility of the employee, but most legitimate companies withdraw taxes from the employee's paycheck.  I found it difficult enough just paying my regular bills with the very low rate of pay this company offered, and it was impossible for me to also put aside extra money to pay for the taxes they refused to take out.


One of the reasons I decided to accept employment with them was because I belieevd of all the hype about them being best employer, etc., and I refused to listen to all the little warning signs that frequently popped up in my brain.  I won't ever do that again.


Not the OP, but is she is an employee, sm

why shouldn't she get paid for downtime?  If you worked at Burger King and no customers came in for an hour, yet you were required to be ready to service the customers, wouldn't you expect to be paid?  JMHO


Now, if she is IC, she's out of luck.


Are u an employee or IC? nm
x
I am an employee
I have written a demand for payment and have not worked since not receiving my check.

Any advice on who one contacts regarding those in the legal end to contact would be most helpful if anyone knows this info.

Thanks!
IC vs Employee

I know this subject has been broached before... but, how can a company seek an IC, and then assign work each day and expect you to put in X amount of hours, etc.  I don't understand this...  I was under the assumption that as an independent contractor, you work when you want.  You are providing the company with a service, you are not their slave and do not have to answer to them at a certain time of day.  IC means work is done and returned in the manner the IC sees fit.  When asked part-time or full-time, what is the answer when you are an IC?  Anyone else having this trouble?  I would love to hear from you...   


I also do not see how a company can put you at edit status, and then never give feedback on blanks, etc.  How do you ever get out of editing?  Is it the IC's job to ask about blanks when you are already receiving a smaller pay rate to be in editing and trying to make some money while learning a new account. 


Are you looking for employee or IC

CIT employee
I presently work for CIT and wouldn't work anywhere else.  There definitely is work out there to be done--almost too much work.  Bottom line is that I firmly believe your job is what you make it.  If you think it's too tough and can't be done, then guess what... It will be too tough for you and you won't be able to do it.  In regards to ESL dictators... I look at it as job security.  They are not going to change or go away, so my goal is to learn to master them.  Any good Transcriptionist knows that a short-cut program is the way to go--work smarter, not harder.  At least our platform offers you one if you do not have one of your own and it is very easy to learn to use.  I presently use my own, SPEEDTYPE, with my own standards for the dictators.  As for communication, if there is a breakdown in communication--maybe all parties involved are not communicating with mutual respect??  Basically I don't expect my boss to have to contact me unless it is necessary.  I was given what was expected and am allowed to accomplish it without having anyone breathing down my neck, but help is there if I ask for it.  As for a small company, yes, we are at this point.  Sam Walton didn't start Walmart with a boatload of people, each with one single specialized job, but a few very multitalented people who were flexible and able and willing to do what was needed in order to get the job done.  Look at the number employed there now--YEARS later.  My point is we are growing--fast.  Bottom line though, is that there is no job that is perfect for everyone, so you need to find your niche in life, determine your goals and what YOU are willing to do to accomplish them, and you may be surprised how your dream job could be exactly where you are today.   
Are you an employee
nm
Are you an IC or employee? nm

I am not now, nor have ever been an employee, but

I was offered a position by them within the last 6 months.  The recruiter was so busy I.M. people during the interview that she couldn't keep a train of thought and I was distracted.  I felt red flag #1.  I'v heard from many people that you're questions go unanswered, despite the fact that management seems to I.M. each other all day long.  The recruiter told me about this account that was fabulous and there was rarely an opening  because the MTs loved it and there just wasn't any turnover.   She also denied offshoring.  She put me in touch with the team leader for this wonderful account and it was an account that I had worked on with another company and it was a horrible account.  The TL said it was a horrible account and they could never keep MTs on it.   The TL also told me that they indeed did offshore and not only that, but they offshored the good work and left the crap here.  


I just felt like I couldn't trust them and turned them down.  Their pay scale is based on lots of things.  There is a base pay, then extra for so many years of experience, extra for 2nd and 3rd shifts, extra if you have CMT, etc.  I can't remember what their benefits were like. 


 


IC to employee......
You are so very right!! I absolutely hate! being an employee.  It really is a hard transition.