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The work ethic has plummeted everywhere, not just MT. sm

Posted By: nm on 2006-07-02
In Reply to: Where did work ethic go? - JM

On one of those TV magazine shows a few years ago, the employers interviewed said the young workers these days have no ambition, no initiative, expect top dollar, and want everything handed to them. The employers said they preferred hiring older workers and retirees to get a good job done, but younger ones were cheaper to hire.

In the MT business, the older, experienced, expert MTs are retiring, injured, or plain burned out. Those of us fortunate enough to work for nationals who pay us what we're worth will hang on as long as we have jobs, watching the rest of the jobs going offshore, unfortunately.

MTSOs should be rewarding their good MTs, rather than taking advantage of them, and they sure do take advantage!!


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Where did work ethic go?
I am currently doing recruiting for a company. I hired 5 people who were very interested and then I get one excuse after another why they can't train today. I find this frustrating. Then when I do get someone hired, they are sloppy, uneducated, and complain about everything. I see all these posts that say I want more money, but if you are doing your job without work ethic, why would an MTSO want to pay you more? IMO that is why the pay rates are so low. You get so many that are too lazy to work and want more money!!?? If you all want the rates to go UP, please have some work ethic, do not lie on your resumes, and start doing your jobs irregardless of what your pay starts at. If you do the right thing, you are more likely to get a raise.

In my most recent experience it went out the door. I was working a job and a half, 4 hrs at Walmart, 6 to 10pm. Then 11pm to 7am for my fulltime job. I showed up at 5:45pm every eve for 3 months. Ask several times for more training, but their system just puts you in the trenches to do the best you can on your own. My 90 day evaluation rolls around, department manager calls me into the back office, already has the form filled out, I got beats for attendance. Meets for everything else, except below in the zoneing area. Ask me if I had anything to say, I said Walmart Training sucks. And I'd ask for training several times. . .and to write that down. Next day the Store Assistant Manager tells me that I'm to put all the returns back on the shelf before I leave the store that night, and I'm to call her before I leave. 10pm I call her, she says some other new manager will come to the unit. 10:06pm I sells my last item, log off the register, turn out the lights, grab my coat and walk to the back to punch out. Made me 5 minutes late for my other job. (First time ever, and I'm never late. Not in 38 years of working. So in my case I guess my work ethic walked out the door.
Cheers,
Steve J
Where did work ethic go?
I am currently doing recruiting for a company.  I hired 5 people who were very interested and then I get one excuse after another why they can't train today.  I find this frustrating.  Then when I do get someone hired, they are sloppy, uneducated, and complain about everything.  I see all these posts that say I want more money, but if you are doing your job without work ethic, why would an MTSO want to pay you more?  IMO that is why the pay rates are so low.  You get so many that are too lazy to work and want more money!!??  If you all want the rates to go UP, please have some work ethic, do not lie on your resumes, and start doing your jobs irregardless of what your pay starts at.  If you do the right thing, you are more likely to get a raise.
Work Ethic and the American MT
I just had to say something about the disparaging remarks made against the American MT.  I think they are the gold standard of the industry.  I have seen the work sent from Third World MTs.  Full read QA often translates to 95% rewrite.  I feel even stronger about owners of companies using the Third World MTs.  Many of the offices warehouse hundreds of sweatshop transcriptionists who cannot leave until they reach their quota.  Any woman should be ashamed of exploiting these women and then trying to exploit the American QA by paying them slave wages to bring their work up to a standard that would fool many clients who do not know where their work is being sent.  I applaud any work that mistakenly gets sent to the client before a complete rewrite by an American editor.  The client should see the value their money is getting.  There is nothing more reprehensible than women getting rich by oppressing other women and what the American MTs are being paid should be an embarrassment.  Please do not tell me about your overhead....every person living has expenses - what makes the MTSO's more important?

 

I am a Canadian MT who will not QA work done in Third World countries.  It is a personal choice.  I will not train them in medical terminology or the English language.  I have too much respect for the hardworking, dedicated women in North American working under the tyranny of companies who monitor their washroom breaks to help the Third World MTSOs make more money off the sweat of their MTs.

 

Yes, American and Canadian MTs have families and lives that may, at some time, require them to take off the shackles of their headsets.  They are women, mothers, wives first .... not indentured servants to the transcription companies.  Many people died for the freedom to speak and that right also extends to transcriptionists.

Not only same work ethic, but I'd be more fearful
of having them try to steal the account from me in one form or another (contacting the doc directly, offering to cover for vacation, sick time, etc.), especially if they know how well you are paid and are already familiar with the private accounts you sought for yourself.

Sorry, but I don't believe the sisterhood bond exists when there's opportunity for one's own advancement, even if it involves cutting another's throat in the process.
I guess that is what they call work ethic - sm
But even though it is hard, it depends on what is most important to you, cooking, cleaning, doing laundry, or earning a living. When I first started this work at home, I told myself that I would do anything and I mean anything, to be successful. Even if it meant working until midnight, and believe me, there have been times when I HAVE worked until midnight and beyond, just to meet my TAT, but I did it. I work in my living room, where it is bright and airy. No TV. No radio or music. No distractions. I screen my phone calls and only answer the ones I know are important. I have injured friends' and family's feelings when they think that just because I am at home, I have time for their whims. I just look at it like it is a job just like any other. If I were in an office somewhere, I would not have time for cooking, cleaning, laundry, TV, etc. and the same applies at home. It is all in how much you want out of this. Working at home is not for everybody, but it works for me. Self-discipline, I guess. Good Luck to you. :^)
This is most certainly true. The work ethic has changed
And it is an old fashioned thing to stay, rather than throw away a long-term relationship or seek one out. Looking for something new and better rather than building seniority seems to be the ideal these days. I am not saying not to leave if something is wrong. Any intelligent person would do so. But to want longevity in a particular company that seems to be a thing of the past, not only in this business, but in many. Times change and people change. For me, bird in hand worth 2 in bush. :)
Yeah, work ethic! My parents were wealthy

and both inherited big bucks from their parents. My mother never worked a day in her life, including not caring for her kids. My Dad had a nice job. They made me work starting at age 12 to 13 as well. Work ethic? I went from being a kid to having to be an adult at 12. I never did anything fun on the weekends with my peers, like football games, soccer games - I had to work. I worked every day after school, and every weekend. And now I'm still plodding along working in my 50's. My kids don't have to work at 12 and 13. I want them to enjoy life while they can. This old work horse has great ethics, but had no childhood.


Is it good work ethic to ask to change accounts at natl company? Please SM

I work for a national company and overall I've been quite happy. However, they changed my primary account last fall, and I have been miserable since then. It is a teaching hospital, several hundred docs, tons of different rules about format, etc, that change almost daily, 80% ESL, and I am very unhappy with it and making less now than I have in the last 7 years I've been doing acute care transcription because I'm so slow on it. I get paid 8.5/line.


My question is, is it wrong to ask to change accounts? My quality is great, they are very happy with my work, and in fact have mentioned that many MTs have quit rather than do this account, and of course I realize someone has to do it. I'm so unhappy, yet I don't want to appear incompetent or a cherry picker, etc, if I were to ask for a change (which they would not have to do), and I would like to stay with this company if only I could find a way to be happy with the work, because it is a good place overall. Any thoughts on this? Thank you.


As a whole.. nice people to work for, decent benefits but the get off/on the system, work/no work,
is maddening. I couldnt pay my bills or even work the schedule I was assigned. They would ask us not to work until work built up in the evenings and I specifically wanted to work days as I have kids etc. It just didnt work out for me but to each his own. It just seems there has to be a better balance in this business that what is happening.
I did speak with my manager. Work was promised. No work there when I needed to work.
I see the reports everyday too, but when I get work it is of bad quality, then there is no work unless I work diffrent shifts. Thank you.
My liaison always says to work on secondary when primary is low on work/no work. n/m
n/m
That's going to be nuts...I do ASR work too, plus work split shifts. We'll NEED a spread shee
NT
Work is easy, very nice owner, pays weekly, work in Word.

A majority of at-home MT is overflow work with in-house getting the bulk of the work. If they clean
s
Pay is always on time, direct deposit, very nice management to work with, and DQS platform, work
load normally busy, but low now because of the summer slow down on my accounts.  Sound an issue on some accounts, but not others.  Overall, wonderful company.
That is a BIG problem at TransTech is leads assigning work, rather than letting the work flow
This TT MT just admitted to that fact.  It has been very obvious, as so easy to tell how work comes into our que and then gets pulled out as fast as it came in and replaced with YUKKY dictators.   VERY frustrating to us other TT MT's who take the JUNK that is NOT assigned to other MT's, such as this poster. 
Ever thought of a home health care aide? Usually paid training and start work right away. Can work
m
Absolutely not! I work for the best MTSO. I am have been so blessed to work for the small company I

I will share this about the MTSO I work for.  I called her late last Wednesday night after Church and told her I was compelled to help out with Hurricaine Katrina in some way and an opportunity arose for a small group from my Church to go to Louisianna this coming week.  Would she be able to cover my work.  She told me no problem without any hesitation and even donated money for the trip. 


And I am sure there are plenty of good companies out there to work for.  To compare us to migrant workers is just not right.


It does work, you do not need to "make" it work.. it works in all word based programs.
x
I did some overflow work for Landmark.. they are wonderful to work for.. very nice people.. pay was
.
They have to be flexibility because of the erratic work flow. No sense in a schedule if no work..
nm
I was told Escription would not work with Vista. Turned out it wouldn't work with my sm
Office Basic Edition 2003 either, but no one could figure out why, it was supposed to.

There is actually a section on the Dell website that offers Windows XP. I haven't checked it out as I'm not in the market, so I don't know if it costs extra. I have a Dell and it's been fine for me. I hate the ESL tech department, but it seems like most of them have that now.
Yes they do send work overseas and do not hide this fact. There is plenty of work and they do pay
well. Overall, I like having work as I have been at places where you had to fight to keep busy so this works for me.
There is NO work at Transtech. Maybe they just choose special people to send work to
df
Are you required to work major holdays at KS. I know nature of biz to work them. Thanks for info. nm
nm
Great people to work for, but I had to leave due to lack of work. Hopefully that has changed. SM
Most of us who do not live in California had to go IC. When I was there, they did not have statutory status, although they told me they did when they hired me. Their pay for VR is VERY low, not a living wage. Many of the folks in the office are ex-YOG and great to work for/with. Good luck.
1200 lines daily is great if you have the work, personally, I never had enough work so
I left and have NEVER been sorry!
Don't know about radiology work load, but we have been scratching in the dirt for work for a numb

of months now.  They hire, lose account, hire again before new accounts comes onboard, then have overhired, having to put new MT's on the current low workload. 


Medical field is 24/7 work unless you work for a clinic or stand alone operation.
I just look at the other cool people working holidays and weekends in the ICU, ER, paramedics,and am glad to be there. When you work in a hospital for a length of time, it becomes a necessary evil to show up at the worst possible times.

Having a family or a life you'd miss from Friday at 5 PM to Monday at 8 PM must be hard and

I think that there is a place for you where they can meet your requirements (M-F). There are plenty of those jobs.
They require that you work in house until your have clean QA for 3 paydays then you can work
e
All nationals I work for you only work 40 hours unless they approve overtime.
x
I'm part-time and don't have to work all weekend. I work Tues-Sat.
I've never heard that from Chronicle, of course I didn't see the ad.
The bid has nothing to do with consistancy of work. MTSO cannot control how cosistant work is.
:+
I'll love to know who you work for. I also work every weekend with no extra pay.
It'd be nice to get paid for all the nights and weekends I work.
Like I said - it depends who you work for. I work for a hospital at home - not a company. nm
x
I know two people who work 3rd shift for Keystrokes on radiology and have a lot of work. Maybe you
on an account that has enough work. I hate to hear that someone doesn't have enough work or that they have a problem because I know that Keystrokes works to find the right account for every person. They do a lot for us but you have to talk to them until you find the right account or volume or hours for you.

I think that a lot of companies are that way but there is a lot of job-hopping in transcription. Everyone is looking for the perfect job but the grass is not always greener on the other side. There are a few MTSO's really are not good but for the most part, the others don't intentionally drive people away. That would not make sense. They need us to work as much as we need them to have the work there for us.


I work on it. Usual amount of work. Not running out but not backlogged either. They seem to have
about the right staffing on it. Hope that helps.
Maybe is it for a particular account. I work M-F. You are required to work one weekend an month.
a
I used to work for a company who separated the MTs by work type daily. sm
regret ever leaving that company. we had a max of 4 MTs typing a large training hospital with clinics. i was assigned consults and discharges with consults being my priority. another MT had ops and admits, etc. it worked so much better. we were RARELY out of TAT and each of us were trained on other report types for backup in case someone need to take off. not to mention that we were easily able to learn the ESLs because we got them repeatively enough to learn them, set up templates, etc. much, much more productive for us as MTs, for the company as work flow, and i am sure for the dictator because they got someone who knew them and their dictations well enough to be accurate. i don't understand why large MTSOs cannot comprehend how much more beneficial that would be.
I actually left about a year ago and work for another company that's running out of work. Have to
x
I so wholeheartedly agree with you. Don't work for KS but work for SS - another company bashed
Works GREAT for me and I love SS. I never really care what the negatives are as I have found they are usually people that can't make their lines, don't work the hours they commit to or just overall do not care!
don't like ASR/VSR -- all work going that direction -- causing very low work situation for awhile
Just a little message since you asked.  Hardly any regular paid transcription work left for TT MT's (transcribing as in the old days, I am speaking of).
I have 4 accounts, doing all work types, and I usually have enough work but this is the slow time of
year so we are scrambling a little for lines.  Easy platform, paychecks DD, always on time. 
I work for an all-US company and refuse to work for one that offshores. Best of luck to you. nm
nm
NO WORK at Transtech -- did no good to work the holiday for 1.5 lines, did it?
I am sure the office staff will share their PAID HOLIDAY MONIES with us who sit here with no work.  This has gotten to be such a frustrating profession.  I guess I need to relocate to Houston so that I can work in the office, too, and reap those wonderful paid benefits that us at-home piecemeal workers do not get.
yes, but I was told as an IC that if work was slow ICs get no work since they are nto employees
nm
Steady work? Fairness in doling out the work?
Am so tired of crap work because I can do it, am getting burned out because of just that, crap work all the time.  One of the reasons I am looking at other companies.
I work for a small national. I have steady work, usually

extra if I want it.  I make 10 cpl as an employee, get vacation, 401K matching, PTO, wonderful QA, lots of ESL dictators but mostly decent ones, direct deposit, no IM, no nasty e-mails, no phone calls asking me to work extra day after day.   Saying that MTs are surprised at how much money they make because they have steady work even though the line rate is low sounds like a line a used car salesman would use.  A low line rate is a low line and an insult, especially since without the MTs you wouldn't be able to pay your bills.


Just because everyone else sees to be going to India is like the saying you parents would say if everyone else jumped off the bridge ....  Many companies sell out, but you don't HAVE to sell out.  You choose to get more bang from your buck but I've seen the work that comes back from overseas and I would never put my name to it.


You might can fool some of the people some of the time, but it won't fly with me. 


 


tons of work because no one wants to work for slave wages
think about it
Feast or famine. Always a different work load every day, and you often run out if the work gets
s
I used to work there and know people who still do...they have no work on clinic account but if you
are acute care or have experience in acute care you will be fine...