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Minimum of 6 months, but more likely more than a year. You'll

Posted By: need to learn a lot in that 1st year! nm on 2007-08-05
In Reply to: How much experience do you need... - sm

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Mine are in year-round thank goodness! They've started their new year 2 months ago.
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A 1 year, 5-months-old girl? nm
,
FN - I worked for them for about 1 year about 18 months ago (sm)
At first I thought they were wonderful  but my last account had so many docs and so many specialities I just finally gave up and faded into the sunset.... they never even missed me.  I also found QA to be very rude sometimes - depending on which account you were on.
3 months on and 1 month off, all year round.
nm
I meant hospital for 8 years (not months)...going on 15th year.
x
my boyfriend's union has helped him to be laid off 6 months this year already...
Sure Union's PROTECT the workers... okay that's fine. but they also do plenty of other stuff that is not cool with me. I like the idea of them getting paid a good amount for what they do, but then there are times when if something happens on a job, for example, two workers get in a fight, they may get fired from that particular job, but re-hired with another one that hires union workers. It makes no sense. Obviously I see the point of unions so workers are not taken advantage of... but like someone else posted, someone would sneak away to sleep during her job with the union. I mean, have you seen DOT workers? Cal Trans ? i dont think I EVER see them working and I'm gonna guess they are a union (although I can't be sure).

For sure transcription needs something, but I don't think a union is it. Although I don't think we will ever have anything to protect or help us... too little "higher up" people know the problem.
Happy New Year back at you! Have fun! We'll
be fine, won't we, folks?  Have a good time!
Happy New Year everyone! I'll be out of town over the weekend. If you have any
/
I quit two months ago. I tried to quit for over a year, but I just had to be ready.
I tried the patch, NRT gum, Zyban, everything. One morning, I woke up and just quit cold turkey. There are some good online support groups out there that can help you when you're ready.
$32K/part time 6 months/full time 6 months
I have kept my child home with me half the year, but when pre-K started I began working full time. Helps to only have a main account and one backup account for the 2nd year now, so my abbreviation program rocks and rolls when I focus.
It'll be the most expensive magazine subscription you'll ever get! No point in joining. nm
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Don't know if you can get 400 lpd. Minimum at
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I'll go! I'll go!! I won't take hormones and will be ready to defend your honor :) n/m
.
No. It'll be the most expensive magazine subscription you'll ever get, and it's unnecessary
s
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.
LOL no it's not, it's because of the alernative minimum tax
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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.
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.
Union diesil mechanic - good pay, great benefits. We swap year to year on who brings home more sm
money.....but I am an IC and he has all the benefits...health insurance/dental that the company pays for, pension plan, 401k, etc.  Factor all of that in and he makes way more than I do.
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.
My minimum is around 1200/day which isn't that hard to get. -nm
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Minimum line production?
What is the standard for minimum line production for most outsourcing vendors?  
Minimum wage for down time? sm
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.
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
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?
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. 


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.
1200 is the minimum at most places for
full-time. Personally I transcribe anywhere from 1700 to 2000 lines in an 8-hour day.
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.
to cowgirl - Last I knew, last year the job paid $25,000/year no taxes, etc.
The hospital was bombed about a year ago, but not a lot of damage, very minimal damage.
44-year-old WF, M, Texas, 3 grown kids, just had 26 year wedding anv.
nm
nope, still crunching last few days of year to hit my 50k this year. how can you when you haven'
;
You'll get used to it. It is keeping the right leg propped up at the same time that'll be the
When I broke my ankle, I was just grateful it wasn't the hands. Without our hands we'd be totally screwed.

I broke my right ankle slipping on ice and was lucky to have gloves on because the palm of the glove was totally torn up and my hand was okay.

Good luck and be sure to do your exercises when it is time.
Minimum wagers DO NOT drive SUVs and
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Their pay is way low and you work like a dog to make minimum lines.
x
If a state has a minimum wage, how can a company (not MT) pay
that companies have to at least pay minimum wage?
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!