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You can make more than that per line, but at 125 lph, not a good living. Have to do at least 300 lp

Posted By: not worth it, no on 2006-07-15
In Reply to: Didn't make much money. Worth it to go on? - Wondering

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Is it possible to make a living off of 4 cents a line?

If there is anyone out there new and still considered a mentoree and able to work full time and make rent please tell me because I need some encouragement.  I want to quit the day job to be able to do this fulltime but when I do the math it just doesn't add up to the rent:-)


Any words of encouragement would be helpful.


It is worth it though. I couldn't make a good living without.
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Really? I make a good living transcribing tapes.
Just because it's not the way you want to receive your work does not mean it is worthy of contempt. As far as I'm concerned, practitioners who are reluctant to give up their familiar dictation methods are less likely to give in to the blandishments of VR or EMR salespeople.

You are free to work your way, and I am free to work as I see fit. If that makes you cringe, well, I guess that's just your problem. It doesn't bother me at all. Cringe away.
You want to make a living don't you?
Then you listen to idiot dictators.  You want to be in the spotlight and be on TV, stay in Aruba.  You want to grieve the loss of your daughter privately, stay at home and appoint a spokesperson.  You ultimately make choices about what you do based on facts and necessities.  It is NOT NECESSARY for Mrs. Twitty to be in Aruba or if she decides she rests more easily in Aruba it is NOT NECESSARY for her to give press conferences acusing people of being criminals or incompetency. 
to make it official, not living in sin, tax
nm
Can't say I make a great living, but...
I support myself, my disabled husband, and also have 2 grown children at home, which the one pays his bills, but the other is having problems. We are buying our home, paying for our car, and still have enough to eat out a couple of times a week. I make more at home than if I go back out into the work place.
If you make a living with your PC, it pays to
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You can't fault someone for wanting to make a living.

Outsourcing simply means that big corporations show bigger profits and the CEOs get bigger bonuses.  They claim that it's good for the economy because the companies and CEOs have more money to spend, gag me with their trickle down economics theory, but they refuse to see what it does to the working class people.  It's going to be interesting to see what happens in this country down the road as more and more working class people lose their jobs to offshoring.  What, are we all going to sign up for unemployment and welfare?  Will crime go up as we all start stealing just to put food on the table?  I wonder what's going to happen.


Agreed! I couldn't stand to make my living (sm)
facilitating the state of California's biggest growth industry. Not to mention the doctors' callous attitudes towards their patients and the things you would have to transcribe would make you ill. You do know our country has the greatest percentage of our population in jail of any country in the world?
The result of MTs' efforts to make a living wage are (sm)
And of COURSE we don't want less - we DO want more. That goes without saying. But you see - the type of verbal attack that you and other "Debbie Downers" like you launch every time an MT says, "Wait a minute... maybe there IS something we can do is so typical of the type of thinking that holds not just MTs, but women in general back. I have already checked and made sure my doc's MTSO doesn't offshore. If that changes, my ins. (which is just your average, run-of-the-mill HMO) STILL allows me to go to other providers. If you "don't have many options", have you ever wondered WHY? Could it be that you keep SETTLING for less and less? And could it be that other MTs, when they read the gloom and doom in your post, will think THEY have to settle, too?

As for pulling other endeavors out of other nations, hey - there are quite a few that I think others would LOVE to see pulled out. Such as tech help for just about everything from your PC to your cellphone being sent to places where they can't understand what you're trying to tell them, and vice versa. I have a friend with a Masters degree in software engineering who is working menial jobs right now in order to pay the rent, while he looks for a job in his field that is a full-time, benefitted position, rather than as a part-time IC with no benefits. He says even the part-time jobs are getting hard to find because so many employers are sending EVERYTHING out, including part time.



The old, "Go ahead and try! Why don't you quit MT? Oh, boy - more work for ME!" song and dance may fly for a while, but why sit back and seemingly enjoy watching your profession go extinct, when eventually it WILL affect you, too? Do you really want to sit there all day as an "editor" and stare at work typed by other entities? How boring is that? Where is any ounce of creatitivity? At least when you transcribe, you are producing something of value, and can take pride in it. And at a lousy 3-to-6 cents a line, where is the pride in speech-rec or editing work?




BFA in Jewelry/Metals, did craft shows here and there but did not make a living -sm
goal though for this Fall or soon that is, is to get my work done by noon, then spend 3 hours at least 2 x a week in my studio which I have not touched in about 6 years.....see if maybe I can get the ball rolling again with that via local shops, studios, etc. Used to have reps that sold my jewelry in Philly which was quite nice.
I will stay in Podunk and make a living wage if you will take it to a blog. sm
Is that concept so hard to understand?  I you cannot understand that simple idea, maybe that is why the lot of you don't have the sense to do something about your situation other than just whine.  Take it to a blog, where maybe between you will be able to help yourselves.  Or better yet, think of it this way,,,  take it to a blog and then you won't have to navigate around the other posts to whine to each other.
It depends what you consider a good living (sm)

Some only need $150 a month for rent so the low pay would be fine.


But if you are pulling your hair out for less than what unemployment pays, I'd take the unemployment.


 


Top 10 good things about living in Havre, Montana
10.I can leave my pickup running while I run into the grocery store or post office.

9.I lost my house keys years ago.

8.Someone will call me on Saturday morning and tell me if my teenager was misbehaving Friday night.

7.If I have a flat tire, a farmer will stop by and help me out and I don't have to worry about getting assaulted.

6.I can stop and help out someone with a flat tire and not worry about getting assaulted.

5.A traffic jam is 6 cars in a row.

4. No lines at the grocery store.

3. Everyone goes to church.

2.The constant wind blows the bad smells away.

1.This cold weather keeps the riff-raff out.

Just reminding myself that it isn't so bad!!
I make a second living off ebay! I have sold maternity clothes, baby clothes, tupperware, and I have
Christmas dresses and boys' outfits that I will be listing in the next month or so that I bought last year at a smocked closeout and paid 8-10 a piece. Price tags read anywhere from 56 to 88.00 dollars and I will get approximately 25 to 40 a piece depending on what brands and size they are. Plus they pay shipping. I sold approx 35 Christmas outfits on ebay last year which paid for my Christmas. It was awesome and I'll do it again this year! Good luck.

Oh, you do have to have a credit card, bank acct. for ebay. It is worth it though. They just have to verify who you are.
You can check out my auctions with momof3boysal
Yes if gross line or 65 character line with spaces....Good Deal!!! nm
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I don't make 0.08/line.. I work for no less than .13/line. nm
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On 2nd thought, if you're NOT a good Italian style cook, make something you ARE good at. Leave th
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The bottom line is doesnt matter what they pay if there is no work you make no money. Bottom line.
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How much do you make a line as well.
That along with the dictators makes all the difference.
Make an income on 0.6 a line?
Been offered an IC position for 6 cpl. Good dictators, header/footer, demographics, bold, etc. is counted, WP 5.1, and bountiful work. Too date, I have only worked for a hospital at an hourly wage and now for a service with benefits for 8 cpl. Not happy with the service so am looking elsewhere. Is this real, or can money be made?
I make .05/line on one platform and 0.04 on another
and I will take the 0.04 platform any day as I can get almost twice as many lph. Just like typing, editing depends so much on the platform that I don't think you can always just look at a blanket line rate to tell.
I make 8.5 cents per line sm
The incentive is 2 cents per line for anything over 300 lines per hour.  That equates to 10.5 cents per line, because I consistently do over 300 lph.  That equals minimum of  $31.50 per hour.  I would never work by the hour.
Per line - could never make much per hour.
I do 350-400 lph at 12 cpl - no one will pay me what I make by the hour! Per line is the way to go, plus keep your flexibility.
Make sure you use sm (see msg) or nm (no msg) in the subject line, too. nm
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ICs - how much do you make per line and do you work for ...sm
a large company, small company or have your own contracts?
Don't most make more than 5 cents a line??
I do not agree with you at all!

right, make a little more per line, but also pay more taxes.
nm
I work for NTL and make .12 line
nm
...up to you to see if you can make more per line at home versus going
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MI MTs who posted line rates, would you make
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In WordPerfect, could someone please tell me how to make a line break
so it keeps the justification?  Ctl+shift+L just moves down another line and does not justify.  Thank You. 
what do the middle people make per line?
I may be negotiating a contract directly with a radiology business, but I"ve only done independent contractor work up until now.  I'd like to enter into negotiations seeming like I know my way around the block:  what do companies (who hire transcriptionists) tend to make per line?  How would I find that out?
How long does it take to make decent line count?
I am considering joining an outsourcing company. Can you tell me how long it took you, as an experienced transcriptionist, to get up to snuff that you were making a decent wage? And what is your average rate per hour when paid by the line of 65 cpl?
I guess so! I betcha make your new line count!! NM
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I make 0.725 cents per line after 5 years with the same company - nm
I make 0.725 cents per line after 5 years with the same company - NM
I couldn't screw this up any more if I tried! I make 7.25 cents per line. There! lol - nm
I couldn't screw this up any more if I tried! I make 7.25 cents per line. There! lol - nm
If you are paid by the line and make over $25 an hour, then I hate to say it

but I am wondering if you are doing full QA.  By the line is NOT fair pay for QA.  I know I mentor new MTs on a very difficult account and there is no way you could earn a decent wage on any amount of line pay, no way!


Don't go telling someone they could do better if they are paid by the line.  Quality specialists MUST have ethics in their work.  You can do a decent amount of reports a day and give feedback and mentoring, but you certainly would not be earning $25 an hour on line pay that I have seen....just no way!  The most I have seen QA paid is 7 cents a line and still those women do not average that amount. 


Now, I don't know what you do or if you listen 100%, but most QA positions I have had have had megablanks, 100% listen as well as 100% feedback and you just cannot produce that much doing your job in a proper manner.


Other than it really is broken a lot, you cannot make a decent line count on it.
It is a horrible disorganized program that is not user friendly like some of the other ones i have had. Sound quality has to be the worst of any company there is. Tech support is nonexistant for at least 6 hours to 6 days. Pay is horrible, especially if you get stuck on editing an account (about 4 cpl) Happy bankrupcy
RE: Other than it really is broken a lot, you cannot make a decent line count on it.
Your opinion is not shared by many who work at Transcend. I personally get all the lines I need using BeyondTXT and I think it is a great platform for transcribing or editing, and I do both, and believe me I have never gotten close to starving. Editing compensation is 60% of transcribing line rate by the way and my compensation is not 4 cpl as you so erroneously posted.
Do you have an unusually high line rate to make up for that?
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make $20 an hour plus 4 cents gross line
nm
Yes, but didn't your line count double to make up for it? SM
I love EditScript. My only problem is that--reportedly--the profit margin for the MTSO can be very low, encouraging them to send it offshore. Does anyone else have information on this?
Cherrypicking didn't make our line rates less -
the lower line rates are what started people c-pickingin the first place, so they could make enough each week to live on. Back when I was paid by the hour (and lots more than I'm getting now per hour, I did whatever came along. But I'm sorry, I'm not gonna GIVE an employer a chunk of my change for the 'privilege' of doing a 40-minute report by a gum-chewing ESL with static on the line, partying nurses, or crying babies in the background, that I just plain can't understand, when I have the option to choose something that is at least transcribe-able.
Oh please, somebody tried to make me feel guilty for leaving a horrible job using this same line.
How much $$ it cost to train ME.  Like I should feel sorry for the company who basically misled me every step of the way regarding hiring, training, accounts, etc., etc. The job was a horrible fit, and I stayed way longer out of guilt. Not worth it! Conditions are deplorable enough for the MTs right now - we don't need to now assume responsibility for how much or how little a company spends to train us. PLEASE!! 
WHOAH, Nelly!! Make that 0.0725 cents per line! - nm
WHOAH, Nelly!! Make that 0.0725 cents per line! - nm
No - not worth 12 bucks an hour when you can make triple that by the line, sm
but that all depends on what company and VR platform you are talking about.
what? I used to make .02/line off my subcontractors work and felt guilty.SM
The MTSO is making .07 line off your work? I know you did not say how much you make, but the MTSO must be charging the client a high rate. Like I said, I had several subcontractors helping me as an IC for local clients in the past, and made .02/line on their work (I am the one who printed and returned the work). You deserve better and are selling yourself much too short! P.S. - Unfortunately this is what is happening to this industry, and it's called greed.
not a liar, not an old person, I make waaaaay over $20/hour, probably double (CA, .15-.17 line) sm

I have two accounts of my own and do vacation coverage for a few other MTs as well as occassional work for a lawyer and a psychologist.  I charge .15 for one clinic and .17 for the other clinic... clinic #2 is a husband/wife neurologist team, and the husband was a major A&& at first... with a very strong accent and every possible bad dictator habit you can imagine.  I told wife I would transcribe for her, but not for him, I had plenty of business.  She said charge whatever you want, have whatever turnaround time you want, just please don't leave.  At the time they were at .12... so I upped them to .17.  That was 5 years ago and now after having gotten to know him and his *quirks* I adore them both.  I am an IC, but they give me very large gift cards for Christmas, kind of in lieu of a bonus, I guess. 


Clinic #2... just this week took on another physician and I told them point blank it was too much for me to provide quick service and they may want to consider a service.  They said no way, we changed the turnaround time to one week with stats as needed.  I even asked them if they considered voice recognition and the office manager laughed and laughed. 


I am just now putting both clinics on digital, and after the initial cost, this will increase my estimated hourly wage as it will take away my delivery time and cost, and my paper and ink printing cost and time.  Though I still plan to visit each office on a regular basis for customer service and because I know my customer service is what got me here in the first place.


For the *occasional* work, the lawyer and pysch I charge $50/transcription hour. 


I know you will all doubt me.  But I work extremely hard, have put in my time with my education - not just learning MT but learning the ropes of running a business and how to do everything smarter, faster, and in the most efficient and sensible way possible.  I also have another business I do in a totally different field!  I am very blessed.  Well, I also know the fields I have chosen were perfect for me, and also I've had good luck.  You know what I think though?  I think my sense of humor and just being as honest and open and observant as possible has made this possible. 


I actually do make good $, but....
I don't care for VR. When you are a fast and accurate Transcriptionist you are already topped out when you start editing. My QA averages 99% and the institution I work for is REALLY strict with QAs. We have an average of 10-12 per year and they look at 20+ reports each time. I would rather do straight transcription, but I have good benefits so I suck it up and work. I fear eventually our work will go completely to an outside agency and our dept will be eliminated, saving the institution $$ for not having to pay salaries, insurance, etc. It also depends on what VR system; we use eScription.