A community of 30,000 US Transcriptionist serving Medical Transcription Industry

Here is some perspective. sm - realist

Posted: Oct 14, 2010

MTs have unfortuantely lost their jobs in the recent months and work is slowing down across the board. That does not viilfy the MTSO. It's part of a much bigger picture.

MTs tend to live in their own microcosmic world. We are not the only ones impacted by the slow economy, bad housing market, downturn in census at healthcare facilities and company layoffs.

Take a look at DailyJobCuts.com

Nore perspective - Not just the economy

[ In Reply To ..]
True, the economy is a part of it. However, it's also the way the MTSO's treat their MT's and the mismanagement. I'm not hearing of pay cuts for the top tier. And to hear things like companies hiring when laying off or hiring from the students in schools they own, it goes way beyond the economy. The reality is MT's used to be respected and paid a fair wage for a very important job. It's a joke what has happened to this industry and again it's not just because of the economy.

Perspective - SM

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Yes the economy is bad, but these companies are sending OUR work to India on the cheap, over hiring, making promises they can't even begin to keep, forcing long time MTs out with bad QA and NJA, cutting our pay beyond belief and all in all, treating MTs like garbage. No down turn in the economy justifies that. I work for two companies, and they way they skew my lines is robbery. Yes, we are on the inside looking out at the job market and I agree it is bad, but what is being done to us, is way beyond that and to throw salt on the wound, look at the CEO's at Medquist, living in almost million dollar homes, etc. Again, we are being raked over the coals and someone is taking in the profits that they are not paying us and that we are generating.

True - Webber

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MTSOs are admittedly overhiring for accounts because of the strict turn-around times that they are promising to the hospitals and love to keep MTs in their back pockets so that they will not have to pay penalties if work is returned out of TAT. They don't step up to the plate and manage the workflow. They just expect us to FLEX our time (if I hear that word again I might explode) to compensate for their inability to effectively manage their business. They don't seem to care that we have bills to pay and that no one should be expected to sit at their computer attempting to work for 10 or 12 hours at time in order to get their 8 hours in for the day. If they are going to play this game with strict TATs, we should be compensated hourly while we sit here and wait for the work to come in. No other industry expects their workers to be on call without being paid---it's against the law!

You're right. MT was headed in this direction before - the recession/depression, and just watch.. sm

[ In Reply To ..]
.. when the economy finally does turn around and becomes strong again, does anyone here think for a minute that the pay and treatment of MTs will improve?

Not a snowball's chance in _______.

Just as "the economy" is the MTSOs' excuse-du-jour, they'll come up with plenty of others by the time the depression is over.

Perspective - REM

[ In Reply To ..]
There are many factors in this mess, but I think MQ and AHDI are most of all to blame. They have stabbed MTs in the back. And it doesn't help that too many (not ALL) MTs are not interested in the profession as a PROFESSION but only as a built-in babysitter. That has really lowered our esteem in the professional world. Yes, I have a kid, but I believe in appropriate boundaries between business and work. Too MTs don't show up because little Johnny has a concert, etc. etc.

Realism - Only Ones

[ In Reply To ..]
Correct, we are not the only ones feeling the pinch. We are, however, one of the few to work under these conditions. These practices may or may not be legal but is certainly not ethical. I'm not seeing anything on DailyJobCuts to indicate companies hiring while laying off or forcing workers to sit waiting for work (for which we are paid on production) only to sit idle for hours. This industry has become a joke and I don't see any comparison to other layoffs due to economic hardship.

You're right... - MY2c

[ In Reply To ..]
Apparently MT is now the only occupation where someone can get hired, show up for work and not expect a paycheck because the place who hired you cannot provide work. In some ways it is our(the MTs) fault, accepting this arrangement of working on production, never dreaming in a million years this job would degenerate into the sorry mess it has become. Sadly there still must be plenty of us who will put up this situation just to avoid having to get a job that requires leaving the house.

You're right but... - Invested Time

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To me it's more than working at home. As is the case with many, we've invested years and years to this field, sharpening our skills to become professionals. We have a talent that is not recognized by those who don't understand what we do. While I'll probably end up exiting stage left because my family has to eat, it saddens me to have invested all this time and energy to perfect a skill that won't be utilized. After more than 30 years, this is what I do. Starting over from scratch is not an exciting thought at this stage. What a shame as I always felt that having this type of skill would be worth something. Hello...we deal with the people's lives!

Also, those of us who have invested years will have a hard time - getting a new job.

[ In Reply To ..]
I was watching CNN over the weekend and there was this author on who wrote a book about the difficulties for people over 50 to get hired anywhere. I wish I could remember the name of the book. I think it was Silver something. But he was saying that companies ARE blatantly circumventing the legality of age discrimination and they're getting away with it. I think that's another reason so many are still in MT.

Companies hiring older people end up providing - Pragmatist

[ In Reply To ..]
inadequate insurance to all employees. Older people are very expensive to ensure. Younger people end up going with companies with better insurance packages. Average insurance premiums at our company then rise even higher.

Disconnecting healthcare access from employment is by far the biggest single thing we can do to help people over 50 get hired at decent jobs.

The only problem is, most people can't afford - insurance on their own. nm

[ In Reply To ..]
X

I thought Pragmatist meant in terms of single-payer health insurance. - sm

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Though I may have misunderstood that, but if I did read it correctly, then I totally agree.

I still can hardly believe we don't have universal health care yet in this nation. It just boggles the mind.

The above response was in reply to ''insurance on their own.'' - sm again

[ In Reply To ..]
Sorry for any possible unintended confusion.

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