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

Keystroke Counter? (sm) - Rose

Posted: Sep 08, 2013

VR drafts have BECOME so far off what was clearly dictated that it is taking LONGER to edit than it would to just transcribe it. Not only do I have to re-transcribe it, but delete full sentences and phrase that sound nothing like what was clearly dictated!

As MTs we used to be paid for our keystrokes which was fair. Today we probably put in twice the keystrokes we are paid for.

Anyone know of a cheap keystroke counter as I think this would be very useful in a suit against the MTSOs for unfair wages.

Please, no rude blabberings from those who are not attorney's or have nothing contructive to say.

Google search has - lots of these.

[ In Reply To ..]
maybe this would be a way to sue them. Even without the crappy VR, we are still doing millions of unpaid keystrokes daily.

This may the single best insight - anyone

[ In Reply To ..]
Has written about here in a long time. My brain is fried from the abuse, low pay, etc. When I have to retype more than I edit I have no recourse, or so I thought. My questions about definition of a line have been unanswered.

We all need to jump on this.

shaking my head - no, no it is not

[ In Reply To ..]
Do you not use an expander?

Never use a macro?

This is not AT ALL insight, it's insane.

shaking my head, too - Nick

[ In Reply To ..]
I can tell you that the law firm I work for would not take this seriously.

Not sure who you are - or what you do for a living

[ In Reply To ..]
MT turned legal transcriptionist, paralegal, law student interning or clerking? Yet, enough expertise to speak for your firm, who was retained by whom?

Are we the only forum where they have legal staff, manager, and HR monitoring us?

Who I am - Nick

[ In Reply To ..]
Law student working for small firm. Part of my duties are intake and interview. We were not "retained" by anyone. I simply know foolishness when I see it. (I am usually on the side of the MTs, by the way, having been one myself for many years before law school.) So you can lose your paranoia about HR, etc. etc. I'm just an ordinary guy.

Nick, it is up to the JUDGE - quibbler

[ In Reply To ..]
A clever lawyer could certainly make the case that a character line actually represent keystrokes, and a judge might very well agree, expansion program or not, particularly as the MT does not have to use an expansion program and the way it is used varies considerably from MT to MT, and not all platforms allow an expansion program in any case. Also, consider this, the expansion program has always been a tool for the MT and it is the accepted practice of the industry to not penalize the MT in any way if she chooses to use one (or not.)

Keystrokes are probably as fair a way to pay for line editing, as character counts, theoretically at least, reflect keystrokes. (By the way, this also puts the onus on the MTSO to fix the software and make it work, requiring as little editing as possible, and stop the wretched nit picking as well. Plus take the horrible dictators off of voice wreck entirely since it would then be cheaper for them to pay someone to transcribe.)

I think you have hit on something big. These arguments need refining of course, and the MTSOs' lawyers will be arguing Nick's line (His firm should represent MTSOs, maybe they do.)

You will need to argue the evoluation of the current character count among other things (which by the way, did have a keystroke beginning, I had a typewriter back in the late 70s, early 80s, that did have a keystroke counter on it, as I had a client who wanted this, but I made sure I charged what I needed to stay in business and make the same as when I was charging by the gross line. And as well, the early word processors also counted keystrokes, especially since the early ones were not speedy enough, and did not have the memory to include an expansion program, which came along later in the transcription game, PRD and SmartType the best in my book.

I hope the original poster goes through with this. Find a compatible keystroke counting program, use it, ask others to participate and put together some good stats, and then find a smart lawyer who doesn't work for Nick's law firm, and take it to court.

It is, after all, up to the judge to listen to the arguments and make the decision, not Nick the paralegal who apparently likes the status quo, whether or not a character count line really reflects keystrokes, etc.

Hello... - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
You first need to find a lawyer willing to take the case!!

A smart lawyer would stay away from this. A greedy lawyer would work on it, charge you big money, and then tell you you have no legal case.

you have to get a lawyer to take the case to the judge and good luck - with that - no one would touch this. NM

[ In Reply To ..]
They don't just take EVERYTHING to the courts.

Documenting all the ways - they screw us out of

[ In Reply To ..]
pennies is nothing to shake your head at. Expanders while I am editing? Only when I am completely retyping and not getting paid at transcription rate, but editing rate.

screwing yourself - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
You prove a point I make often. If you are doing your job smarter and utilizing the tools you have available to you, YES USE YOUR EXPANDER WHILE YOU EDIT. There's not a rule that says you can only use an expander when you straight type.

Do some research, ask the right questions, learn how to make yourself more productive w/o killing yourself.

It's being done by people using VR every day for years now.

So I'm still shaking my head.

Instead of consulting an attorney because you want paid for keystroke instead of text (which sorry, it IS insane), do research on how to use your expander or how to write macros and use fewer keystrokes and make more money.

shaking my head - who said

[ In Reply To ..]
they thought there was a RULE that they could not use macros.

Using macros is not the point.

That you would deride an MT who has an opinion or question about the way they are paid (or not paid in our case) or the amount they are paid is astounding.

shaking my head - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
I can't believe an my was incredulous at the thought of using macro or expander when editing. And sorry to have an opinion when someone wants to kvetch about unpaid keystrokes while ignoring the paid text they never touch, because sorry that's ridiculous. Then to say she's taking it to an attorney?? Give me a break. What a joke.

We're not paid for keystrokes ... - anon

[ In Reply To ..]
we're paid for characters in the finished document. It doesn't matter if it took you 1 keystroke or a dozen to make that character. If we were paid for keystrokes, we could just put a book on the spacer bar to build up our paycheck.

Have you already talked to a lawyer to see - if this is a case at all if proven? NM

[ In Reply To ..]
=

keystroke counter - SM

[ In Reply To ..]
This makes no sense. You aren't paid by the keystroke by most companies.

Think about this and where you're going with it. Think of how many people use their keyboard to high efficiency. IOW, they have lots and lots of shortcuts developed and they can do things that might take YOU 10 keystrokes, they are doing in 1.

Believe me, MTSOs would LOVE to finally say, that's right, we'll pay you for keystrokes (and the rate would be comparable to VR rates not ST rates). It's just not smart business on your part.

All this time you spend thinking of what you're not being paid, do you stop to think of the agreement you made when you took your job? You agreed to make a chart-ready product paid at xx per 65-character line. So when you turn in that VR product, you're paid for ALL the lines in it, even the ones you did NOTHING to. Now you want to say, hey, I want paid for keystrokes?

I don't get it, I really don't. You're still looking to hold someone else accountable for your choices. Suing to be paid by keystroke is one of the dumbest "rescue me" schemes I've read yet and believe me, is a door MTSOs are just begging to have opened.

who on earth pays by the keystroke? - anon

[ In Reply To ..]
at any rate - company policy (sometimes with the input of the client during the schmooooz period) will determine how you are paid for straight typing/editing. What does your contract say?

If they are paying by the line - you agreed to that by signing the contract. Method, rate are egotiable, but not once signed. You'd need a new contract and these things have no expiration date to open negotiations again.

If you are not paid by the keystroke, well, you cannot sue for something that doesn't exist for you. And so why are you looking for a "keystroke counter?" ??

Here's another awakening. As ICs, each contract is individualized. They have the right to offer paying by the line to one gal and by the report to another on the same account, same as pay rates can be related to experience. Not that they do any of this - but it's their perogative just the same.

Production is not for everyone. Personally, I miss the hourly employee days when I got paid whether I read a book or played an hour of keyboard jockey.

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