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

MDI/Transcend conference call - moreconfusedthanever

Posted: Nov 17, 2009

Alrighty, what do you all make of that conference call? I seem to have heard confilicting information, would you agree? Line rate decrease definite, oh wait, everything taken on individual basis... which is it? What do you all make of this latest?

Agree... it seemed most people had not heard - confused2

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the apparent NEW line decrease. Last conference call I heard, they said if your line rate was above the industry standard, and you were wanting full-time employee status, then you would have a pay cut, which makes total sense to me, but for part-time, those poor people are getting ripped off. IMO

MDI mess - still confused

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Right, and I'm starting to feel slightly insulted to think THEY seem to think we have not been paying attention. "Not going to change what's working"... blahblahblah

I can't understand why someone who just wants to continue at their present line rate, wants nothing to do with benefit and HAS NO INTENTION of taking the benefits, why should that person have their line rate cut. I could see it if you partake of the benefits, but if you are not going to take the benefits, why not leave your line rate ALONE until such time you do want to sign up for the benefits????

MDI mess - donewithit

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I'm done with all of it. By January 1st, I will not be an employee for either company. As a matter of fact, I will be done with the MT field completely! I took a job out of the house and am going back to school for nursing. I'm just fed up with all of it. Good luck to those who stay! I hope the merger goes smoothly for you!

donewithit - Sammy

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CONGRATULATIONS and good for you! I think you are smart and only wish I could do the same thing. I am more than fed up with MDI. I am disillusioned.

Sammy - donewithit

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You could do the same thing! It's unbelievable what we put up with for years and years, and constantly get crapped on. I accepted my new job and was told that after 90 days I would get a raise. I did a "woohoo" and the HR lady laughed at me. I said sorry, I haven't gotten one of those in a long time and got overly excited. LOL

I'm not going to miss MT at all. I actually miss working out of the house and am looking forward to going back.

Good luck!

Doing the same thing - Sammy

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Actually, I could not, for medical reasons. I, too, miss working out of the house and envy you. I may explore making a change in the spring if it is possible. Meanwhile, I am happy for you!

Sammy - donewithit

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Thanks! I hope you can find something to do that will make you happy! :)

Wish you well NM - Congrats!

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zzzzzzzzzz

Thanks!........................nm - donewithit

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x

Had to miss the call..would someone please give me a brief synopsis of what transpired? nm - MDIr

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nm

Other bennies besides insurance - MDIertoo

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There are other benefits involved other than just insurance. You will still get the paid time off, paid holidays. I don't think you would want to give up those benefits would you? I don't know about you, but it's been a long time since I got paid for not working, or actually got paid while I took a little vaca !!!

Other benefits-not for PT - Long Time MT

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I am a long time Transcend employee and if you are part time you got no other benefits; no PT, no paid holidays, nothing but 401K. Just trying to clarify for those who think there might be benefits for PT.

PTO at $12 per hour... better than nothing? NM - MDI Still

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No message

$12 per hr. is almost twice what I average now. - MTSOs can all go -

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to H-E-double hockey-stick.

MDI ripoff - Sammy

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We are all going to get ripped off. I originally went with MDI because I only wanted part-time. I went with them because I actually believed their story about being for the AMERICAN MT, never offshoring, being proud Americans, yada, yada. Kind of makes you wonder, doesn't it? Don't worry, everybody is going to get ripped off. Wait and see.

Well, not EVERYONE! - IAMT

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MTs will be getting ripped off for sure but bet the suits and others still will be doing quite fine.

IAMT - Sammy

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IAMT, you are absolutely right! I am sure that the suits will be sitting on their yachts, enjoying their martinis and having those 16 million dollar symbols dancing around like sugarplums in their heads.......

I must have misunderstood 2 - me2confused

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before. Not much time to consider when we finally receive the info since a holiday in here.

Also as employee at home, from what I've done before on taxes when was employee for a short time, you can only deduct home office expenses if they meet threshold of 2% AGI, and then only expenses above that amount. Hard to meet for me and is a cut in itself not being able to deduct those. Anyone know something different they could share about home office deductions and employee status? Someone briefly touched on the subject but just get answer consult tax consultant, can't afford one, just going on what has happened using tax software and what it told me in the past. Don't understand having to get EIN (employer identification number) if not going to have employees myself, etc. Looked it up to see who is required to have EIN.

Guess will just have to wait and see what's in the info sent.

Deducting home office - Sammy

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I DID contact my tax guy who says if I am employee my deductions/write offs go right out the window. He also said for me not to forget that the IRS will be watching all of this like hawks.

Thanks for letting me know! - me2confused

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Thanks for sharing your info from your tax guy. That's what I thought, but couldn't be certain I didn't mess up doing the figures since did them myself. Thx!

Industry standard? Isn't that price fixing? - mte

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We have antitrust laws on the books that prohibit that kind of thing. But I guess they don't care.

Other laws broken - Norton

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I have been told that it was illegal for them to classify us as SEs and then request that we sign up for certain hours on Saturdays, etc. It seems that they crossed the line when they asked us to commit to certain hours. They wanted to have their cake and eat it, too. And apparently they got it. I am waiting for the day I can leave MTing.

What DOESNT this industry do thats illegal? - MTSO means: (sm)

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"Medical Transcription SCAM Operation"

or

"More Tacky Suits Offshoring"

What exactly is the industry standard? - Long Time MT

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What exactly is the industry standard? I would be interested to know. I've been 5 years without a raise because I am supposedly at the top of the pay scale. Where is the incentive for a job well done and loyalty?

Just out of curiosity (sm) - Long time MT

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What did they quote the industry standard as being? I wasn't aware that we had an industry standard for pay, and even if we did....isn't that price fixing?

Conference call- what chaos! - Confused MDI-MT

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I thought that the information was jumbled to say the least. As for me, I am going with IC status. There are a lot of benefits, one of which being I do not have to worry about 35 hours, $900, or part time with no hours or $450, or can I work over 40 hours if I want extra money like I am used to doing, and on and on! I do not believe that it took Transcend almost 4 months to figure out that it was not legal to have us stay with SE status. They knew from the start that they were not going to do this. Why is it illegal? They are going to deduct taxes from the employees, so why not just deduct the SS and Medicare tax from the rest? With each conference call I get more of a bad feeling than I did with the one before. Time will tell but since I do not need any of their "rich benefit package" (it is?) I will go with IC and hopefully keep my working life as uncomplicated as possible. I am not going to give up 0.5 cpl for benefits I do not need nor want and in addition to that, pay the horrible insurance premium for the one decent plan they have. Between the two, I wonder how much the company is actually contributing. I am also very interested in seeing what our line rates will be when we get our packets in a few days. Hopefully they stayed the same, but at this point in time I am skeptical.

line cut - MDI2

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You either give up 0.5 cpl for benefits you don't want or you start paying 7.5% self-employment tax if you are an IC (which for me would be a 0.75 cpl cut). No getting around some sort of cut apparently.

IC is still better in this case if - MDI-MT

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you do not need the benefits. Go on line and take a look at the deductions. You may pay the 15.3% but at the end of the year you can deduct all of your business expenses directly against your income, even if you DO NOT itemize. Your expenses also reduce the amount of your income that is subject to FICA. In addition, a large portion of medical insurance can also be deducted,if you pay your own. As for the EIN, I am not sure why this would be required, but you can easily obtain one on line for free. For me, this is the route I take or I take the alternative route which is out the door at MDI/Transcend.

It is really 0.5 cpl (5 cents) cut or do you mean 0.05 (1/2 cent) cut??? - NM

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x

1/2 cent - MDI2

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1 cpl = 1 cent per line
0.5 cpl = 1/2 cent per line

Confused as well - Sammy

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Well, I am confused, too, but five will get you ten everybody gets the shaft as far as line rates. This whole deal stinks on ice.

SE status - me2confused

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Wondering about just exactly why can't keep SE, somehow not really surprised though. Used to work as SE and they also had employees, didn't seem to be a problem.

I can see why they don't want to do - confused2

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SE and employee status. That is very, very complicated for payroll. Each state has their own rules. They would have to pay attention to who is an employee and that they didn't go over the 40 hours. Some states require OT pay for certain siturations, some don't. It would be a mess. I understand that aspect of it, but not the cutting of pay for people who aren't going to use the benefits. Using the whole reasoning that we might want benefits in the future and they have no way to track that, seems like a lame excuse. How about they have people "opt out" of using the benefits in lieu of the pay cut with a form that goes in our employee file. Then, in the future if that person wants benefits, they will see the form and say you signed an "opt out" form, so in order to get benefits you need a rate cut.

To Confused 2 - Sammy

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But what you say makes too much sense. It is too simple a solution. Besides, what they really want is a way to sc**w people and this is the way they are doing it. MDI has turned into the biggest opportunist on the block, at the MTs' expense. Of all the companies I never would have suspected would do this, it would have been MDI. But this is unrolling like it came right out of the MQ playbook. Wonder how they can sleep at night? But then again, 16 million will buy a lot of sleeping pills......

It is funny, but I trust what the Transcend reps - confused2

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say more than CB or D. I listened to one conference call, where the main lady at Transcend (forgot her name) seemed irritated that CB was not providing more info to us. I was impressed with that. It seems like CB and D are very guarded with the info and the Transcend lady just wanted everything out in the open. I think if I had any questions, I would just go straight to Transcend to ask at this point. Even the HR lady with Transcend seemed more forthcoming with info.

Transcend "main lady" - op

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That was the president of Transcend, named Sue. I do wonder why she was not part of this call today, though. I too thought she was trustworthy, but now I just don't know. Seems strange that CB or D did not even mention her name today...

Transcend main lady - Ex-footballer

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I would bet that CB and D are going to (or would like to) blindside the Transcend main lady, Sue, just like they blindsided us MTs. Fellow football fans will know the play.

"Trustworthy Suit" is an oxymoron. - Twister

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nm

Confused2 - I am with you! - Italian gal

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I am with you. I do not trust CB or D at all. If they said the sun was shining I would walk outside and look at the sky.

I agree - dh

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I do not either. I get conflicting information and misinformation that I cannot elaborate on and then when I prove it wrong I get nothing!

Ha! MQ.....nm - are we all singing in harmony yet?

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zzzzzz

Confused2 - Sammy

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Sometime just for fun, look at how many of the principals at MDI were at one time bigwigs at MQ. It seems they learned their lessons well.

The only drawback with IC status and a company like this - Worked for Transcend before

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Is that IC, the company has no obligations to you whatsoever to provide work. At least there is a little, albeit VERY little, incentive to provide work to the employees, when work is short the company will move mountains to make sure the employees have work available so they can't claim unemployment. IC's on the other hand are not a concern for them. IC status is great if you're only working to keep yourself busy, like a retiree and such. If you NEED the steady income, be very careful about IC status with a large company like this with over 2400 employees. They will always come before those with IC status.

What is there to be confused about? - DMZ

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I don't see what was confusing about this conference call....doesn't anyone take notes during the calls in case questions come up later? Bottom line is pretty simple: The individual offer letters go out tomorrow, there will be a half cent line line decrease, if you want to be an IC you have to met fed guidelines, you must make $900/per pay for FT to get bennies and $450 for PT. You will continue your monthly line commitment calendars until Jan. A new Time Tracks system will be implemented, based on an honor system. You can't work over 40 hours without your TL's approval. You will be paid twice a month instead of every other week, and the new schedule with pay periods will be sent out by Transcend as the last MDI check will be dated 01/31/2010. You will no longer be allowed statutory status. You will still have the same accounts and flexibility. And, by the way, the decrease of half cent in line count has been mentioned in several of the prior conference calls. Those who don't need the benefits, good for you - but to whine about such a small decrease seems childish. If you had to pay for benefits on your own, you'd be paying well over $1000 a month for single coverage....I know, because I have investigated it. So quit whining, if you don't like the offer, just resign in January and move on and stop beating a dead horse. Have a wonderful afternoon.

DMZ - Harley

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You smell like a management shill to me.

I agree with DMZ, no management here - Pretty Clear to Me Too

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Ah, the ever present "joy" of this board is to get called management if you say anything that goes against the wave of worrying and negativity. My experience was the same as DMZ, I took notes in every conference, and I heard the same as she did.
In the last 2 conference calls I listened to, they DID make mention that they were not clear if there would be a pay cut for PT status, and that would be discussed and decided.

All of these questions raised here, anything anyone is not crystal clear on, send an email to Sue, Jimmie, Carlotta, and Dorothy and ask it! Why sit here and worry about not understanding, feeling confused, or not having your questions fully answered. Just ask and gain knowledge for yourself. Knowledge is power!

I am disappointed though, I will say, that they did not offer an Opt Out of benefits option and allow us to keep our current pay. I disagree with the comment that was made during the call that this is actually an equitable decision made for all of us - from where I sit, it is not.

Interestly, I felt VERY pushed towards FT, away from PT (the comment was made by mgmt as to WHY would you want to be PT when you can get benefits- which is just plain unfair statement, and definitely felt steered away from IC (they will barely even discuss it).

Good luck to us all in making decisions that work best for us.

Majority of comments made on this thread are just opinions and - confused2

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emotions. I don't care for the slamming and hurtful negative comments either, but I also don't care for comments like DMZ, that is essentially yelling at people for venting or stating their opinion.

Original post - the op

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Right. Actually, my original post was to address the way conflicting answers were given when basically the same question was asked more than once. First, the answer seemed to be everybody gets the pay cut, then when another person asked the same question but with different wording, the answer was the pat "individual basis" deal. All I want is the truth ...

Conflicting responses - I agree

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I heard the same as you did about the pay cut.

What I heard was this:

1. FT and PT employees ALL get 0.5 cpl pay cut. Period.

2. There is no Opt Out Option, all employees get this cut regardless of accepting any/all/some/none of the benefits. We get the pay cut just for the ever present possibility of having them (woohoo).

3. Even IC MAY get a pay cut, that this would be addressed on an individual basis. Did anyone else here this?

3. When pressed (the questions were often the same, just worded different), D then said that that for BOTH FT and PT, that if an MT wants no benefits and wants the same CPL (no pay cut), that it would be addressed on an individual basis. This is in direct conflict with the comments made that there is an across the board 0.5 pay cut for FT and PT employees.

May seem confusing, but to me, it can be made clear by this: If you are someone who wants no benefits, then you just call/write them and ask that it be addressed, as offered by them, on a case by base basis, and ask for no pay cut in exchange for taking no benefits.

They said very clearly that it was an option (the case by case comment) even after saying it was not an option (to opt out of benefits for no pay cut). I say go for it if you need that.

Anyway, that's how I see it.

TOO FUNNY - DMZ

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Well, I'm not and you can think what you like, it's of no consequence to me. I just find it terribly sad that some would rather P&M here among themselves instead of being constructive and just go straight to the source of your questions - the management - to have your questions answered. I've questioned D and the Transcend mgt several times when I've had questions that weren't to my satisfaction and they always responded either by phone or email - and I may not be happy about a pay cut either, but I'm sure happy to have a job that will still pay my bills. You sound like a pessimist and it would appear that you are in good company among some of this board.

DMZ - Harley

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I am not a pessimist; I am a realist. There is a big difference. Face it, honey, you (we) have been had.

I agree with DMZ - me

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Had or not is irrelevant. The issue is easy. If you are happy and want to continue great, if not then stop griping and find another job. I agree with DMZ. I have contacted management as well and feel my questions have been answered. Nothing is perfect in this world....NOTHING. There will always be change. The only way to survive is to roll with the punches. As for me, I am so very happy that I have a job that allows me to stay home and feel that with the way things are in the economy today that taking a 0.05 cent cut is minor when I could be without a job (which I had been before). There are lots of crappy jobs out there, so weigh your options very carefully and then decide is this really the worst thing that can happen??

Then quit - DMZ

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and be done with it instead of crying the blues. Simple.

Oh grow up - Long Time MT

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Please grow up. Everyone with common sense must be a "company shill" She wasn't rah rahing the company she was giving a synopsis of the conference call. Please try to act like an adult.

Some of us don't need the benefits, nor have to pay - confused2

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for our own benefits, so it is just a pay cut for nothing. Some of us cannot jump onto every one of the conference calls. I had never heard this across the board pay cut before today. No emails. No leters in the mail. Nothing. It would seem to me, when all this info has been up in the air, that we all would have gotten some notification of a decision being made about our pay. I know I am not the only one who didn't know this, because everyone else seemed to have not heard this either.

Pay cut - DMZ

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Please - the first 1-2 conference calls were taped, so you could have had access to them at some point to find out what happens without jumping into every call...if nothing else, how hard it is just to ask straight out what is going on?

Please - right back at you. I listened to the first 2 conference - confused2

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and after that, they didn't tape any, or if they did, they didn't tell anyone they taped them. This is management... the people who are "organizing" all this info and providing it, so I don't think I should have to constantly be calling and emailing them to ask what is going on. I assume, like many others, that when new info comes to light or a decision has been made, that those of us affected by it will be informed. That doesn't seem to much to expect.

Wow. Where did you get all that from my post? - Worked for Transcend before

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I never once said I was confused about the changes. I said that working as IC status for a company with 2400 employees puts a person at risk for no work when the work load is very low. The company is going to provide work to their 2400 employees before an IC. They do this so they don't have to pay unemployment. ICs don't get unemployment.

That was ALL I said. I think you're the one that's confused.

IC - sm

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I think she was responding to the OP and just put it in the wrong place.

I think you make an important point, something to definitely take into considerationg if thinking about IC status with Transcend.

radiology does not know - bs

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As a radiology MT paid per report I will not know until my packet arrives and that is what I was told after I asked specifically so I am glad to know per line knows their decrease but I do not which is what has me frustrated. I know when the packet comes I will know but do not understand why they mentioned the 1/2 cent but will not mention about the rad.

Benefit payments - MDIMT

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You said "if you had to pay for benefits on your own, you'd be paying well over $1000 a month for single coverage." This is not exactly correct, and I would like to know where you got that figure. I now pay for single COBRA coverage $525 a month. It is a little high, but nothing near $1000 a month.

INS PAYMENTS - DMZ

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Independent Health - single premium payment over $1080 a month, for family coverage, $2882 a month - I got it in the mail last week.

insurance - sm

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I agree - I pay about $375 a month for myself and 2 kids for about the same medical and dental coverage that Transcend offers through Blue Cross on an individual policy. I think it depends a lot on how old you are, health history, different insurance companies, etc.

INS - DMZ

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Well, the cheapest I have seen for me and my hub would be $998 - we aren't THAT old. :) (50s).... Right now, we are "insuranceless" and so shall remain. Even the crap coverage I had required $300 a month, and a $2500 deductible B4 they paid anything...nasty business, insurance - they don't like to pay for anything, just tell the docs how long their patients can stay in - very sad.

I pay $420 for a single policy, $1500 deductible. Nowhere near 1000 NM - Still a benefit though.

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No message

As it should be. - NM

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x

Sounds exactly like what happened at - sm - Twister

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Acusis earlier this year. Line rate decrease out of the blue, changing everyone's work tier status, lots of doublespeak during the conference calls and e-mails that followed.

The MT companies are sure milking the recession to the fullest, aren't they? So hmmmm, I wonder: When it all turns around someday, and everyone (except us of course) is making money again, do you think our line rate will go UP?

Hahaha... yeah, RIGHT.

I have listened for the extent of every call and taken notes and today was the FIRST time I had hear - Not happy

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inquired as to what if she could not make the $450 for a given PP and Jimmy said that is when PTO would come into play, etc. However, we've been told repeatedly that PT people do NOT get PTO, that the only PT benefit is 401K.

I was feeling pretty good about things until they dropped the bomb today that PT will ALSO be getting an across the board paycut. I know this has not been mentioned prior because I have followed that very closely and was stunned to hear this today.

If the FT paycut is for benefits, which I can understand, how do they justify the SAME paycut for PT whose only benefit is 401K? If PT people are giving up the same paycut as FT, then they should be eligible for the same benefits since that is the reason given for the paycut. I know not everyone even caught the PT paycut, because after that people still were asking if they could stay PT but work FT hours so they could keep their line rate instead of taking the paycut they would get if they were FT.

that got messed up. should've said "1st time I had heard about the PT paycut and that one - Not happy

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x

Paycuts - MDI4now

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As I said above, I missed the conference call this morning (my screen didn't refresh or I wouldn't have posted above). Could you please clarify what was said about paycuts. The only thing I heard about paycuts on previous calls was that if we are making more than 9 cpl, there would be 1/2 cpl paycut to switch to employee status. Nothing was differentiated between PT or FT, just employee status. Is this still the statement being made or was something different stated today? TIA!

That is exactly what I had heard in the past. Now, - confused2

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they are saying 1/2 cent cut across the board for everyone moving to employee status, whether you are full-time, part-time and whether you want the benefits or not.

So are they now saying - MDI4now

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it doesn't matter if you make more than 9 cpl or not, just 1/2 cpl for everyone switching to employee?

Yep, as far as I know. Many people said that was the first they had heard this, so I don't kno - confused2

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I know this was the first I had heard this. I just remember in the previous discussions, the ones where Sue was in the conference, they said if you were moving to employee status and made more than 9 cents, than you would receive a 1/2 cent paycut. Now it is anyone moving to employee status. Maybe you should email D or CB and ask for a summary of the conference. It seems weird that now the story has changed... well maybe not :(

My take on the pay cuts - NOT if you make less than 9 cpl - MDIstill

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This is my view point. The 0.5 cpl pay cut is now for FT and PT regardless of utilizing benefits. This would still only be for MTs who make more than 9 cpl. There is no reason to assume this goes for every single MT even if they make 8 cpl, they did NOT say this and I see no reason to assume it. That has not changed. So, if you make more than 9 cpl, and you choose FT or PT employee, there is a 0.5 pay cut. And, if you make 9 cpl or less, you will not receive a pay cut as either FT or PT employee. That is what I am hearing.

BUT, what everyone seems to have missed is that D made it very clear at the very end of the conference that this CAN be on a base to case basis, so the hard and fast rule is not so hard and fast (and, yes, that is conflicting information). But it was very clearly stated that we could ask about not getting a pay cut if we opt out of all benefits for FT or PT.

To me, the only thing that really changed was that they made the decision that the 0.5 pay cut was for PT too - before, I had heard them very clearly state that they weren't sure whether there was a pay cut for PT or not, and left it up in the air, and also left it that there was a possibility that pay could stay the same at PT. I don't see it as a major change, as they said they were not sure. They just didn't pick the choice that all of us feel is most equitable, and that is, an opt out of benefits option to keep our same pay rate.

She said "across the board." She didn't say those making less than 9 cpl sm - confused2

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Even when 3 to 4 people said they had not heard this before, they did not clarify that it was only for certain people and certain people making a certain cpl... she said across the board and even said that this makes it "fair" for everyone.

Very different interpretations. - MDIstill.

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What I heard was across the board meaning anyone who wants to be an employee- and the ACROSS THE BOARD referred to both full time and part time.

I do not believe that it will include every single person no matter what CPL they make. I will eat crow if I'm wrong, but I didn't hear that and in no way did I interpret the across the board to mean EVERY SINGLE MDI MT will have a pay cut of 0.5 no matter what.

I do not believe they are going back on what they said about the 9 cpl cut off and see no reason whatsover to assume that.

confused2 - Sammy

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When you think of it, it is not weird at all. As Gordon Gecko famously said in Wall Street, "GREED IS GOOD.

Benefit Telephone Conference Call - MDI-MT

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I was listening to the conference call several weeks ago on the Benefit Package. It was there that I heard we would all take a 1/2 cpl cut to be either PT or FT employees. That was when I started to investigate being an IC. This was stated by HR during the Benefit Package call, but then during the conference call just before this one today, no one could answer my question when I tried to confirm that even PT employees would have to take the same cut. Now today, it is once again back in the game. However, during the Benefit Package Conference Call, I heard it stated that PT employees had to take a cut because they qualified for PTO, pro-rated, according to hours worked. At that point I figured out what I would lose off my yearly income by taking that cut versus what I would gain in PTO. They said the average pay for PTO would be $12 per hour. If I work 4 hours per day and took 10 days per year, I would gross $480 for that vacation before deductions. However, based on what I transcribe now, I would be losing approximately $2,000 per year with the 1/2 cpl cut. Why would I want to make that trade off? When the answers started to conflict and change, I began to question the honesty and consistency of this transition. After today's conference call, I am very concerned. When the Welcome Packets arrive, I am certain this board will be humming once again, because the rate cuts will probably be very apparent. I was told by Sue that my rate was "safe" so we shall see.

PT PTO - MDI2

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Didn't Jimmie say on the call today that the only benefit PT qualified for was 401K?

Just looked back on an email with Q&A with Transcend management dated 09/02/09 and it was asked what benefits PT qualified for and the answer was only 401K, but answers seem to be shifting on other things, so who knows. I don't think anything is in stone until we get those contracts.

I just pulled up my email from CB, in which she attached the file - confused2

[ In Reply To ..]
from Transcend that summarizes the benefits. It states the only benefit a PT employee is eligible for is the 401. In fact, there is a FAQ section of this benefit summary, in which it is specifically asked if PT employees are eligible for PTO and the answer is no.

I heard Jimmie say PT qualities for ONLY 401K. NM - Clear as mud

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xxxx No message

To MDI-MT - Enigma

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Any former MQers now working for MDI? Does any of this remind you of the New Rewards Plan?

Some does, some does not - Former MQ-er

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For me, MQ took forEVER to make significant changes from the company I had been with when we were "acquired" by MQ. I believe this is because MQ had gobbled up so many companies, it really did take years to get every company on the same track. So for the first number of years, only a few changes, most were actually good.

It wasn't until the forced employeehood that things changed for me, and that was in 2006, right? I stayed a nightmarish year and then found MDI.

I just don't get the same feeling about it all as I did with MQ, and not sure why. It may be that I am simply choosing to assume it is not. A major difference is that with MQ, we had to click in/out and, at least my supervisor was a total micromanaging nut non-MT who also refused to respond to emails in a timely fashion- they did NOT stress flexibility. So, with Transcend, we do not have to clock in and out and they stress flexibility.

Many other differences, but that is just for starters. Who knows though.

Not happy - Sammy

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They justify it because it puts more $$$$$ in their pockets.

These people are every bit as evil as the - banking industry, the inside traders - sm

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in the stock market, and Bernie Madhoff. I sure wish there was some sort of a regulatory group in our country that felt, as most of us do, that all MTSOs want is to form a monopoly of 2 or 3 big megacompanies, and then cheat every last dime and shred of self-worth out of their employees. May they all get Swine Flu and croak.

Yes, they are every bit as bad - Sammy

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I believe in what Hindus and Buddhists call karma. I do believe that their actions will have consequences and they will pay up. Everybody eventually does. The sad thing is that meanwhile many people have been harmed by the ongoing lack of ethics in the MTSO community. I know one woman who nearly lost her house because she could not pay her house note last spring/summer when the work was so low and everybody tap-danced about why this was happening. She finally got a different job, but nearly lost her family's home in the meantime. And yes, I realize they could not have revealed the merger in advance. That is not how it is done. So what is the answer? I don't know. I just know that humanity and decency seem to have gone out the window. Bernie Madoff is the 2009 version of Gordon Gecko. And we have them in our industry, too. And, by and large, many of them have built their success on the backs of MTs yet they conveniently forget who has been busily working for them day in and day out. I am making a plan B to get out of MT altogether as soon as it works for my family. I wish everybody the best, whether they go or stay. And to the few ethical, decent MTSOs out there (and you know who you are!) --your good karma will catch you, too. :)-

MDI/Transcend - Patience

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I have to say there is no need to get so crazy about this merger. It is going to be what the corner-office men/women say it is going to be and that is it. Accept it or move on.

It is going to be just like MQ all over again. Over the next 18 months, I predict there will be major, major changes and probably not to the MT's benefit; it never is. It happens with any buyout, merger, hostile take over what ever. This is not new. I plan to keep my nose to the grind stone while I can survive on what I make and my ears to the ground for opportunities.

Patience - Me

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You have stated the problem very succinctly: IT'S GOING TO BE LIKE MQ ALL OVER AGAIN. Enough said.

It is what it is (sm) - MDI_TOO

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I am not looking forward to the merger whatsoever. I am going to work for them for roughly 6 months and see how it goes. In the meantime I will be looking for other opportunites out there that are not related to the MT field. I am tired of getting screwed.

MDI/Transcend - KC

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I wonder if prn MTs will get packets? I took another job and went prn with MDI when all this stuff started, but I would be really curious to see what they have to offer.

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