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

Salary/wage expectations - your thoughts - curious

Posted: Jan 18, 2011

I am interested in hearing what those of you with experience in this business would consider a reasonable salary or wage in today's market for doing MT. What do you think the average earnings are for doing medical transcription today. Would you say $40,000 a year would be over the top, average, or low. Better yet, if you knew a company was paying an average salary of $40,000 a year, would you consider that laughable or something worth looking into?

All thoughts are welcome and encouraged. The more the better actually.

Thanks.

sounds good to me, sm - srl

[ In Reply To ..]
I'm currently making 56k a year but once I'm laid off, I'll be interviewing for a job that will net me about 35k so quite a difference. 40k doesn't sound too awful especially if there are benefits.

OMG 40K???? - maybe 5 years ago

[ In Reply To ..]
do you know a company paying 40K a year??? hook me up! I would be happy to make 28K right now. I am pretty sure last year I made 20K. maybe even 18K. 5 years ago I was making 50K.

it's heart breaking, it really truly is. I have 12 years experience, type very fast... yet starting with an MTSO last year really really really has screwed me.

It's DISGUSTING how we have to take this. nobody can do anything about it... and the newbies and people will just keep working at slave wages for the BS this industry is becoming. I really really am heartbroken. wanted to raise my family with a job at home. what happened!!! :(

what happened - lindsey

[ In Reply To ..]
We all stopped demanding what we are worth. They know we can't afford to turn down too many jobs so they keep the pay low knowing we will have to come around. If not, they will just send it overseas. We need a union to stand up for us. For me, I only have a couple more years until I can finally retire. Its been a very long last 2 years. Finding the right company who appreciates their transcriptionists is impossible these days. I wish you all good luck but if I were young and not at the end of my working life, I would seriously consider a new career. Once it goes down this far, it will never come back to being a profitable career.

Sorry you're having a tough time on your new job - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
Maybe you should try looking around. It sounds like your new job isn't a very good fit for you. I wouldn't stay in a job I didn't like.

In today's market - ancientMT

[ In Reply To ..]
If you have someone offering you a SALARY to do MT, take it. Definitely worth looking into. I've seen jobs for MT middle management (team leads) that only pay in the mid to high mid 30's and that comes with crazy responsibility.

As to the average an MT makes today, I think there's a huge difference between those working as contractors and doing well for themselves, and those as employees who find themselves in the 30k and down ranges.

Then you would consider the following a good offer? - Curious

[ In Reply To ..]
Starting salary = $37,500 + bennies, i.e., health, dental, vision, PTO, paid downtime, etc.

Minimum production 1400 lines per day

24-hour production window

If that salary comes with production bonuses/incentives, it's - anon

[ In Reply To ..]
a very good offer, or without for for someone happy to make that level and not have to work overly hard for it. If there is no incentive or bonus plan, a high producer'd make significantly more on production pay with a company that rewards high production.

$40K is what we USE TO/SHOULD be making. - Now, its tough to even make $20K. nm

[ In Reply To ..]

I made 39,700 last year, so it can still be done. - MT

[ In Reply To ..]
**

There is a wide range with some doing much better than others - Skills matter though

[ In Reply To ..]
I've seen some MTs that have been working for years doing work that I wouldn't have accepted if I had been their boss. Now some of them are being forced out when they are slowly cutting down the amount of work they are giving them. The pickier accounts are now going to other MTs who do better work. That is what is happening to many of the experienced MTs these days. They aren't as good as they told us they were. They aren't as good as they thought they were. Nobody cared much because it was harder to find good MTs. Now there are MTs who really do have good skills. Some of them have years of experience and some don't. That doesn't matter as much as the level of skills they have. They are getting the work.

Sadly, true. And those that can make status quo work in - their favor, can do pretty well. nm

[ In Reply To ..]
x

I've got the skills, what I ain't got is the MONEY. - There IS a limit to how fast we can type,

[ In Reply To ..]
and I hit that limit years ago. Meanwhile, the cpl continues to go DOWN. No amount of fancy new software will compensate for that. And in fact, it has largely contributed to the problem by slowing us down, and by cheating us out of lines.

You "hit that limit years ago"---light goes on! - With expanders, your limit should

[ In Reply To ..]
be constantly expanding. I've been using an expander for a decade and keep adding to it every day. I bet I started off slower than you too.

Maybe it's worthless talking to you because you should have figured it out yourself a decade ago too, but: If you want a lot more money, get yourself some of that "fancy new software" and use it.

I use expanders constantly. But no matter - how fast i can type, it doesnt - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
matter when I have to re-log-in to the company's website every time I go to a differenti field, such as from demographics to templates, and back to the report. An then, it takes forever to load. It's slow, slow, slow!

So yes, I can type and transcribe faster than ever with expanders and shortcuts, but there's a limit to how much software-slowness my typing speed can make up for.

Hmmm, sounds hopeless for you then. - NM

[ In Reply To ..]
x

expectations - lindsey

[ In Reply To ..]
After 24 years in this business, I have gone from 13 cents per line to making half of minimum wage per hour. If there was a real company offering $40,000 for the work I'm devoted my whole life to, I would have to say.....whats the catch?

Lindsey, come on, how can that be? Half of minimum - wage per hour? BTW, CURIOUS,

[ In Reply To ..]
I work about 30-32 hours a week (actual work time at the keyboard) and made just short of $40K last year. For an MTSO. And, yes, my income has gone down too.

To evaluate what people are making, you have to figure that people in this field fall into some really different pay groups according to what they bring to it, what they're given to work with, the actual time worked, and pay scale. You need to figure out who sounds like you and go with those. For instance, I can only guess and wonder at why, but for whatever combo of reasons, Lindsey and I live 2 different realities even if we carry the same job description. Also, I do work for a pretty decent paying company, but not everyone working there makes good money.

Attitude and work ethics also make a difference in income - Believe it or not

[ In Reply To ..]
Some MTs are just better to work with than others. I prefer to work with people who have strong work ethics and are willing to do the work the way the client wants it done. There are MTs who have done things their way for 30 years and are not willing to follow changing instructions. Others are. Guess which ones are getting more work?! They are also getting the most important accounts, because nobody wants to lose those. The clients don't care that the MT has always done it that way and "if it was good enough for my last accounts over the last 30 years, it's good enough for you." That makes no difference to them at all. They just want it done their way.

True. I was like for a short period of time. Then I realized no MTSO - was going to change for me just becuase SM

[ In Reply To ..]
I thought what they did "unfair" or that my way was the only way. The work needs to be done, they dont care if by me or by Jane Doe. And they want to get down to the lowest wage. Basically, they have a price they want to pay and they dont care if your name is on the check or my name is on the check. This is business, not family and friends. Now I do the work how they want it, what does it matter to me? I am making a wage I am happy with. I am a high producer cause it is to MY advantage.

If you are making half of minimum wage, there are other jobs you can do at home. - me

[ In Reply To ..]
My sister is a customer service rep at home and averages about $10 an hour.

I made 55K last year but with 2 jobs, 1 FT - and 1 PT. NM

[ In Reply To ..]
x

I know lots of people (not just MTs) who would like to switch places with you - Jobs are scarce everywhere these days

[ In Reply To ..]
This is really a tough economy. It's amazing that you were able to find a way to make that much money when lots of people can't find a job at all!

That says a lot about your ability to find and do good work. There are lots of people who can't do that.

That has been my average salary for about 3 years (sm) - Ally

[ In Reply To ..]
My average used to be $58,000 to $60,000 prior to 3 years ago, but now the past 3 years I have only been averaging $40,000 due to editing, which I detest.

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