Tech Pay???? Is it this bad everywhere?(loveukaykay)

 What kind of tech?  Vet?  IT? Nursing?

I don't think you're being unreasonable at all, but every time I turn the news on I hear about places going under and/or laying people off so it's possible that they really don't have the money now to give raises.  I know it's a bummer, but yeah, I do think it's that bad just about everywhere. My entire state is supposedly going to be bankrupt sometime this month and people are expected to get IOUs instead of their tax refund from the state. 

Joyce

One of the main reasons I decided against going to school to be a vet tech (after going through the application process and being accepted, even!) was due to the low and inconsistent pay.  I don't think that it really stands up to jobs with similar education requirements, unfortunately.  It's a labor of love more than a get-rich scheme.

Unfortunately vet clinics are being hit just as hard as everyone else.  There was recently an article in our local paper about this very thing.  Apparently pet owners are still coming in for most of the "basics," but the more elective stuff (teeth cleaning, therapy, etc.) is way, way, way down.  People are also starting to stretch out their shots further and order more supplies from online business like 1-800-Petmeds.  All of this hurts the vet clinic's bottom line.

I'm sorry you are having difficulties.  Are you being employed full time with no benefits?  That would be the biggest thing to take up with your employer -- to see if you can work out some sort of health benefits at least.

Vet Tech.

Well I know a lot of places are going out of business, but its just hard to watch this woman do what she does and then tell me shes broke.  Her husband who is also a vet at the practice (who doesnt take sppts anymore becasue hes too busy) is also the Comissioner of the Dept of Agriculture and is running for governor.  His wife... a vet there... and owner with him... takes off every day for about 4 hours in the middle of the day to shop.  She has recently been shopping for ball gowns for all the Mardi Gras balls shes been going to.  Last weekend she flew her daughter in from Arkansas JUST to go to a ball with her.  I over heard her talking about the price of the gown on the phone and it was around $2,000, not to mention plane tickets, her own gown.... I heard her ordering a vest to match her husbands tails for the same ball from a ritzy boutique downtown.  Shes also off for weeks at a time while they vacation.  One of our doctors is having her baby this month and will be out and they are not replacing her which will leave our practice with 1 and a half doctors basically.  So, my hopes of a raise are long gone.  They just seem to be out of touch with reality... constantly talking about how we need to get more people in while they dwindle their staff and try to make due with as little amount of employees as possible and pay them nothing.  Even if we were as busy as they hope those people would go eslewhere becasue there is no one to serve them!

Its not my business what they spend their money on but at the same time, it sort of is when Im being told I dont get the raise I deserve and was promised because they are broke while I watch them and their extravagant lifestyle at the same time.

Sorry I really needed that rant!

I left work early today and stopped by a vet right next to my house and applied.  The guy saw me in my scrubs and asked where I work now... we started talking so he took me in the back and after a long talk and him testing me on stuff.  He wants me to come back tomorrow.  Asked how much I was making now and said "well this just mught really work out in your favor... can you be back tomorrow at 2:30 to meet the doctors?"  And of course I said WELL  YES!  I hope this goes well.. trying not to get my hopes up although its hard.

 

I'm glad I read to the end of your post about your present employer. LOL  I was going to suggest you find a new clinic to work for. Good luck tomorrow!

loveukaykay

Asked how much I was making now and said "well this just mught really work out in your favor... can you be back tomorrow at 2:30 to meet the doctors?"  And of course I said WELL  YES!  I hope this goes well.. trying not to get my hopes up although its hard.

Funny how things things work out.  Good luck!  I'll be thinking good thoughts for you.

great!

eta: *oy! brainfart!* thought I was responding to a different post lol...good luck to you!

Good luck tomorrow hope it works out for you.

loveukaykay

I hope this goes well.. trying not to get my hopes up although its hard.

I hope it goes well for you too!! If it's meant to be it will...... I would have a hard time watching them live extravagantly while refusing a raise and claiming to be "broke!" That would not fly with me at all. You are being proactive and I think that's the best way to handle it. You need the job you have until you find something that pays better and where you feel respected. I'm sending good vibes and will come back for an update!! Good luck!!

I am constantly amazed at how little licensed Vet Techs get paid. Techs are the BACKBONE of the clinic and it's shameful they get compensated so little. But salary is a problem spread all around vet medicine....I look at my 130,000 in debt and then at the 50 to 60 k salary I'll make for the first ten years and shake in my boots a little. :( 9.50/hr is definitely on the low end. 7.00/hr is outrageous, that's what you pay the kennel staff and the assistants, not the techs.

I know several people that are vet techs. In fact, I got my rescue from one. She complains about the pay and the hours.. and the Vets she works with. From moving to MD to GA, there seems to be a change on the knowledge level. Her new job, the vets make her feel dumb yet she has been doing this job for several years. I am pretty sure she wants to get out of the profession and go onto something else. She has told me horror stories of how the animals are treated because they are fighting the staff since they are STRESSED OUT ... when they disappear from the owner's eyes. Like one dog that came in for a shot (not for vaccinations) for his medical condition ended up being PARALYZED because she witnessed the other techs and the Vet MANHANDLE and FORCE the dog down thus doing damage to the dog. She told me never ever let them take your dog away from you for a simple shot as you would be amazed what some of these people would do just to do their job. they don't care for the mental state for the dog hence why most animals are terrified in going to vet. I almost throttled one Vet for LYING to me about the shot she gave me dog as I did NOT want an "combo shot" for vaccination. I get hot just thinking about it. I don't trust a lot of Vets. Yes, there are some good vets out there but for the majority thats in there for business and no personal care.. F! OFF! I really don't know what to think of the Vet profession. As I am going through some issues with one of my dogs, it seems like I have to decide on what tests to tell the Vet what to do. Its like I am the Vet and he is there to be my monkey. I really don't know what to think of the profession based on what I have seen here in NW PA. I am not impressed. Sorry for going OT. I don't blame her one bit for leaving.

Wow, Amy, you do deserve to be treated better.  I really hope the best works out for you (perhaps the place closer to home will be *perfect*!)

Just last night I had a discussion with my sister when she insisted I should go to school to become a vet tech.  I explained they just don't get paid what they should for all the hard work and training put into their careers.  In my mind, I equate it to being a K-12 teacher - you do it for the love of it and how you want to make a difference in the lives of children (or animals, in the case of vet techs).... but not for the pay.

Yes, there are some good vets out there but for the majority thats in there for business and no personal care..

OT but I just felt compelled to reply to this....I'm sorry about your experiences, but what you have experienced is not, NOT the majority....If vets were in it for the money, they would not spend 10 to 12 years in medical education (4 years in college and then 4.5 MORE years of medical school, and usually 3 MORE years in residency after that) and go $130,000 to $300,000 dollars in debt (which takes 15 to 20 years to pay off )  to earn a paltry 60k/yr for 50 to 70 hour weeks in the work field....if we were that business/money inclined, we would have chosen a profession that actually pays in accordance with debt accrued and education.

 

luvukaykay, let us know how the meeting goes

I'm a tech and I can say that, in the two practices I've worked at, animals have never been "manhandled" in the back.