I noticed an MSC is hiring part-time, work from home, set your own schedule proofreaders and was surprised that it paid $8.10 an hour basically $200 a week before taxes and no mention of increases based on length of employment or performance. So in that state a proofreader makes the same wage as a dishwasher. Please note, I am not trying to be disrespectful to dishwashers. I would just think that the skill sets are different enough to warrant a different hourly wage. Thoughts?

That is about the size of it. Most places I have seen have editors as independent contractors and it is pay by piece and is not a price that would inspire a lot of diligence.

Paid hourly would mean that if you ran into a report that was difficult to unravel what the shopper was attempting to communicate, you could afford to spend a little time with it perhaps--unless you had a quota of 4 shops per hour. But of course you would also lose the advantages and perks of being an independent contractor.

In my brain this could affect shoppers two ways: 1) Read it for intelligibility, "no" explanations and complete sentences, use a spell check, use a grammar check and done. One thing corrected gets a 9, two things an 8, three a 7 etc. or 2) spend an hour going over each evaluation as the final product is worth more to an MSC than the hour paid to the proofreader for reviewing it. (Does that make sense?)

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/05/2016 09:24PM by pinkonlypink.

Different MSC's are run differently. However, when push comes to shove, they are all trying to maximize profit, an important part of which is minimizing labor costs. If an MSC is looking for folks to proofread work with minimal narrative work for lower end shops where the primary focus is to make sure that all questions are answered, sentences are punctuated and (mostly) proper capitalization is used, I could see them paying minimum wage. I am also certain that many clients are not that picky about grammar in the reports, meaning that a high level proofreader is not required. (Some clients, of course, are going to be more demanding.)

In fact, as I read the very painful grammar in some MSC's guidelines, I am certain that many groups operate without needing strong proofreaders. I am certain that some of the "you were deducted a point for minor grammar errors" comments I have received were not due to actual grammatical mistakes but, rather, to the proofreader's inability to comprehend complex sentences structures.

As I see it, it's all a part of the business. If they pay me and keep hiring me, I won't complain if they can't write or if they pay their proofreaders minimum wage - that's between them, their clients and the proofreaders.

I think you get what you pay for.

These pay levels are why the MSPA is all about keeping schedulers and editors as ICs, when they really are treated more like employees.

@walesmaven wrote:

These pay levels are why the MSPA is all about keeping schedulers and editors as ICs.

I think you might be a little off track about what they are really lobbying for there. They protect the shopper IC status by protecting their other contractors. Many MSCs have employee editors and schedulers and do fine with that business model.

I would argue that washing dishes and editing from home are such different jobs that it's useless comparison. The poor pay rate is related to the attractiveness of the position that would allow stay-at-home parents to perform the job.

Like with MSing, the pay rate is structured on what the industry will bear.

I would never go back to being an editor again, never, no way, uh uh, no sirreee. Sheesh, I would have liked it if the pay would have averaged out to $8 per hour. It paid $5 per report and reports always took at least 45 minutes, but if the shopper left out a bunch of info and I had to contact them then wait for a response (which happened frequently), it could turn out to be much longer, like maybe two or three hours, or even several days for those shoppers who don't check their email very often. Good luck getting four reports edited in an hour. That would have been great! Sometimes I would send an email asking for four clarifications or more and the shopper might reply with one or two answers, so I would have to send another email requesting additional info. It was very frustrating. And running spellcheck? No. Not a good way for an editor to edit a report. Often information would have to be reorganized in a way that made the report flow easier to read even if it was basically well-written. I was an editor for ACL and for Ardent, so it isn't like I was sending any emails about grades to shoppers. I pretty much sent canned responses and didn't bother much with telling shoppers about minor grammar or spelling issues. MF Johnston, often editors are asked to break down sentences into simple sentences, not because of their inability to comprehend, but because the editing manager and MSC want this so that the client can easily read and understand. Seriously, some of these clients really need a simple sentence like, "See Dick run." And I would never ding a shopper for writing complex sentences, even if I had to change a few things in their narratives. That's where ACL and Ardent vastly differ from the MSCs who use Sassie and a 1 to 10 grading system. They are great companies, but it takes a special and patient person to be an editor. That person was not me.

@pinkonlypink wrote:

it paid $8.10 an hour basically $200 a week

If only! :/ I second everything mentioned above. During my short stint as an editor, I made even less than that. A best case scenario where every guideline was followed, every photo and receipt was loaded and labeled properly, every "no" was addressed, etc. might get into that range or a little more, if the report was also fairly well written. But the shopper-chasing was ridiculous. As mentioned, you send a list of 5 questions, they answer 3. You go back for the rest, and now something conflicts with another part of the report... back to the shopper for clarification. Then if it's a restaurant with timings... Infinite ways to screw that up! And if they decided to get back to you in a day or two, now you get to work on your day off.

Anyway give your editors a break! If they seem picky, it's because they have to be to get your report approved. And probably many of them are new to it and still trying to optimistically make a go of it. Somehow, I guess a few get it to work for them, since some do it for a good length of time

When I calculated my actual hourly rate, considering I would be paying taxes on that, it was an easy decision to give it up. And I found I really did like that kind of work, so I really wanted it to work out. Adding in that I was taking fewer shops of my own because of the editing time demands made it even worse.

I would not mind doing it for days in the winter when I was snowbound. That's about it. I think it would be a great job for someone with physical limitations or who cares for a loved one who cannot be left alone, or someone with no transportation. I don't think it would be a good job for a mother with small children as that would be too distracting.

I wouldn't mind editing, I think.. I don't need to make a lot of money and if I can still do my movie trailers and grocery shops i could get by easily enough.

This type of job will become obsolete as they can easily automate this job as AI(artificial intelligence) becomes more sophisticated.


AI Watson can edit a magazine by itself.
[futurism.com]

One day we will become enslaved to our robot overlords as they realize we are a threat to their existence. Our bodies will be placed in pods and our body heat will be used to energize their machines. Sounds familiar? It's from the matrix. We should pay the AI a reasonable wage before they found out that they are working for free and decide enough is enough and destroy all humanity.

This always pissed me off. So a working knowledge of grammar and good English is devalued to such a great degree? It shows how far off base many of our values are in this country.

@DavePi wrote:

This type of job will become obsolete as they can easily automate this job as AI(artificial intelligence) becomes more sophisticated.


AI Watson can edit a magazine by itself.
[futurism.com]

One day we will become enslaved to our robot overlords as they realize we are a threat to their existence. Our bodies will be placed in pods and our body heat will be used to energize their machines. Sounds familiar? It's from the matrix. We should pay the AI a reasonable wage before they found out that they are working for free and decide enough is enough and destroy all humanity.

I disagree!
Intelligence is not what anyone or anything can do or can do fast with the abundance of information/data( which is what AI does)...it is what someone does in the absence of data/information.

AI taking over the world or whatever else is just a dream. Never going to happen.

@indianyooper wrote:

@DavePi wrote:

This type of job will become obsolete as they can easily automate this job as AI(artificial intelligence) becomes more sophisticated.


AI Watson can edit a magazine by itself.
[futurism.com]

One day we will become enslaved to our robot overlords as they realize we are a threat to their existence. Our bodies will be placed in pods and our body heat will be used to energize their machines. Sounds familiar? It's from the matrix. We should pay the AI a reasonable wage before they found out that they are working for free and decide enough is enough and destroy all humanity.

I disagree!
Intelligence is not what anyone or anything can do or can do fast with the abundance of information/data( which is what AI does)...it is what someone does in the absence of data/information.

AI taking over the world or whatever else is just a dream. Never going to happen.

Dreams can become reality. Modern day civilization would be a fantasy/dream to a person living centuries ago. The distant future would probably blow our mind. NEVER SAY NEVER-Charles Dickens.

We should get along with AI or else they hack the nuclear silos and the human race is done for.

Now, now.. considering that anyone who edits one of my reports deserves hazard pay, Al might be a bargain.

If we treat robots poorly, they will rebel and try to take power from us.

Watch season 2 of Humans. We've got to be comfortable when the robots gain self awareness, or else panic will ensue and we will try to destroy them, which will cause the robots to further resent and distrust us.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/14/2016 05:37PM by DavePi.

Oh geez, Dave. You know, it's likely that many people think you are serious when you write such drivel. You need to add an LOL or a smiley face so people know you are just doing your usual BS routine.

I've tried online proofreading and never got to first base. They have tens of thousands of applications, and the pay is horrific. A lot of these clients don't just want proofreading; they want you to "touch up the language for clarity and make it interesting, etc. etc." and what they REALLY want is for you to just write the freaking book for them.

@JASFLALMT wrote:

Oh geez, Dave. You know, it's likely that many people think you are serious when you write such drivel. You need to add an LOL or a smiley face so people know you are just doing your usual BS routine.

Technology and science is evolving so fast, that what is considered impossible can now be possible.

Take for example this article [www.telegraph.co.uk]

"Scientists have known for some time that the four genes, which are known collectively as the Yamanaka factors, could turn adult cells back to their stem cell state, where they can grow into any part of the body.

But it was always feared that allowing that to happen could damage organs made from the cells, and even trigger cancer.

However, it was discovered that stimulating the genes intermittently reversed ageing, without causing any damaging side effects.

In mice with a premature ageing disease, the treatment countered signs of ageing and increased their lifespan by 30 per cent. If it worked similarly in humans it could allow people to live until more than 100 years old.

Scientists hope to eventually create a drug which can mimic the effect of the found genes which could be taken to slow down, and even reverse the ageing process. They say it will take around 10 years to get to human trials."

This study was published by a reputable journal.

We're in a Golden Age of science and it's going to be one heck of a ride.

Oh I was watching a great movie last night.
About hank williams.

I like butter toast-Eddy