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Have You Been Negatively Affected by The Corporate Franchise?
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Laura Garza on
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Exploitation? I think any CMT that starts working at these places is well aware of the pros and cons. I just recently started working for a franchise to add some extra hours to my week. I love the clinic I work for but it's new and sometimes I only get 1-3 massages a week in so I decided to see what the other side is like. While I'm not making as much hourly, I do get free CEUs and some of the perks of being an employee (not having to pay my own taxes and able to contribute to a retirement plan). I'd have even more benefits like having my licenses and insurance reimbursed, medical/dental if I work 15+ a week but that's not my plan.
Gina A. Liccardo said:Because exploitation is explotation no matter what brush you use to paint it. Seeing as how you are using the term "our spa" I take it you are part of a franchise which is very interesting because your response is basically mind your own business and that is a very defensive response. Why would your franchise underpay, skilled and licensed therapists and why would you underpay and exploit people when you yourself are saying the treatment is much needed. If you want the medal of honor, start with integrity not sweat shops. At the end of the day, it is not a laughing matter, this is a very serious issue and if you have that kind of a callus attitude you shouldn't be in this industry.
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Permalink Reply by Gina A. Liccardo on
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While your experience may be ideal for you, many are not having such a grand ole time at the franchise. One recent petition signer writes that her payrate is $8.00/hr. If that isn't exploitation then I don't know what is. Since our petition has been posted we have 224 signatures and as word spreads, I believe that number will rise. Perhaps you don't know as much as you think you know about the franchise.
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Do you ever stop to reac what you write?
Please tell us, omniscient one, who has never worked at a franchise, what is it Laura is too blind to see from actually working at a place you can only talk about from 2nd hand knowledge?
If I can't possibly fathom what it is to be a massage therapists, how is it you can know all about what it is to be an employee of a massage chain? YOu have never been one, so by your standard, you are unqualified to comment.
Gina A. Liccardo said:Perhaps you don't know as much as you think you know about the franchise.
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Permalink Reply by Lee Edelberg on
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Ain't that the truth! With the freedom comes the responsibility........and the risk.
Relax & Rejuvenate said:"..............owning a business -- let alone more than one -- is not for the faint-hearted.........."
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I was just contacted by a private business in DC for a job. For $12/ hour. That's way lower than the massage franchises are starting their therapist. While that includes tip, I've learned you can't always count on every person to tip. That won't even cover my commuting cost by metro, and parking downtown DC is about twice that amount. Not to mention the cost of getting a DC license (I'm only licensed in VA for now). However, nobody is holding a gun to my head to make me take this position. I believe the owner has no concept of how much dedication and training CMTs have based on the rate she is quoting (not to mention the value we add to peoples lives).
However, if this job was within a few block of my home it might not be such a bad option. OK, I probably still wouldn't give them the time of day but a close/non-existent commute is worth it's weight in gold(it's the metro DC area, traffic sucks). But $15-20 an hour and walking distance from my home, I'd consider it!
Gina A. Liccardo said:While your experience may be ideal for you, many are not having such a grand ole time at the franchise. One recent petition signer writes that her payrate is $8.00/hr. If that isn't exploitation then I don't know what is. Since our petition has been posted we have 224 signatures and as word spreads, I believe that number will rise. Perhaps you don't know as much as you think you know about the franchise.
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Permalink Reply by Gael Wood on
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I agree Laura. Most massage Therapists that I know are very smart and make career choices based on their personal situation. I have worked part-time in a "franchise" type day spa. It added to my list of experience and will know doubt help me in my future endeavors. I did not feel exploited, as I took the job of my own free will. I knew I was over qualified, but I had some goals to reach and needed extra $. I loved the therapists that I worked with, having taxes paid in on me, and the tips were quite good. I don't work there regularly now, but I do fill in some if the schedule works with mine.
Laura Garza said:Exploitation? I think any CMT that starts working at these places is well aware of the pros and cons. I just recently started working for a franchise to add some extra hours to my week. I love the clinic I work for but it's new and sometimes I only get 1-3 massages a week in so I decided to see what the other side is like. While I'm not making as much hourly, I do get free CEUs and some of the perks of being an employee (not having to pay my own taxes and able to contribute to a retirement plan). I'd have even more benefits like having my licenses and insurance reimbursed, medical/dental if I work 15+ a week but that's not my plan.
Gina A. Liccardo said:Because exploitation is explotation no matter what brush you use to paint it. Seeing as how you are using the term "our spa" I take it you are part of a franchise which is very interesting because your response is basically mind your own business and that is a very defensive response. Why would your franchise underpay, skilled and licensed therapists and why would you underpay and exploit people when you yourself are saying the treatment is much needed. If you want the medal of honor, start with integrity not sweat shops. At the end of the day, it is not a laughing matter, this is a very serious issue and if you have that kind of a callus attitude you shouldn't be in this industry.
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Permalink Reply by Christina Bradshaw on
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I am just starting out in my practice, I graduated in april (yay). I have worked at a franchise corporation, Iam running my own mobile massage business and I currently work at a family run wellness center. I am with you Gina. Working for the franchise was a horrible experience and I walked away feeling like I had gone no where and learned nothing, except how not to run a massage business of honset work. repute and prosperity. The owner had no experience in health or wellness, he just woke up one day and decided to buy a Massage Studio. They girls in the front also had no experience in health, wellness or massage.The pay was peanuts.They are a huge corporation with millions of dollars, yet there were no Health benefits, the schedule was set up so everyone was part time, no lunch breaks and only 10 mins between clients. I felt like a slave!!!! Huge conglomorate corporations are terrible for our society. They are like an infestation. They come in, take as much as they can (for as little expendature as possible, reguardless of quality or the well being of the people) out source jobs to foreign countries because its cheaper, forcing the cost of local imports and business to skyrocket and inevitably destroying our economy. In my opinion, ME is just as bad for massage as it is our society as a whole. But that is the case for all pyramid based corporations.ME could just as well be Walmart.
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Christina Bradshaw said:The owner had no experience in health or wellness, he just woke up one day and decided to buy a Massage Studio. They girls in the front also had no experience in health, wellness or massage.
What does that matter? You are starting a mobile massage business with little experience in massage and none in business. How does that qualify you and why should it matter?
They are a huge corporation with millions of dollars,
I thought you said this was locally owned by some guy who woke up and decided to open a massage business? is it a local idiot or some greedy multinational deep=pocketed corporation that you worked for?
there were no Health benefits, the schedule was set up so everyone was part time, no lunch breaks and only 10 mins between clients.
This is curious. Nearly everyone of my employees had to be convinced that working an 8 hour day is not the work of slave drivers. In fact, Gina even skewered me for such a practice. Every therapist I have met would rather work a 6 hour day or less, but yet they want health insurance. Sorry, but the math does not work
Since health insurance requires an employee work 32+ hours per week -- on average, you have to be on the sked 40 hours a week so a sick day or taking a day off to take your pet to the vet does not leave you paying 100% of the insurance premiums. Now how is this the greedy massage corporations' fault? Would you be wiling to work 8 hour days to get health insurance like the other working folks in the country?
Huge conglomorate corporations are terrible for our society. They are like an infestation. They come in, take as much as they can (for as little expendature as possible, reguardless of quality or the well being of the people) out source jobs to foreign countries because its cheaper, forcing the cost of local imports and business to skyrocket and inevitably destroying our economy. In my opinion, ME is just as bad for massage as it is our society as a whole. But that is the case for all pyramid based corporations.ME could just as well be Walmart.
Do you have any idea as to how an economy works? Local imports -- a contradiction in terms. Goods are either locally produced, or imported. Can't be both, except when you are ranting about something you don't understand.
If outsourcing is done to lower costs, how does it raise the prices locally? Quite the opposite.
And what exactly is a pyramid-based corporation and how does ME fit that business model
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Please forgive me for being so forward, but this discussion is just rehashing and rehashing the same points and it's getting to be a bit snippy.
As one of my teachers in massage school said just before graduation (in an extremely saturated area) "There are enough clients for everyone. Concentrate on your own business plan". So rather than freak out about ME, let's concentrate on our businesses.
Also, as much as I don't like ME. It's not my place to say they shouldn't be in business. Everyone, including ourselves, have a right to run their business. That is not to say I have to sit back and get run over by the ME Express. I just need to work harder to let customers know that I am worth the extra money.
If a MT wants to make $12/hr that's their business. I can express my opinion that after all the tuition, supplies, etc to work for $12 is insane. I personally wouldn't work there, but for some people that is the place they want to work and it makes them happy.
If someone wants to make the ME issue "their hill to die on" that's fine. Educate. Inform. But if you try to ban them, what's not to say someone might try to ban you in the future.
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