Before you read this…just a disclaimer. I’m not an English teacher or a professional writer, but I have something to say so I’m going to. Please forgive me for my grammatical errors etc.
Back in 1990 when I started massage therapy school, one of our instructors told us this: “After your first quarter of school, charge $25 for a session, once you complete second quarter charge $30 per session, after third quarter charge $35 per session, and once you graduate you should be earning at least $45 per session and up.” And so…that is what I did. By the time I graduated I had a full clientele, all paying me $45 per hour and up. That was in 1992. Since then, the regulation of our industry has evolved. Now we educators must teach our students to start practice only after completing their training. They must follow the proper post-graduation professional protocol of being tested and acquiring licensure and insurance before hanging their shingle.
I do believe strongly that as educators of this holistic art we have a solid responsibility to teach our students the value of this work and encourage them to go use their new skills, and be compensated appropriately. We also need to prepare them to expect to invest a reasonable amount of effort in order to launch their new business endeavor, and they must be equipped with proven business strategies upon graduation.
Today, we (meaning everyone at my school) tell our students that they should hit the ground running, earning no less than $35 per hour including tips. $50 would obviously be better, and, If that is what they are being compensated, the client, the table, the linens, the cream, the facility AND the marketing should all be provided for by whomever they have a contract with. In other words if you walk in, do the work, make a positive impact on the quality of your client’s lives, and leave with $35+ per hour in your pocket that would be reasonable. We also teach them that they need to build a bridge to their dream massage practice and that this will take some time. Often some of that time may still be devoted to some other type of work to make ends meet while they build their growing practice.
Now I know that there are cost of living indexes (my perspective is from Denver, Colorado), and I also know there is inflation. I get it. What I don’t get is how today a massage therapist can be taught by their school that earning $17 or less per hour is okay. I also don’t understand how a school can NOT teach a student what their work is worth and this is what unfortunately I am coming to realize is a confounding trend in the massage therapy education world. Yes…This is based largely on assumption because there are thousands of massage therapists in the U.S. accepting substandard wages. It must have something to do with the education they received. If it does not, PLEASE feel free to enlighten me. I’m not talking about ALL schools, just MOST Schools and by MOST schools please feel free to assume I also mean CORPORATE OWNED CHAINS of schools.
There is a reason the term “burn out” is on our National Board Exams. It’s a real thing. Massage Therapist simply cannot do more than 30 hours per week of massage without burning out. Having been a person who has provided over 18,000 massages during my career, it is my opinion that 25 massages per week is pushing it, and 4 per day is reasonable. That is 20 hours of physically, emotionally, mentally, focused labor and does not include set up, break down and interview/intake time.
If you don’t understand burn out…this is what I mean. Burn out is when you give so much of your energy away to your clients that your body hurts and you don’t have any energy left for your own life and loved ones. Burn Out usually determines a very short career life for a bodyworker. Thousands of Massage Therapists suffer from burn out each year and leave our industry for another career. Thousands, after only 3-5 years.
We also must consider the impact on the public receiving massage therapy from therapists who don’t know the value of their work, and who are pushing too hard to make ends meet. Believe me…it is not good. People get hurt, or simply receive lousy, unfocused, resentful work.
Here is some math: 20 massages, multiplied by $17 plus $10 average tip equals $540 per week, equals $28,080 a year GROSS and does not include any vacation time. I understand that $28,080 gross per year probably sounds great for a part-time gig to a young adult who still lives at home and does not have a mortgage or dependents. Mature adults on the other hand will probably struggle with this marginal income. A Massage Therapist earning $25 plus $10 average tip will end up with around $36,400 gross. That’s a start but still not appropriate in my reality.
Let’s face it, massage therapy in the U.S. has become really weird (not in a good way) in terms of values and money over the last 6 years. Most who argue that point have not been around long enough to see this story unfold, or they are benefiting from the change in one way or another. Some industry leaders, and/or people who seem to know a lot about corporate America and/or economics say that converting massage therapy into a service type employment model where the employees work for a scanty hourly wage and tips is the natural evolution of massage therapy. I really hope not and I say phooey!
I’ve been around long enough to see this strange trend arrive and take hold and I don’t like it. I don’t have to like it, and no one is going to convince me to like it. I find the people who like it are not necessarily the people working for these marginal wages, but people or companies benefiting financially in one way or another from the hard labor of massage therapists who have not been taught the value of their work or business strategies to integrate their skill with income manifestation.
If you are an educator and you are in some type of relationship by endorsement, or job placement arrangements or any other type of mutually beneficial relationship with a company that is taking advantage of, or burning out massage therapists, you may want to take a good hard look at your ethics.I stand on the side of the therapist. Those are the people who I serve. I am always going to champion the Massage Therapist, not the big corporations and under-payers who are benefiting from their hard work.
I know, I know…I’ve heard it all. Proponents can sugar coat this thing and make it sound like these organizations paying $17 and less per hour to our graduates are a benefit to our industry. The usual suspect’s commentary is “students right out of massage school are green”… “Green students need experience”…. “Many students don’t have what it takes to start their own business”…. “some massage therapists are just not good enough to earn more”… as far as I’m concerned, it’s a bunch of rubbish. If any of those statements are true for you and you are an educator, then you did not do your job to prepare your graduate for this industry. Another big argument is that the overhead is SO high for bodyworkers that in the end they make more working for these preposterous wages. This is a LIE.
A lot of these under-payers will have reward programs and incentive plans…trips to Mexico and even provide scholarships and make huge donations to our industry organizations. Smoke and Mirrors. Those funds should have gone into higher wages for the bodyworkers so they can pay their bills.
As long as there are Massage Schools promoting, partnering with, or supporting companies that pay marginal wages for massage therapists’ hard work, the massage industry and the public consumer will suffer.
As long as there are Massage Educators who do not understand the value of what we do, and fail to pass proper values on to their students who then go on to work for marginal wages…the massage therapy industry and the public will suffer.
In summary, this is what I’m trying to get across.
- There is an influx of unethical massage under-payers who are not compensating massage therapists appropriately in order to increase their bottom line.
- These organizations or individuals are burning those therapists out, and those therapists are hurting clients because they are burned out.
- Careers end prematurely due to burn out.
- The schools are at fault for not giving their students proper business training, and proper training on the value of their work.
- Some schools and industry leaders are in the pocket of some of these unethical massage under-payers and that is why they are shining a positive light on the organizations and partnering with them.
- Because of this trend, the normal wage for massage therapists has been driven down, and now we see chiropractors, health clubs, resorts, etc. following suit by underpaying massage therapists.
- In order to survive, therapists in their own practice have had to lower their rates in order to be competitive.
- The public is getting a very twisted message from this trend regarding the value of massage therapy, and are receiving a lot of borderline bodywork.
- This is the modern disease of our industry, and consistently points to the educators who need to do the right thing by educating their students on the value of their work, so they will refuse substandard wages and the employers will need to raise their wages to attract and retain talent.
- There is only ONE positive as I see it. Massage Therapy is becoming accessible to the mainstream.
Finally,
Employers, Please pay higher wages.
Consumers, Please understand that you may be paying only $49.50 for a massage, but your therapist is earning $17 or less for the session. Please consider going directly to the source and avoid the middle man for your bodywork so the person who is touching you receives the bulk of the fee. There are many wonderful massage therapists out there who will not work for those types of wages. Don’t you want to work with them?
Massage Therapists, please do not accept substandard wages. Just say “no thank you” and go to the next interview. If need be, do something other than massage and patiently work toward your goals…your practice will build and you can find people who honor your work with appropriate compensation. You may want to explore some remedial business education if your school did not provide that for you in your program.
Educators, please teach your students that they deserve to make a very decent living as a massage therapist, and equip them with proper business skills and reasonable expectations. Please do not endorse or do any job placement with any under-paying employers.
Associations and Leaders, please do not associate with under-payers for fiscal support. You can find another sponsor who is not depleting the industry you love and represent.
To be clear: I am not talking about ALL franchises. I’m not talking about ALL educators. I’m not talking about ALL employers, only the unethical under-payers. And I’m not addressing ALL Associations and Industry Leaders.
Thank you for reading this. I know this is a very hot topic, and I don’t wish to offend anyone. My goal is to be supportive to this industry that I love and cherish. The under-payers are never going away. You can count on that, but we educators can be instrumental in educating our students about the value of this work, avoid direct participation with these organizations, and promote higher standard wages for the bodyworkers.
I have been blessed as a therapist by all of my clients and deeply appreciate the privilege I have to share this art with my students. Massage Therapists don’t just slap on cream and rub. We touch lives and share our hearts. The value of compassionate professional nurturing touch is extraordinary. The people who sign up to do this work should be treated with professional respect and compensated appropriately.
Bodywork Art 
Hell yeah Jill!! Thank you for standing up for us! You are inspiring me everyday!🌟
This is so on point. I will share with everyone I know, including, my alma mater NHI who sold out and accepts 16 scholarships a year from ME and in turn hands encourages their graduates to work for low wages. This is the best article I have read so far on this topic and the most accurate and truthful account of what is transpiring in our industry due to the corporate massage franchise. Thank you!
I’ve been doing massage for 20 years. When I graduated, places like ME did not exist where I live, (if they were even in business then) so I didn’t even have the option to work for a place like that. Yet somehow, I found places to work that allowed me to set my own prices and eventually worked up to owning my own business. These under-paying industries are fairly new in the scheme of things, yet massage has been around for a long, long time. Why do some schools think now that this is the only way for a new therapist to make it? Thanks for this article, I will be sharing it!
A lot of things have changed since you graduated. I imagine back then schools were not churning out not-ready-for-prime-time therapists to flood the market. Chain owned schools get pell grant money and just keep churning ’em out. When Obama required results for the govt. money, franchises stepped up to hire right out of school. a nice loop was formed. 20 years ago there weren’t nail salons and hair salons and chiros on every corner offering massage. Let us not forget the coupon craze that therapists fall into in an attempt to build their own practice to compete with franchises’ endless corporate advertising budget. It is really tough out there but it’s the new reality. The field of massage therapy is not what it was 20 years ago.
During our business class in massage school they would get ex grads to come in and talk about their massage business.
We had an accountant also come in and talk about some basic aspects of business, such as tax deductions, sole proprietor versus LLC, that kind of thing. We had a guy from the marketing department of the hospital the massage school was located in, giving us some advice.
Then of course we had a massage franchaise come in, handing out their corporate logo pens, coupon for reduced rate introductory massage, brochures in benefits of massage,
Then they talked about employment..
$15 an hour plus tips.
Extra if you were requested.
Oh..,and they were ok with you having your own practice and still working for them…. Just bring in your list of clientele, and if you encourage your clientele (from your own practice) to schedule a massage with you at the massage franchise you would receive an extra $1 for that session. OMG!
Massage therapists are being taken advantage of financially. The massage franchise is just one aspect.
Sorry for the rant 🙂
Wow!! Please forward to NY times or Chicago Tribune BEFORE the holiday!! This is written so nicely and every point is SPOT ON! Priveleged to read your thoughts! Thank you!!!!
Very good article. I’m a therapist in the UK and I’m in the process of writing a book for therapists starting up their business, it covers pricing your treatments and why you should work for yourself and not for an organisation on minimum wage, currently £6.31 per hour if over 21!
In the UK I think we need to be encouraging the public to go with the independent therapists and avoid the others. We have a way to go but we’ll get there.
Right on, sister! All home-run points. Now, what do we do about it? I say, bring the solidarity concept back in fashion. Let’s get all employee MTs organized.
Well written article with excellent points! I am looking forward to reading more of your blogs 🙂 While there are two sides to this coin I agree! Why don’t we try to get our representatives at AMTA to help us advocate for a fair living wage standard. They are our loudest advocacy group, so why not start there? If AMTA (or ABMP) will set a minimum requirement for standards of pay for employee therapists and require that partnering organizations (like the unnamed chains) who want to be AMTA members to meet a this minimum living wage commitment if they would like to advertise in the publication, have booths at fairs etc. I think with the firm presence these companies hold within our industry this is the only way things will ever change. In my area the starting pay for a therapist with our two largest employers is $15/hour. So sad and frustrating! IMO a fair living wage should be at least $25 plus tip if not more. My inner realist tells me that AMTA won’t do this primarily because of the amount of money these “big” chains donate to both AMTA & The Massage Therapy Foundation, but if they could implement some agreed upon fair wage standard that would help a little. Doesn’t COMTA already set a standard for schools which says they cannot have relationships (or receive kick-backs) like this with potential employers? Like in all politics often the people with most $$ have the greatest influence on our profession. I cannot give specific examples, but have witness personally some overreach of the major massage chains influencing legislation regarding our profession. Anytime I see a problem pointed out by anyone that is legitimate,like this, my first thought is WHAT can we do to change it. Any other thoughts?
Excellent article! This article addresses important issues in the massage industry. I agree with the points that are presented here. My dream is that people are paid a living wage while working under the professional umbrella called CAM “complementary alternative medicine.” Massage therapists deserve not only to survive, but to thrive. In order to continue the good work that massage therapists offer their clients, they must be able to support themselves. The under-payers have cast a shadow on a noble profession and they have created an unjust and inequitable system in which corporate profits come before the well-being of humanity. Thank you, Jill Kristin Berkana, for bringing the underbelly of the massage industry to the forefront of our consciousnesses. It is time for a change. Ariana Vincent, MTI, Austin, Texas
The vast majority of my graduates are not running into the same dynamics in this current jacked up climate because they understand the value of their work. They understand that they may have to hold out for a decent offer, and they understand that building their own practice will take time. They also understand that if they accept substandard wages the industry they are getting into is damaged, and they will burn out wasting their investment of time and money attending school. They have been taught this much like they have been taught the insertion and origin of the levator scapula. This is why I blame the educators for this. This is the result of corporate greed. I hope that my students are the exception to the rule…and I believe you CAN be the exception to the rule if you truly understand the underbelly of the situation and play for keeps. Business is war and you have to be prepared for battle. We educators are supposed to prepare them for this battle, not feed them to the wolves.
I have been a LMT for almost 30 years (and have taken your Kinesio Taping class…i love and use it every day).
I LOVE my profession and have pride in my work, love my clients and am passionate about continuing my education and honing my skills and learning to incorporate the best tools I can find.
I too have seen many therapists burn out, due to being unable to support themselves in our profession. I feel so inspired by learning new skills from GREAT teachers. It is unfortunate as you say, the under payers and new massage corporations suck the juice and joy from the therapists they hire.
It is sad, I too have seen how our profession is taking a down turn, even with insurances no longer covering our work. I feel so blessed that I am able to support my family on my own, through the profession I truly love.
Thank you for your post, I am all with you. Sincerely, Patty
Well said. I’ve been an LMT since 1997. I started out at $50/hour working for myself. I just raised my prices after much thought and working through a lot of fear. I gave myself a $10/session raise. I now charge $80/hour session. I joked with my clients that I give myself a raise every FIVE years whether I need one or not! I am WORTH it…I am VERY GOOD at what I do. I work very hard to be the best that I can be….spending money and time beyond the required CE unit requirements on educating myself to be a better therapist. Even knowing all of this…I still had to give myself a pep talk to have the guts to give myself a raise.
I love this blog! I agree with all of it.
Colleen in South africa.
A friend of mine is a massage therapist and had a link to this on her Facebook page. I read the entire article. I definitely do not want anyone burning out or living in poverty. However, I feel most people that have commented are in the industry. I just wanted to give a prospective from someone who has only ever been a client. First, I do believe you get what you pay for. I’ve been to the chains and the massage is awful. I’ve also been to spas where the massage is just as bad. That is why when I found my therapist now I have stuck with her. She charges $60 an hour. I feel this is reasonable because I know she owns a business and I want to support that business. I usually tip between $20 and $40 dollars because I feel good about that. Second, the section in this article about hours worked per week is insane. There are tons of labor intensive jobs that people work 60 or more hours. I personally work over 50 every week at a very physically demanding job (why I need a therapist). There are also even more intense jobs than mine that are worked even more hours a week. Masonry, construction, and other jobs are hardly ever 40 hour/week jobs. If you work 20 hours a week, you should not expect to make what a full time worker makes. Lastly, I do not want to get a massage at a chain store but there is a place and time for everything. If these did not exist a lot of students fresh out of school would not have an industry job ever. There would be plenty that can not start their own business and there would be plenty starting with no real world experience and doing horrible work not only in massage but business management (scheduling, location, safety). I wish all therapists could get paid $50,000 a year but that is not a reality for any profession. Some local lawyers, assistant district attorneys, start out at $41,000.
Thank you for your post. As a person not in this industry I can understand your perspective. Equality and fairness is not something you can compare across industries based on an hourly model. You can’t compare someone breaking up concrete to a massage therapist. We are working with human beings who have physical, emotional, and psychological bodies. We must know the name, origin, insertion, and action of every muscle and so much more. We know how to deal with pathologies we encounter while working with our clients and how to respond appropriately. We also know how to ethically and professionally manage emotional/psychological release when it shows up for a client in our sessions. We are often restructuring tissue. For this to be done without doing harm to human beings requires an incredible amount of presence, focus, attention, and knowledge, therefore the work is not just physically demanding, It is also emotionally and psychologically demanding. If we work a normal 40 hour a week job as an MT, in my opinion we are spread too thin and it’s just not possible. Our work goes int the toilet, and the clients suffer. Those of us who work on our own are also doing laundry, record keeping, marketing, practicing hygienic standards, doing intakes and interviews,cleaning and setting appointments. With all of that, a therapists doing 25 massages a week, paying operational costs and doing the side work running business is working 40+hours a week. This person should be earning at least $70 per hour for actual hands on work as far as I’m concerned and based on my location. If someone else is providing all operational “stuff” the therapists still must do the interviewing and record keeping and practicing hygienic standards between clients..so a massage therapist providing 25 hour long massages a week for someone else is really working more like 38 hours a week.
I think the confusion about MT’s “25 hour workweek” is a misunderstanding of our actual work hours. MTs may CHARGE an hourly rate, but we work much more than just the time we spend in the massage setting if we are self employed. I used to teach a massage business class and we said a good rule of thumb is to expect to spend about 20 hours per week in “business” activities BEYOND the time spent massaging clients. So if we book 25 clients we still have 20 hours of billing, accounting, laundry, buying and stocking supplies, making appts, cleaning our spaces, etc. We don’t directly bill clients for those 20 hours but that is part of the overhead that goes into our hourly rates.
People that work non-massage jobs think, “Oh you CHARGE $60-80 an hour, so you must EARN $60-80 an hour.” Sorry, this is horribly incorrect. Laborers, like carpenters who earn $30 an hour and work 40 hours/week, also get pensions, unemployment compensation, about 8% of their Social Security/Medicare payments paid by their employers and health insurance. And their employers take out taxes, pay for overhead and often pay for tools. Office workers get sick days (usually 5-7 paid), vacation days (10 days at least a year), paid holidays AND employer pays for 8% of their SS/Medicare taxes. And office workers get pensions or 401K contributions (or used to), HEALTH INSURANCE (We must buy this ourselves.), disability insurance (another type of fee we must pay our of our hourly rate) and life insurance.
I’ve done the math and actually, after expenses listed above, an MT who works for him/herself actually takes home about $15 an hour. Or $30,000/yr. IF THEY BOOK EVERY CLIENT EVERY WEEK. Office workers do not have to worry about coming into their jobs every day and being told, “sorry we only have 2 hours of work for you today so you only earn 2 hours of pay.”
So, I appreciate the writer above who tips her local MT well and pays $60 per hour. But please do understand that MTs are not looking to make high wages for a part time job. Giving 25 massages a week is not the same as working 25 hours per week. 🙂
I really like your thoughtfully written post. I think the thing people forget is that the franchise owners do put in $250-300K to build out and start their businesses and the national company takes 5-10% of their proceeds. They do have high overhead to recoup. There are also a lot of new MTs or even more experienced MTs who like that atmosphere for whatever reason. I have heard from many who say they really like the big tips – usually $20 – and the fact that they are so busy. Others complain about stupid rules like you can’t use tools, or you have to have a “frequency speech” at the end – very scripted interaction with clients. And I will tell you that in my experience there is no amount of business education that will turn some MTs into private practitioners. You have to want to own and build a business and that is not for everyone. I think the low-paying employers have a place, probably just for new MTs, who have to be taught proper body mechanics and their body’s limits and to stand up for themselves when the employer wants to push them too hard.
totally agree with everything you said above Lavish. Spot on.
This is so true and so hit the nail on the head! The problem being that too many massage schools are owned by these mega corporations that are in bed with the franchises and the teachers are *forbidden* to tell you the truth about the underpayment of massage therapists in today’s market.
You know I just have one comment. Its not just massage therapy. I think this has happened in almost every specialized field. I know personally I made more pre 2000 and at some point after than I do now. Also the company I work for now never really gives raises so inflation eats away at whatever rate I am at. This is also probably very common in today’s society.
I agree 100%. I’ve been a full time (30 hrs/wk) therapist for 12 yrs and because of these awful franchises I am now getting paid the least amount of money I’ve ever made and working harder than ever! I’m actually back in school now working on my nursing degree because massage therapy pays as much as mcdonalds does now. I can’t afford cable, internet, gas for my car or food. This industry has gone to hell in a handbasket. It breaks my heart because I LOVE being a therapist, but have to move to nursing to be able to survive.
Hi I am a former nurse midwife from the the UK do not practice in the US I am a massage therapist cosmetologist infant massage educator public speaker I don’t know about the franchisee situation but as a small business owner the schools are not doing enough about the business side of the industry there should be a massage or cosmetology business with in the schools , each student plays different parts from front desk , manager, therapist owner , they are responsible for purchasing products equipment, paying bills telephone ,advertising, laundry ,cleaning, insurance ,electricity rent or a mortgage for the building paying to keep certificates current to practice yearly book keeping ,lawyers fee, massage is hard work you have to have a business plan going into it so if you are making $40-$45 per massage and you have none of the above bills or responsibility you are not doing badly starting a three bed room business IT took five to six hundred thousand from savings to start, rents are thousands of dollars monthly and continues to go up yearly so does up grade of the property etch so when a service is $100-or $ 150 after your $40-45 is deducted all of the above has to be taken from the remainder before the owner gets paid. Hope that helps to clarify.
I’ve been an CMT/LMT since ’80, (and lately Medical Massage Practitioner) and still love giving massage. I’m now retired, but I still help my clients feeling better with the appropriate massage technique they need.
I’m always seeking better methods/techniques to release stressed/over-worked muscles by taking more CEU than required. I feel a life time is not enough to fully understand our muscles.
I agree with the loss of income related to the multinational chains that only look at the bottom line. Some (if not most) are not therapist, yet run the business of employing skilled LMT for peanuts.
The problem I see is therapists are lured by the schools, then realize they need finances to promote their business. Most of them barely can survive, and work at one of those franchises. Within the first 2-3 years, they give-up their passion of LMT to work in a different field in order to be able to buy food/gas…
It’s very hard to start-up the LMT business on your own. Advertizement to get new clients is very expensive, and no promise to have any, beside you have to compete on the session price with the franchises and ‘groupon’.
I gave-up my studio to become ‘out-call’ LMT, where I can charge a reasonable price and still be fair to my clients.
If you’re in this field for the money, You’re in the wrong field. You have to be and live humble. You may charge $100/hr, yet after you pay for the overhead like accounting, driving to client’s residence, laundry, and on.. you’d be lucky to have $20/hr left for you, and you may have 2-3 scheduled/day.
So, Yes… You’ve got to love being a Massage Therapist. 🙂
Dear William,
I understand you have had a long term experience but I do not agree with your opinion of the state of the income potential and probability at all. It’s this type of belief system in LACK OF that will prevent massage therapists from earning what they deserve. You don’t need that much money to start a business. Here is an example:
Massage Table with bolsters and face cradle $250. Massage chair mostly for promo $250. Set of Linens $250, Some cream or oil $50, Insurance for the year $150, Rent $350 to $600 (smart to share a professional space to keep this down since you are ONLY going to be in there about 30 hours a week) utilities $200,etc. A small office can easily be kept for $700 per month with everything included..then you have marketing and taxes. So if your expenses are $1000 per month roughly…that is 20 massages a month based on $50 per hour which is a ridiculous amount to charge but considers senior citizen discounts, free-bees for package deals, and trades for things like art, hair, dental etc. 20 massages a week at $50 is going to produce $4000 gross, and if you are smart and creative with the business end of things you should be able to take home at least 75% of that for an annual net take home income of $36,000.00. You are suggesting a net annual income of $20,000.
I strongly believe, and have seen it consistently proven, that if you have a solid business plan, put yourself out there as a holistic health care educator, take responsibility for cultivating your own clientele and you consistently do your best work, and your work is good you can make an extremely decent living as a massage therapist while also covering all of your overhead. I’m not sure what cost of living index you are coming from, but in my own experience and the experience of many MANY others, the cost of overhead would never run 80% if even 50%. Additionally, the term “Medical Massage” from what I understand from my colleagues and mentors in MT Education is a sales pitch term for foundational programs to try to set themselves apart as special or more legit than other basic programs. If anyone has graduated from an ethical, professional, comprehensive school….a school which prepares them to attain their license, they should be qualified and equipped to work in medical environments. Every massage therapist who wants to work with people who are in hospice, or have cancer, etc. must receive additional training for clients with special needs and contraindications in order to be within their scope of practice. Perhaps you have had some specialized CE training that was called this, and supports you in landing a position in a hospital. I just want to be clear about this confusing term.
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I agree with the content in this article. However, what can we or are we going to do about it? We need to educate these therapists as to their self worth and value of themselves as an individual and teach them how to put a price on their services.
That’s what I’m doing, and a few other schools are too. Unfortunately we are the exception to the rule.
just so you know the franchise that we are talking about is getting sued in the state of CA. for unfair compensation. if every St. got behind CA. and did the same thing it would help slow the growth and make sure that “big business” massage therapy treat their “employees” as the professionals they are but i do agree 20 years ago we worked and were taught about our value and now they teach we have a 99% hire rate get a job even before you leave our school that is owned by the franchise who is drooling to burn out the next hopeful.
Word
This is a problem in so many industries! I teach college full-time and receive no benefits. I’m paid between $24,000-32,000/year (depending on number of classes I get). There are thousands of teachers like me out there. I wish I could say, “No, thank you!” but I’ve invested more than a decade in this profession and it’s not easy to think about a career change. I’m a really good teacher now, but I would have to start over in a new field. My husband made a midlife career change and I don’t think we can afford a second one in the family.
Awesome. Everything about this thread is awesome. I’ve been an LMT in New York City since 2005. I am also a faculty member in the massage department of Pacific College of Oriental Medicine in NY. I strongly advise all of my students, at every level, that they should never be paid less than $30/$35 per hour and should not work more than 18-20 hrs per week. That is how I was taught and how I will continue to teach my students.
I find it bordering on abusive that these companies pay their therapists such a low rate for the nature of this work we do. We are health care facilitators. We help people relive stress, rehabilitate injury and recover from illness. A truly living wage, in this day and age, is not too much to ask for. Thank you for spreading the word… We are worth it.
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You hit this subject right on the head. I agree 100%. I’ve heard the argument that it “keeps their hands busy” till they can start their own biz. Hogwash I say. It’s a disgrace to work for that pittance. Don’t do it. It has cheapened our profession….and not just in monetary ways.
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I’m no fan of massage franchises, having owned and run my own clinic for 20 years. They certainly have dropped the bar on existing rates in the field. However, given the pitiful state of so many basic trainings, it’s a real stretch to call many graduates “well trained”, much less something like a “holistic health provider”, or other terms like that. Until we as a profession deal with the inadequate trainings now deemed OK, it’s hard to justify rates like 80-100/hourly. No one is holding guns to heads to make people work for ME, La Vida, etc. The more motivated, better trained therapists will typically find more suitable employment.
I’d also like to think “you get what you pay for”, but unfortunately, that’s not the case. You can easily pay over $100 for a session at a high dollar spa or private location and still get a crummy massage!
I have been practicing massage therapy since 1991, and licensing back then was so hard and just got easier the last few years here in California because of CAMTC. I myself used to charge $60 TO $70 but lost about 20% of my clients because of deals like groupon and such but got 50% of those lost clients eventually in a year time. I decided to NOT give my clients an OPTION to use another therapist because if client try another therapist, you loose that one hour income and this can add up.
I studied my clients and gave a sliding scale. $40, $45 and $50 per hour to my regular clients. New clients range from $45 to $55 per hour and seem to work especially when I add HOT STONES massage to the session
Excellent article! More people need to understand the abuses happening industry-wide to massage therapists and hire directly! Now there are ridiculous “apps” starting as well started by greedy corporate marketers wanting an outrageous cut and one even includes a 25,000 dollar penalty for handing out a business card in their contract. I’d like to see them successfully sue any massage therapist for that amount because after our expenses we are all flat broke! I personally would like to see a massage therapists’ union. We are licensed professionals being unfairly classified as independent contractors by 99% of employers who dictate our hours, dress code, behavior, and yet pay us nothing so many days when business is slow, and a pitiful wage when it is busy. You will never get a raise in this industry unless you change jobs and go into private practice, and you won’t be good enough to charge the high end prices until you pay your dues for a few years. Do not enter into this profession if you want career stability, dependable income, the ability to save any money, hours that will leave you time to spend with family, or a stable workplace. Seriously spend another 6 months or year in school learning something more difficult and substantial that will pay a living wage. Do the math, and pay yourself more for going to school if considering massage therapy. You’d be lucky to keep this “career” for 10 years if your body allows it. It’s just a very poor investment, but then again it’s our poor business skills that allow us not only to choose massage therapy as a career but to end up burning out working for all these cheap bastards as well.
I am a Registered Dietitian and have been for 27 years. We go to collage for 6 years. A Masters Degree is required and a 1 year unpaid internship. Starting pay is in the 30,000 dollar range for full time work. 40,000 if you are lucky. After 27 years, my average pay is still in the 50,000’s and I have NEVER gotten a tip or a bonus. Stop complaining!