Interpreter's salary

[lumbingmi]

My friend wants to know how much does interpreter earns in an hour or per event?

 

[diehardbiker]

Depends on what kind of terp job, the rate really varies greatly from church interpreting service to court level interpeter, I found out those who do military terp earns the highest pay. Those must pass clearance first, not many people can pass that.

 

[Etoile]

This question doesn't really have an answer. The reason is that salary depends on where you are located in the country, what type of job it is (medical or school, etc), what level of education and certification you have, whether you are working freelance or for an agency, whether it is platform interpreting or VRS interpreting or 1-on-1 interpreting, etc. There are just too many variables to say exactly what the salary would be.

For example, an interpreter in a court in Washington DC who has full certification (including legal specialist certification) might make $100+ per hour. An elementary school interpreter in Arkansas with no certification might make $15 per hour. And there are all kinds of ranges in between.

It's impossible to provide an accurate answer because it varies so much.

 

[Reba]

I agree with the rest of you; there are too many variables involved to give a meaningful answer.

Some of the public school terps here in South Carolina get $12/hr, 40-hr week, 180 days per year.

Basic community interpreting pays more per hour but there's no guarantee to a certain number of hours per week.

Other variables:

mileage reimbursement
drive time
two-hour minimum
certified/non-certified
evening/weekend rates
emergency rates
team rates
per diem
benefits package
annual salary v. hourly wage
staff terp v. independent contractor v. agency hire v. government agency
specialty qualifications (legal, mental health, Spanish fluency, etc.)

 

[Reba]

Depends on what kind of terp job, the rate really varies greatly from church interpreting service to court level interpeter, I found out those who do military terp earns the highest pay. Those must pass clearance first, not many people can pass that.

At my church I interpret for free.

I had a Top Secret clearance when I was in the Navy and Naval Reserve (NIS/FBI background check); I also had to get a different background check by SLED for my concealed carry permit. I'll interpret for you and keep you covered, heh, heh.

 

[Gobae]

RID certified public school interpreters in my area (Albany, NY) make $25,000-$28,000/year depending on total years experience. Non-RID certified interpreters (and yes, school districts do hire them here) make about $3,000 less per year.

 

[Etoile]

I didn't realize terp salaries elsewhere in the country were that low. The Washington DC area pays a LOT higher than elsewhere, I guess.

 

[Gobae]

Those figures are about 5 years old now. So, they've probably gone up some.

I guess "Freelancers" and terps working for non-government agencies make more, but I don't know how much more.

If I did (and it was the same or more than what I make now), I'd serious consider a career change. But getting local relevant info on this seems to be hard.

Hmmm... I wonder if the NYS Unemployment Agency has any stats? They must have salary listings since they have to match people and employers.

 

[Gobae]

I just wanted to add that I did a google for "sign language interpreter salary" and there seems to be fair amount of timely info on the topic (finally). Most of it comes from Universities that offer interpreting programs, but if you're going to work near the place you're taking classes this could be quite accurate.

Also from the googled info, it seems like the salary amounts I mentioned for upstate NY are still pretty correct.

 

[Dixie]

This question doesn't really have an answer. The reason is that salary depends on where you are located in the country, what type of job it is (medical or school, etc), what level of education and certification you have, whether you are working freelance or for an agency, whether it is platform interpreting or VRS interpreting or 1-on-1 interpreting, etc. There are just too many variables to say exactly what the salary would be.

For example, an interpreter in a court in Washington DC who has full certification (including legal specialist certification) might make $100+ per hour. An elementary school interpreter in Arkansas with no certification might make $15 per hour. And there are all kinds of ranges in between.

It's impossible to provide an accurate answer because it varies so much.

Well hot diggity damn, thats almost twice what I am making now and I live in Arkansas! Maybe I should take the ASL course from UALR. Believe me for around here that is good money. The only downside is, there is not a large deaf population so work would be limited unless you live in Little Rock and the parents insist the child go to mainstream school with a terp, instead of an all deaf education at AR School for the Deaf. (Not that I know anyone, but I am sure it's happened).

 

[Etoile]

Well hot diggity damn, thats almost twice what I am making now and I live in Arkansas! Maybe I should take the ASL course from UALR. Believe me for around here that is good money. The only downside is, there is not a large deaf population so work would be limited unless you live in Little Rock and the parents insist the child go to mainstream school with a terp, instead of an all deaf education at AR School for the Deaf. (Not that I know anyone, but I am sure it's happened).

I should have known that mentioning a real place would get me in trouble! I was just guessing at how much interpreters get paid there. Hearing some salaries from around the country is making me SO happy to live in Washington DC, I am almost embarrassed to say how much interpreters make here.

 

[Dixie]

nah not in trouble just being sarcastic for the most part.

 

[Reba]

RID certified public school interpreters in my area (Albany, NY) make $25,000-$28,000/year depending on total years experience. Non-RID certified interpreters (and yes, school districts do hire them here) make about $3,000 less per year.

That's better than here. Certified public school terps average $20,000 - $24,000 per year.

When I used to do substitute terp work for the public schools as a district employee, I got $50 per day.

When I did substitute terp work thru an agency, the school paid the agency $50 per hour, and I got $22 from that.

Now, as an independent contractor, when I do substitute terp work at the very same school, I get $35 per hour, all for me.

 

[Etoile]

That's one thing that's always irritated me. I seem to remember hearing that the agency I started out with charged $75/hr to customers, and I was getting paid about a third of that, with zero benefits. I've never understood why the difference was so great.

 

[Reba]

That's one thing that's always irritated me. I seem to remember hearing that the agency I started out with charged $75/hr to customers, and I was getting paid about a third of that, with zero benefits. I've never understood why the difference was so great.

I understand that the agency should get a profit but sometimes the ratio seems lopsided.

 

[Ariakkas]

ive heard through the grapvine that sorenson is paying 21 base level for VRS, in my area. RID cert not required, individual evaluation.

freelance in my area is 10-12/hr, depending on who you know


im curious what terps make in dc? dont have to tell us your personal salary etoile, just a range to satisify the curiousity you created heh.

 

[Liebling:-)))]

Interesting thread here. I am surprised to see there're difference Interpret fees and pasted Reba's list.

We have an Interpret Agencies around Germany. They recieved money from
Government to support interpret fees. The interpreters here are self-employee.

Agencies and Public Health Insurances fix the agreement with self-employ interpreters.

EUR 35 ($47) per hour for certified Interpreters
EUR 15 ($20) per hour for non-certified Interpreters including emergencies, school, lawyers, etc. etc and plus the cost for those

mileage reimbursement
drive time
waiting time

More than EUR 35 and EUR 15 at insurance companies, court, etc. plus driving costs (see above).

 

[Etoile]

im curious what terps make in dc? dont have to tell us your personal salary etoile, just a range to satisify the curiousity you created heh.

Well, I can tell you that when I first started interpreting, my very first job with no certifications or experience, I was making $20/hr, with no benefits. I would say that is the bare minimum I would expect interpreters to charge around here, and often it is much higher.

 

[Sheila]

Well, I can tell you that when I first started interpreting, my very first job with no certifications or experience, I was making $20/hr, with no benefits. I would say that is the bare minimum I would expect interpreters to charge around here, and often it is much higher.

I'm in my first year and that is EXACTLY my situation. I'm in Denver and for non-certified, that's the norm. Where I went to school for my IPP (Colorado Springs, about 70 miles south), they pay $17/hour.

No benefits but travel is paid for. I just hate that it is summer (all the educational interpreters are out taking jobs in the community, leaving me with a job a week if I'm lucky).

 

[diehardbiker]

I can understand why, most employer is required to provide insurance to protect their employees, and there is overhead costs involved, and employer has to pay higher taxes, etc, etc and that adds up the cost, that is why it always cost more.

Go down to auto shop, and find out their labor rate, pretty much same thing, they generallly bill 75 dollars an hour, and pay employees around 15 dollars an hour.

That's one thing that's always irritated me. I seem to remember hearing that the agency I started out with charged $75/hr to customers, and I was getting paid about a third of that, with zero benefits. I've never understood why the difference was so great.