Are your rates for remote interpreting the same as in person?

An agency that I have not worked with before recently got in touch, and we had the typical e-mail back and forth regarding compensation, cancellations, travel, etc. Here is that e-mail exchange.

To: Garrett
From: LSP rep
Subject: In-Person Spanish Interpreter on Upcoming Date

Hello, Garrett.

I’ve been given your contact information by your colleague, Pía Fantástica de las Maravillas.* I wanted to ask if you have availability for a Spanish legal interpreting assignment on such-and-such date and time…

If you are available, please confirm your rates including any travel charges and your cancellation policy.

Best,

LSP rep*

______________________________________

*Names have been changed or omitted.

______________________________________

To: LSP rep
From: Garrett
Subject: Re: In-Person Spanish Interpreter on Upcoming Date

Dear LSP rep,

Thank you for getting in touch. Pía Fantástica de las Maravillas is an excellent colleague, and I appreciate her passing along my information.

My standard on-site legal interpreting fees are as follows:

Depositions, client/attorney meetings, hearings, interviews, and other legal matters:

$xxx**/hour (four-hour minimum)

Car travel (if applicable):
–Current IRS mileage rate for round-trip travel from my office.
–Any parking, toll, or related travel expenses to be invoiced to the client.

–Travel time exceeding 30 minutes from my office charged at $xx**/hour for round-trip travel.

Note: Hours are charged at a whole hour, not fractions of an hour.

Cancellations

If an assignment is cancelled with less than 48 hours’ notice (not including weekends), the interpreter will be compensated for that assignment’s scheduled hours (or minimum hours as stipulated above).

Fatigue and Potential Partner

Assignments may be quite taxing given the number of hours and complexity of the matter; the interpreter will take appropriate breaks if working alone to ensure that the interpreter remains faithful to the professional code of ethics and avoids errors that ultimately would endanger the record.

If the client desires to complete the interpreted session with minimum breaks, a partner interpreter should be contracted.

Let me know if this is confirmed and of any questions you may have.

Thank you,

Garrett

______________________________________

To: Garrett
From: LSP rep
Subject: Re: In-Person Spanish Interpreter on Upcoming Date

Hello, Garrett. Are your rates for remote interpreting the same as in person? If they are different, let me know.

Best,

LSP rep

______________________________________

Let me say here that I love referrals. Some of the most interesting and well-remunerated assignments have come my way through colleagues sharing my information with others. Referrals are great!

So, this question, “do you charge the same fee for remote interpreting and on-site interpreting” comes up rather often. I make all efforts to charge a higher fee. And I believe you, my fellow interpreter, should too. In fact, you ought to consider charging more given that… well, read on to see my typical response to this inquiry, which borrows heavily and directly from our colleague Maha El-Metwally’s  Remote Interpreting: Considerations for Interpreters  LinkedIn post.

To: LSP rep
From: Garrett
Subject: Re: In-Person Spanish Interpreter on Upcoming Date

Dear LSP rep,

TL;DR: Yes, a different fee applies to remote assignments.

My remote, legal interpreting fees are: $xxx**/hour (four-hour minimum)

Note: The interpreter will let parties know if any issues with sound, video, or individual speakers arise. Be prepared for the interpreter to stop interpreting if he is unable to see or hear properly.

Remote assignments tend to have more technical issues come up and increased cognitive load resulting in interpreter fatigue setting in more quickly than in-person assignments. If you’re interested in reading a bit more about these issues, read on.

Research shows that interpreting remotely causes more fatigue than in-person interpreting. In a remote setting, in addition to the cognitive load of interpreting, interpreters also have to deal with real-time user communication via chat/text message/e-mail, have multiple screens with documents and the meeting platform open, and are exposed to long hours staring at those computer screens. Also, the interpreter must have the appropriate equipment (fast computer, stable internet connection, proper microphone, extra power supply, etc.). Furthermore, interpreters often encounter meeting participants who log into the meeting on their mobile phones, while driving, and others not using proper microphones resulting in deficient audio quality. Interpreters can’t interpret what they cannot hear (or cannot hear well).

It is true that, in a remote setting, the client does not have to bear any of the in-person interpreting service costs: travel, parking, mileage, potential accommodation if significantly distant, and per diem. That said, with all these cost savings, should the client save on the interpreter’s fees as well? Given what is described above, it is only reasonable that interpreters working remotely should charge more for their services as they have to perform more tasks, deal with higher stress and resulting fatigue, and invest more in their remote setup.

I appreciate you asking and your consideration.

Thank you,

Garrett

______________________________________

What about you? Are you successfully charging more for remote interpreting services? Has your state judiciary changed interpreter compensation policies for remote proceedings?

**Federal law and requirements prevent professional associations from discussing actual rates on any public forum.

Reference:

El-Metwally, Maha. “Remote Interpreting: Considerations for Interpreters.” LinkedIn, 8, February 2021, https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/remote-interpreting-considerations-interpreters-maha-el-metwally.

Garrett M. Bradford is a freelance conference and court interpreter based in Maryland. Alongside his excellent colleagues, he advocates for cost-of-living-adjusted compensation and practical policies that promote fair and professional working conditions for Maryland court interpreters.

Main photo Cell phone era? by pluzz at flickr , under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.