Takeaway
Valuing the inherent worth, rights, and dignity of each individual includes other massage therapists.
On any given day, you could spend 10 minutes in massage groups on social media and find a half-dozen criticisms of massage franchises and the therapists who work for them. The truth is the place that anyone else chooses to work doesn’t affect you in any way. Where to work is a personal choice, combined with what opportunities are available.
Assumedly, franchise employees are working people who try to make an honest living just like you. They are licensed massage therapists, colleagues in the massage profession, and they should be viewed as such. Many may be fresh out of massage school, but that’s not always the case. Some supremely talented massage veterans who don’t want the responsibilities that come with running a business are employed in franchises too.
Complaining about the proliferation of franchises has zero effect on their business. You are not going to shut them down. Has McDonald’s shut down the neighborhood burger joint, the one with the homemade chili and slaw on their burgers? No. If it is truly the franchise pay rate that distresses you, then offer someone who works in a franchise a job at your facility at twice their current pay. Also, throw in continuing education that franchise employees receive at no cost, provide all their supplies and advertising, make their appointments for them, and do their laundry. Handle taking their payments and rebooking clients. Keep the building well-maintained and clean, and don’t expect them to do any housekeeping chores other than changing their sheets. Don’t forget to match their Social Security and Medicare withholding when you’re doing the payroll.
Sure, someone who is fresh out of school may want to get experience under their belt before taking the leap into their own business. They may be looking for a steady paycheck without the worries of ownership. Maybe they weren’t impressed with the circumstances they were offered elsewhere, or weren’t impressed with an employer who assured them they would be an independent contractor, free to do their own thing, when in fact, they were a misclassified employee.
Stop being derogatory toward franchise employees. It’s work-shaming. There is somewhere for everyone.
Laura Allen has been a licensed massage therapist since 1999 and an approved provider of continuing education since 2000. She is the author of Nina McIntosh’s The Educated Heart, now in its fifth edition, and numerous other books. Allen lives in the mountains of western North Carolina with her husband and their two rescue dogs.