| Pages in topic: < [1 2] | Relevance of translator associations in 2022 Thread poster: Fiona Grace Peterson
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| Not my experience... | Jul 21, 2022 |
Samuel Murray wrote:
Well, you're supposed to receive help from the management or from members within the association, but there is often also much criticism and judgment from fellow-members, if you do not belong to the right cliques.
In some ways, it's similar to office politics. The toxicity is part and parcel of it being an association, really.
What's more, most translator associations are either voluntary organizations entirely or make substantial use of volunteer effort, and these volunteers are all translators and editors. And the typical translator and editor tends to have either strong opinions, strong personalities, or a critical eye. This makes clashes by volunteers (with each other and/or with fellow members) within translator associations even more likely than in some other industries' associations.
In the UK...
| | | | | My experience | Jul 21, 2022 |
I'm currently a member of two professional associations, with personal experience of four. I'll only be renewing one membership this year, which will be MET - it's the only truly standout association I've come across. It's membership fee is extremely reasonable, and its resources are second to none.
Generally I feel that translator association fees are too high for the concrete return on investment they provide. I know that others have said and will say that the work that comes to ... See more I'm currently a member of two professional associations, with personal experience of four. I'll only be renewing one membership this year, which will be MET - it's the only truly standout association I've come across. It's membership fee is extremely reasonable, and its resources are second to none.
Generally I feel that translator association fees are too high for the concrete return on investment they provide. I know that others have said and will say that the work that comes to them through associations' directories offsets this expenditure, but this hasn't been my experience - Proz has been far more valuable to me in all respects than any association ever has. And there's definitely the gatekeeping element that Dan mentions - AITI here in Italy has a "window" during the year when you can apply, and you have to dedicate hours to applying the way they prescribe (through invoices, of all things), all with the air that they are doing you some tremendous favour by letting you join.
For years I was convinced that being a member of an association looked good to clients. Now I believe that clients don't actually care, most of them not having a clue what these associations are or what they do. The important thing at the end of the day is how well I translate.
So to sum up, I find the notion of translator associations a bit obsolete - I'm tired of paying for the "privilege" of saying I'm a member of something that does nothing concrete for me. There are so many resources available now that are more agile and more suited to my needs - if I need tax advice in the dense forest that is Italian bureacracy I'll call my accountant - I don't need a seminar or a webinar. Lots of great podcasts and companies offering translator training, such as Corinne McKay. The Internet is awash with everything I could ever need. And translation conferences are generally more style than substance. While it's important to build a network, I see limited value in exchanging business cards with colleagues.
Just my own experience. Thanks to everyone for sharing your thoughts. ▲ Collapse
| | | | espoir03
United States
Japanese to English
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| Joining associations/attending annual conference was waste of time and money | Aug 10, 2022 |
I am no longer a member of ATA. After attending ATA annual conference once, I decided not to renew my membership.
ATA's finances are deteriorating. I should have checked their finances before joining. They are just losing money and members. If an organization provides great value, it should have good finances and members should be increasing.
When I attended the ATA annual conference a few years ago, an experienced translator from the JLD (Japanese Language Division) to... See more I am no longer a member of ATA. After attending ATA annual conference once, I decided not to renew my membership.
ATA's finances are deteriorating. I should have checked their finances before joining. They are just losing money and members. If an organization provides great value, it should have good finances and members should be increasing.
When I attended the ATA annual conference a few years ago, an experienced translator from the JLD (Japanese Language Division) told me that I should volunteer for the JLD because I am young, and that is how inexperienced translators get more job.
I thought it is ridiculous idea, because it is the clients who give me the job.
During the pandemic, a number of ATA members (even the conference speakers, ATA certified translators, and ATA certification exam graders) received PPP. Information about independent contractors/companies received PPP is public, and can be found on FederalPay.org website. You can also estimate the PPP recipients' annual revenue from the amount of PPP loan disclosed on the website.
I found it quite ridiculous to spend time and money to attend the conference to interact with people who can't make a living from translation/interpretation, or are making less than half of my revenue even if their years of experiences are more than twice of mine. After all, if they are successful, they should be busy taking care of their clients instead of attending the conference.
I noticed that certification exams are ridiculous idea as well. It profits the association the most, because by giving certification to members, they can expect constant income in the form of membership fee.
It's absurd that people who can't make a living from translation (ATA exam graders who are PPP recipients) are grading translation exams and deciding whether pass or fail. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | I benefited from the CIoL and the Union of Communication and Language Professionals in Denmark | Aug 11, 2022 |
I joined the Union of Communication and Language Professionals in Denmark because my employer at the time asked me to.
It had a different name then, but I believe it still functions in more or less the same way. It is a trade union, and in Denmark trade unions have collective agreements with employers on salary scales and frameworks, and the trade unions administer unemployment insurance. The Language Professionals are non-political, and also organise courses and training schemes, so as a ... See more I joined the Union of Communication and Language Professionals in Denmark because my employer at the time asked me to.
It had a different name then, but I believe it still functions in more or less the same way. It is a trade union, and in Denmark trade unions have collective agreements with employers on salary scales and frameworks, and the trade unions administer unemployment insurance. The Language Professionals are non-political, and also organise courses and training schemes, so as a freelancer I went on paying my subscription until I reached pension age. I subscribed to their professional insurance scheme for some years, too - there was extensive cover at a very reasonable premium.
I never qualified as a State Authorized Translator (Translatør) in Denmark, which was a protected title, so I was not able to join the associations for them, although I did attend a few of their training days and seminars and would have been happy to join if I had been eligible.
I joined the IoL (now CIol) as soon as I could, after three years´ experience. I believe the ITI required five years back then, and although I considered joining, I never felt the need.
- I have enjoyed the CIoL's magazine and learned quite a lot from it.
- I made the effort to become a Chartered Linguist, because I believe in asserting the difference between professional, qualified translators and bilinguals who may or may not know what they are doing.
- Clients have found me through the Find a Linguist page. Not large numbers, but excellent clients who pay well, although unfortunately they do not become regulars.
- I have attended some very good conferences, and would have attended more if I had lived in the UK.
- Especially in the wake of Covid, the CIoL has built up a library of webinars which members can use, and they run other courses, training days and networking sessions, which I do not take part in as much as I would like to!
Altogether, I think it is worth the subscription, and I would want to do the required CPD one way or another in any case. Anything relevant counts, and spread over a year, it is less than an hour a week, so it is simply a matter of noting what you do.
[Edited at 2022-08-11 12:50 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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jyuan_us 
United States
Local time: 20:38
Member (2005)
English to Chinese
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Fiona Grace Peterson wrote:
And there's definitely the gatekeeping element that Dan mentions - AITI here in Italy has a "window" during the year when you can apply, and you have to dedicate hours to applying the way they prescribe (through invoices, of all things), all with the air that they are doing you some tremendous favour by letting you join.
I particularly like this comment.
[Edited at 2022-08-11 23:22 GMT]
| | | | espoir03
United States
Japanese to English
+ ...
| ATA is managed by people who can't make a living from translation/interpretation | Aug 14, 2022 |
Forgot to mention. According to the information from FederalPay.org website, a number of ATA board members have received PPP loan and making so little.
ATA is managed by people who are not making a living from translation/interpretation - ATA is so unimportant and insignificant, and has no existence value.
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