What is the rates for simultaneous interpreting and consecutive translation?

Korana Lasić wrote:



To make it simpler for the agencies who've been pivoting to interpreting services since the pandemic, I worked out a by the hour rate of 60 EUR for consecutive (and I work alone) and 80 EUR simultaneous and of course, I work with a partner and require payment for the duration of the engagement, not just hours I was actively interpreting.

My rationale for these rates is: Remote engagements are usually 3-4 hours long. If you think of many proceedings and meetings that would otherwise have been done in person, everyone involved is still getting the hang of doing it via video conferencing platforms and tendency is for the engagement to last fewer hours but then more days, rather than longer and fewer days. So I can comfortably do consecutive for 3-4 hours a day, I cannot nor would I ever try to do 3 hours of simultaneous alone. I think only a person who has little idea of what simultaneous mode is can even ask you to do it, it will hugely affect the quality of the interpreting and PMs talk. Better to lose a job than to botch it.

Three hours (up to four) is already considered half a day, so 80 EUR for a simultaneous hour is in no way expensive and anything over 4 hours would be a full day — if they were working with an in-house (in-person) interpreters from Europe, who often charge 550-650 EUR for a full day (up to 8 hours) for big events and conferences. This is for one simultaneous interpreter and two would be paid double that. Then you have expenses, lunch etc... Like Irina pointed out, so many seasoned in-house interpreters will not even accept half a day engagement.

Remote freelance interpreting will never be a race to the bottom because, when compared to the translation field, at least some of the translations people need are bureaucratic in nature. They are done as a formality and hardly anyone ever reads them. So they can be done by students of translation or even bad translators. When it comes to interpreting, communication is either flowing seamlessly or it becomes painfully obvious that the interpreter cannot do their job well enough and there's no not noticing that.

Also, no matter what a genius interpreter one is or how well trained, you don't just sit down and start interpreting an event that has to do with business, legal matters, medicine, science...etc Anything, really. We aren't experts in those fields. If we are lucky we are talented interpreters and then you get loads of materials and you prepare. You translate, you research, you do your due diligence. So you aren't only paid for the hours of the event but also for all the research and translating you must do to prepare for the engagement.

There's also an investment in equipment one needs to make. A computer who can well handle your one CAT tool might be useless for the remote interpreting requirements. You need two headsets, a good Ethernet connection, backup internet connection...etc In most places, at least some of these can be written off your taxes but still.

Also, the translation field has this problem that very many complete amateurs think they can do it and, to an extent, they can — If you need an amateur translation nobody will ever read cos it's there for purely bureaucratic reasons.

Interpreting field is the opposite of that. Many people who could do it with as little as basic training and then loads of self-improvement work, research, learning and practice think they cannot do it. That's how you should think about it and not allow it to become a race to the bottom for you or the rest of us.

Edit: What I'm trying to say is that simultaneous interpreters work in pairs. You must switch every 20 or every 30 minutes, depending on how you and your partner like to do it. The fact that they're asking you to do it alone makes me think they have no idea of what they're asking you to do. One hour of simultaneous will be a very long time if you will have to do it alone. I usually switch every 30 minutes and after about 25 my concentration starts dropping so much that I would hate to have to find out what would happen if I tried to go on for another 30-60 minutes. Also, anything over one hour will be paid at 'a professional rate' doesn't mean a thing. A freelance professional rate by whose standards? It just sounds like they are leaving it open to have you work for 2 hours of simultaneous alone and pay you whatever they decide to pay you.

Good luck.



[Edited at 2021-02-11 13:57 GMT]