“Most relief professionals have the freedom to set their own schedules and work as many or as few shifts as they want, which determines their annual salary. This end result: relief professionals have the opportunity to earn substantially higher annual salaries than full-time veterinarians and technicians even working less hours than their full-time counterparts.” Photo courtesy Roo You have probably heard about veterinary relief work or even know someone who practices as a relief veterinarian or technician. Relief medicine has grown substantially over the past decade and shows no signs of slowing down. For those on the outside looking in, you probably have many questions. The truth is, veterinary relief work comes in a variety of shapes and sizes, and it works a bit differently depending how you go about it. Some veterinary professionals work independently, taking full control of their relief careers and all the responsibilities that come with it. Others prefer the ease of veterinary relief platforms, which take care of some of the heavy lifting, saving them time and effort. Understandably, all this variance has resulted in some misunderstanding and confusion about how relief work works. So, let’s set the record straight and bust some myths about working as an independent contractor. “Becoming an independent contractor is difficult.” This myth is quite a bit outdated. Before veterinary relief platforms existed, 1099 veterinarians and technicians essentially operated their own business, hiring themselves out as a one-person freelance labor force. They would network like crazy to find their own job opportunities, communicate with multiple hospitals regularly to coordinate and schedule relief shifts, and manage their own employment paperwork, invoicing, and taxes. Obviously, it was a lot of work, which took significant time and initiative. Today, many professionals who sign up to be contract veterinarians or technicians start off working through a veterinary relief services platform, which typically takes care of most of this heavy lifting for them. That means it has become easier to jump right into relief and get started quickly. “Independent contractors make less money.” Industry-wide staffing shortages mean relief veterinarians and technicians are in high demand. For this reason, 1099 professionals may earn higher hourly wages than full-time professionals. According to data released by Roo, a veterinary relief management company, in 2023, relief veterinarians providing services through their platform reportedly earned nearly double the hourly rate of the average associate vet (Figure 1).1 Figure 1. Annual salary, however, is a bit of a different animal. By nature, independent contract work can be somewhat variable. Most relief professionals have the freedom to set their own schedules and work as many or as few shifts as they want, which determines their annual salary. The end result: relief professionals have the opportunity to earn substantially higher annual salaries than full-time veterinarians and technicians even working less hours than their full-time counterparts. However, if they cut their hours too short, they could end up on the lower end of the pay scale. It all comes down to how many relief shifts a vet or tech chooses to take. Other factors to consider are employment benefits and their cost. While professionals employed at a clinic full-time generally receive health benefits and professional liability coverage through their employers, independent contractors typically have to pay for these same coverages themselves. Even full-time veterinarians engaging in contract work to supplement their income will still need personal professional liability coverage to protect themselves during their relief shifts; independent contractors are typically not covered under a hospital’s umbrella policy. “Taxes are too complicated for independent contractors.” Taxes work a bit differently for independent contractors. As a full-time employee, taxes are taken out of your paycheck automatically, but as an independent contractor, you will receive 100 percent of your income upfront. This means you must pay taxes on all this income later—sometimes even quarterly—to avoid getting penalized by the IRS. Thankfully, relief platforms may offer resources to help make independent contractor taxes easier to manage. For example, some will track your relief income annually and send professionals a single 1099-NEC form at the end of the year with all the income earned through their platform. On the other hand, 1099 professionals working relief independently may have to track down and wrangle several 1099 forms. This can be a burden as it involves keeping careful track of everywhere you have worked in a year and hoping the hospital has kept good records, as well. One important thing to note is as an independent contractor, you gain access to a number of additional tax write-offs not available to full-time employees. Yes, this makes 1099 taxes more complicated, but also equates directly to tax savings. The tax savings you have from your deductions often offset the cost of having a tax account manage your taxes for you. It is recommended to consult a CPA or tax professional to ensure you are not leaving any money on the table. “They have no control where they work.” Many independent contractors have complete control over where and when they work, often dictating their schedule and the hospitals they wish to take shifts at. However, veterinary relief platforms may work a bit differently. Some platforms request your availability and place you at hospitals, which gives you less control over where you work. Other platforms let you choose the shifts you want to work. This involves reading a bit about the different hospitals and their culture and workflow, and choosing where you want to work each day. Ultimately, this gives you more control over your relief career. “I can’t perform independent contact work if I have a full-time job.” There are several ways you can approach contract work without dropping everything. In fact, many veterinarians and technicians employed full-time also pick up 1099 contract work when they want to supplement their income. A recent survey of veterinary relief platform users found 41 percent of their relief veterinarians worked at a hospital full-time and picked up relief shifts on the side.2 This mix of full-time and independent contract work can be a great balance for many veterinary professionals, providing them all the employment benefits of a full-time job while affording them opportunities to increase their income to save for major life milestones or pay down student loans. Additionally, relief work is a great way to experience other hospitals and specialties. Every hospital has something they do great and maybe some things they could improve. Independent contractors can take their lessons and experience back to their full-time hospital to improve the medical care they provide to their regular clients. “Every hospital has something they do really great and maybe some things they could improve. Independent contractors can take their lessons and experience back to their full-time hospital to improve the medical care they provide to their regular clients.” Photo courtesy Roo “Independent contractors are isolated.” Because 1099 professionals work at various hospitals, they naturally develop relationships with other veterinary teams they work with. In the old days, relief professionals might not have developed the tight-knit relationships that come from working in the trenches with the same people every day. However, because of the gaining popularity of 1099 work, there is now a vast community of relief professionals who do have a common shared experience. Many veterinary platforms foster this community by frequently hosting CE and networking events. Fact: 1099 veterinary work is different for everyone In the end, every independent contractor is different, and 1099 work is what you make of it. So, some of the above myths might be true depending on who you ask, but that does not mean that is necessarily going to be everyone’s experience. There are a ton of veterinary relief platforms out there that make being a 1099 employee easy and exciting, and 1099 professionals are free to find their own contract work without going through a platform at all. As a relief professional, it is up to you to decide how you want to practice and when you want to pick up shifts. That is both the joy and the burden of being fully in control of one’s own career. Andrew Findlaytor, DVM, is a 2015 University of California (UC) Davis graduate passionate about veterinary medicine, leadership, and innovation in the veterinary field. Dr. Findlaytor has worked as a technician, associate, clinical researcher, and relief veterinarian at more than 80 different practices, including general practice, emergency and urgent care, rural community medicine, and tertiary care facilities. As the senior director of Veterinary Strategy at Roo, Findlaytor leverages his skills in strategy and program development to create and implement innovative solutions that enhance the quality and accessibility of pet care. His mission is to empower the veterinary community and improve the well-being of animals and their families. References Ross Zimmerman. How Much Do Roo Relief Vets Make? Roo Veterinary Inc. December, 2023. https://www.roo.vet/roo4you/how-much-do-roo-relief-vets-make Data on File, Understanding Vets, MASI Consulting LLC, May 2024. N=459 relief veterinarians. Veterinarian Salary. ZipRecruiter. September 2024. https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Veterinarian-Salary.
