How to Negotiate a Veterinary Associate Contract? | Employment Contract Negotiations

How should you negotiate a veterinary associate contract? There are lots of things to consider when you want to negotiate your contract or what we call an employment agreement. The first thing you want to understand is how much leverage do you have and what I mean leverage, I mean, are you just out of your schooling? Do you have any experience? Are you specialized? If you’re specialized and there are very few of you in the veterinary industry, then you have more leverage. But if you’re just out of school for general veterinary practice, you might have a little less leverage. And then also, if you’ve been practicing and you have a substantial client base and you have lots of years of experience, then you may have more leverage in relation to that.

Negotiating the Base Salary

Once you understand how much leverage you have, then you need to understand what you should be asking for. The first thing I always see our clients want to negotiate is their base salary. Base salary or base compensation is just the flat, you’re going to get every month upon continuing your employment. The problem with this is normally how veterinarians are compensated is not only just through their base compensation. You’re also normally compensated through collections. That’s the typical sort of layout of compensation for really any type of veterinarian. Even if you’re specialized, it’s normally base compensation, and then there’s a part of collections. So yes, the base compensation is important, but there are so many other aspects to an employment agreement. Your percentage of collections can be huge. You want to fight probably for a larger percentage of collections over just a base salary because the base salary will never change unless you renegotiate in the future. But if you have a substantial client base and you know that you’re going to be bringing those clients in, you will want a higher percentage of your collections which you can make well over your base salary. It’s something to consider. I know base salary is the big number on an employment agreement, but you also want to think about collection percentage as well, because you can make a lot more money with a higher collection percentage if you know that you are going to be bringing in those clients.

Now, if you are right out of school and you do not have an established client base, and maybe you’re not replacing someone at a veterinary practice or clinic, they’re just expanding. It’s going to take you a while to build up that client base. Then you, in that situation, might want to fight for a higher base compensation or salary for a year or two, so that you can establish, as I said, that nice client base. Other things that can be more detrimental to you than even the compensation are those restrictive covenants. And what I mean by restrictive covenants are non-compete clauses, and non-solicitation clauses, but specifically the non-compete. Right now, the veterinary industry is booming and practices that are bringing on and employing veterinarians are protecting their interests.

And so, sometimes these non-competes can be unreasonable and can attach to many locations or just many miles from one practice. So, you really want to consider that because if you are establishing a client base, you’re working hard, you’re bringing in clients and then you decide to leave the practice or they decide to terminate their employment with you, you could have a serious problem. You might not be able to practice in the area. You could even have to up and move your family. Non-compete clauses are extremely important that you want to negotiate in your initial employment agreement. And a lot of times, it’s overlooked because it’s something way in the future. And you’re excited about this prospective future employer or you’re right out of school and you really want to start earning money.

Veterinary Contract Career Negotiations

And so, that’s what you’re really focused on, but non-competes are those sneaky clauses in employment agreements that can really hurt you in the future. I would say more than anything, a non-compete agreement is something that you should always negotiate. Now, they’re normally a mileage from specific locations that you can negotiate. And then also, for a specific period, they can be anywhere from six months to three years. And I would always try to negotiate that amount of time down and then always the miles down. When you’re negotiating how many miles, you also need to consider, can you find work outside of that restricted area without having to up and move? And then you also want to know what’s restricted. Sometimes the non-compete clauses specifically for veterinarians may just say that the practice of veterinary medicine, which is very general, and if you’re specialized, I would negotiate that it’s only within your specialty.

So, non-compete clauses want to negotiate those, most important. Non-solicitation clauses just mean you can’t solicit clients or employees coming with you. And sometimes that period can be negotiated down to six months or a year before you can reach out directly to those clients or to those employees. Then you have your sort of ancillary benefits. Your continuing education, typically you’re given an allowance every year, which is anywhere from 2,000 to 4,000 typically within a veterinary practice. You can negotiate that money because if you don’t, then you must pay for your continuing education to keep your license. So, that’s something I would negotiate as well. And then also any sort of dues, fees, licensing, all those costs really add up.

And we don’t think about that when we’re just looking at the base salary and how much money you’re going to make, but these sorts of costs can be negotiated at the beginning. And then it’s really going to save you a lot of money in the end, and a lot of headaches as well.

Corporate Job Complications

What are the pros and cons of a veterinarian working in more of a corporate clinic setting?  When working for a corporation, there are a lot of pros, starting with the benefits that are typically offered such as health insurance, retirement, disability, life insurance, sometimes travel, and cell phones. The list just kind of goes on from there. There are more benefits that are going to be offered to you in a more corporate clinic. Also, the facilities typically are more standardized. If there’s more than one location that you’re going to be providing services at, normally, they’re standard between the locations. And then also support staff. Normally, you’re fully staffed with the people that you need and the equipment within the facilities.

So, this is great. You’ve got benefits, the facilities are great. Sometimes the pay can be more in a corporate setting, I would say often, you are typically compensated more. Those are just kind of the pros depending on what you’re looking for. If you’re looking for benefits, you’re looking for things that are more standardized policies, also with admin, then that’s considered a pro for a corporate clinic. Some cons that you want to kind of think about are you’re normally not able to negotiate quite as much in an employment contract. When you’re initially starting your employment with them, it’s typically offered the same sort of agreement for all the other veterinarians that are similarly situated. Also, you want to think about your compensation.

That is one thing that you can sometimes negotiate in a corporate clinic. Some other cons and probably the biggest one, well, I would say there are probably two. One, there’s normally a lot of expectations for how many clients you’re going to be seeing in their animals per day, there are quotas, there are maximums, there are minimums of expectations that you must meet. And if you’re not meeting those, there are consequences to those. That’s something that you want to consider if that’s something that you feel up to. I would say another con is normally the non-compete clauses. They are extensive. There’s going to probably be multiple locations, large miles from each location that you’re going to be restricted.

And then normally, for an extended period, the biggest con of a corporate clinic is those non-compete clauses. Because those can really come back to by EO. Going back to the pros, I would say another pro would probably be just marketing and advertising. They’re marketing and advertising on your behalf. They’re bringing in tons of clients and their pets, so there’s really no worry that you’re going to have that client base there. It’s easy to build up because you have them supporting you in this sort of setting. If you have any more questions or you’d like to discuss these sorts of situations, you can schedule a consultation with us.

Negotiate With Practice Leadership

Can someone break a veterinary associate contract? The short answer is yes, you can. However, if breaking the employment agreement or employment contract means that you are not adhering to the terms that you signed and agreed to abide by, you could be in breach of the contract. And if you’re in breach, there are some serious consequences that you need to consider. First, sometimes contracts will have liquidated damage clauses stating that if you break this agreement, leave before you complete your term, you do not give proper notice for without cause termination, there may be financial consequences which equate to tens of thousands of dollars. You want to make sure that you read your employment agreement and you understand fully what you’re signing because you can’t just walk away without consequences.

The other thing you want to consider is any of those restrictive covenants. So, that’s your non-compete clause, your non-solicitation of employees. Those all still stand, so even if you break the agreement, you can still be held in violation of the non-compete clause or the non-solicitation clause. So, you want to make sure, again, you read your employment agreement and you understand that those restrictive covenants don’t go away. Even if you breach the agreement, they can come after you for damages, for the breach of the contract, and for a violation of the restrictive covenants. Now, most veterinary employment agreements will have an arbitration clause. That means that you’ll have to sit down with an arbitrator to discuss the damages of this breach. If they don’t have that, then your employer can sue you in court and bring forth any damages. And what’s that going to look like? Well, if they must recruit another veterinarian, the cost of that and onboarding that veterinarian if they’ve lost any business while you are gone, and this can get really serious for someone who’s very specialized and there’s few of you out there that can fill that position.

So, the short answer is yes, you can always break a contract. But what are the consequences of that going to be? You’re probably going to be in breach of the contract and that can either mean arbitration or litigation. You don’t get out of the restrictive covenants; those things stick around. You are going to have to abide by the non-compete and the non-solicitation clauses. Sometimes there’s also confidentiality in there as well. And then, lastly, it’s best just to look at your contract itself. Sometimes, well, most of the time, you should look for it and should not sign a contract that does not have a without cause termination. If there’s a without cause termination, you just give the required notice, which is anywhere between 60 to 90 days, that’s typically an industry standard that you’ll be terminating the agreement. Then at the end of that 60 to 90 days, you walk away.

However, the restrictive covenants are always going to apply, but you’re not opening yourself up to arbitration or litigation costs because you did it properly. The other thing you want to remember if you’re terminating the agreement for without cause, you want to make sure that you give the proper notice so that 60 to 90 days start. There’s normally always a notice clause in your employment agreement contract. However, they’re vastly different. Sometimes you’re able to give your notice in person, via email, however, sometimes they have to be in writing and mailed to headquarters if it’s more of like a corporate setting, but they’re always different. And if you mail them, sometimes the notice starts on the first day and sometimes it starts the third day after you mail it in. Again, you want to read this very carefully, so you make sure that you’re not in breach of your contract.

Other Blogs of Interest

• Pros and Cons of Employment at a Corporate Veterinary Office | Corporate Vet Clinic Benefits and Work Problems
• How is a Veterinarian Given a Draw in a Contract? | Production in Veterinary Contracts

Veterinary Professional Contract Benefits | Veterinary Benefit Agreement

Veterinarians are in high demand. People want to do everything within their power to take care of the pets that are so near and dear to their hearts, and the skills that a veterinarian brings to the table are also highly prized. The supply of veterinarians is somewhat lacking compared to the overall demand in the market at this time, and that has meant that employers have had to look at ways to sweeten the deal to get as many vets in their doors as possible.

Why Employers Require Contract Agreements for Veterinarians

Many jobs in any industry require potential employees to sign a contract that lays out the terms of employment and the benefits of coming to work at a specific facility. This is done as a means of encouraging people to accept a specific job offer that they might not have otherwise. When the benefits are laid out on the table, it is easier for people to see why they should or should not go to work for a specific employer they have been considering. 

Veterinarians will always be asked to sign a contract of employment before they can begin their work. After all, the work that veterinarians do is so delicate and so sensitive that no aspect of it can be left up to chance. The employer needs to know beyond the shadow of a doubt what they are getting when they offer employment to a particular veterinarian. 

On the plus side for incoming vets is the fact that they get to see some of the benefits that they will receive all laid out on paper in a way that makes it clear what they should expect. 

Benefits of Veterinarian Contracts

There are many upsides to signing a veterinarian contract, not the least of which is the fact that it can provide some much-needed stability to the veterinarian.

Many veterinarian contracts are designed to run for a period of 12 months or longer. Thus, the veterinarian can feel confident that they will be employed at a specific facility for at least a year if they don’t do anything egregious that would nullify the contract. 

We also want to explore some additional upsides to veterinarian contracts so that it is clear why these documents are so important to so many people. 

Professional Liability Insurance

No matter how talented someone is at their job, there is always a risk that something terrible could go wrong. Veterinary Practice News explains why vets are so strongly encouraged to purchase protection that will keep them and their practice safe: 

As claims become more common and damages rise, defending against malpractice claims becomes a more expensive and necessary concern for veterinary practices. As with many other professionals, veterinarians commonly purchase professional liability (malpractice) insurance to guard against the expense of defending against such claims.

If an employer can add professional liability insurance as a benefit to signing the contract, then this is all upside for the veterinarian. It means that they may not have to pay for this insurance out of their pocket unless they happen to want supplemental coverage beyond what the employer provides. 

Clients are often very particular about how their pets are taken care of, and they may feel that they have a claim against you if something goes wrong with their pet’s care. This is why all vets who are considering a new employment offer should speak with a veterinary contract lawyer about looking over the paperwork that they have been asked to sign to make sure it includes extensive liability insurance protections. 

Retirement Accounts

Everyone needs to think about their financial future as they are still actively working. Preparing for the fact that you won’t be able to work as you do right now someday is a wise practice simply because it is the reality of the situation. You should prepare for the day when you are past the age where you are able to work and need to rely on the savings that you have accumulated over the course of your working life. 

A 401(k) plan for veterinarians should be automatic in any contract that they are expected to sign. This is to say that any veterinarian who is thinking about signing up for a job with a given employer should recognize that the employer needs to offer a 401(k) plan for the offer to even be considered.

PTO and Sick Days

Veterinarians who are considering accepting a new job may want to give special consideration to the personal time off (PTO) and sick days that they are allotted. The reason? Because it is very important that they have the opportunity to establish some work/life balance in their existence. 

There is a burnout crisis that is sweeping through the practice at this time as the number of clients continues to grow and grow. Many vets are being required to work far more hours and under far more challenging conditions than they normally would have to. Given all of this, it is abundantly clear that vets need to catch some breaks and be allowed to recover from the onslaught that is their job right now. 

When looking over a contract, veterinarians should see how their time off breaks down into different categories, such as:

• Sick days
• Vacation days
• Personal time off (PTO)
• Flex time
• Holidays

Different employers have different definitions for how they look at the time provided to their employees to take care of what they need to. Before signing an employment or independent contractor agreement, it is important to understand what those definitions are. 

Discounted or Free Services

It would be unusual for a veterinarian not to have a pet (or two, or three!) of their own. Thus, it is a reasonable assumption that the vet may receive special discounts or even free services from their employer. They may not want to work on their own pet for understandable reasons, but they may have the opportunity to receive veterinary care from a co-worker who can help them out. This service should be discounted by their employer as part of the terms of their employment. 

This may seem like a small thing, but it makes a big difference in the lives of busy veterinarians who have multiple pets that they need to take care of at this time. Getting a little break on those services can be the cherry on top. 

Reach Out Today: Veterinary Contract Negotiations

Before you sign on to any professional veterinarian contract, we would like to have the opportunity to discuss it with you. It is our intention to try to help you understand every element of your contract (including an analysis of your non compete agreement) and if said contract makes sense for your needs. Please contact us and let us know how we can start the process of helping you receive the assistance that you require. 

Additional Information on Employee and Employer Negotiations

How should you negotiate a veterinary associate contract? There are lots of things to consider when you want to negotiate your contract or what we call an employment agreement. The first thing you want to understand is how much leverage do you have and what I mean leverage, I mean, are you just out of your schooling? Do you have any experience? Are you specialized? If you’re specialized and there are very few of you in the veterinary industry, then you have more leverage. But if you’re just out of school for general veterinary practice, you might have a little less leverage. And then also, if you’ve been practicing and you have a substantial client base and you have lots of years of experience, then you may have more leverage in relation to that.

Once you understand how much leverage you have, then you need to understand what you should be asking for. The first thing I always see our clients want to negotiate is their base salary. Base salary or base compensation is just the flat, you’re going to get every month upon continuing your employment. The problem with this is normally how veterinarians are compensated is not only just through their base compensation. You’re also normally compensated through collections. That’s the typical sort of layout of compensation for really any type of veterinarian. Even if you’re specialized, it’s normally base compensation, and then there’s a part of collections. So yes, the base compensation is important, but there are so many other aspects to an employment agreement. Your percentage of collections can be huge. You want to fight probably for a larger percentage of collections over just a base salary because the base salary will never change unless you renegotiate in the future. But if you have a substantial client base and you know that you’re going to be bringing those clients in, you will want a higher percentage of your collections which you can make well over your base salary. It’s something to consider. I know base salary is the big number on an employment agreement, but you also want to think about collection percentage as well, because you can make a lot more money with a higher collection percentage if you know that you are going to be bringing in those clients.

Now, if you are right out of school and you do not have an established client base, and maybe you’re not replacing someone at a veterinary practice or clinic, they’re just expanding. It’s going to take you a while to build up that client base. Then you, in that situation, might want to fight for a higher base compensation or salary for a year or two, so that you can establish, as I said, that nice client base. Other things that can be more detrimental to you than even the compensation are those restrictive covenants. And what I mean by restrictive covenants are non-compete clauses, and non-solicitation clauses, but specifically the non-compete. Right now, the veterinary industry is booming and practices that are bringing on and employing veterinarians are protecting their interests.

And so, sometimes these non-competes can be unreasonable and can attach to many locations or just many miles from one practice. So, you really want to consider that because if you are establishing a client base, you’re working hard, you’re bringing in clients and then you decide to leave the practice or they decide to terminate their employment with you, you could have a serious problem. You might not be able to practice in the area. You could even have to up and move your family. Non-compete clauses are extremely important that you want to negotiate in your initial employment agreement. And a lot of times, it’s overlooked because it’s something way in the future. And you’re excited about this prospective future employer or you’re right out of school and you really want to start earning money.

Have a Lawyer Review Every Contract

Your eyes might get big when you see some of the benefits you can get just from signing off on your professional contract. However, before you get too excited about all that is contained within the contract, please consider having a veterinary contract lawyer look it over. Your lawyer can review each aspect of your contract to see if elements need to be revised before you sign off. They can also inform you about anything within your contract that you do not understand. 

A complete review of your contract will cost you some money, but that is money well spent! Most contracts offered to veterinarians are fair and reasonable, but there are cases when a contract should be rejected due to unreasonable expectations. To make sure you don’t end up signing up to work in a situation that you can’t stand, you should contact us and let us get to work, helping you figure out if the contract you are presented with is worth signing.