A real concern of practice owners is the shortage of available CrVTs for hire and the practice’s ability to compensate their staff competitively to avoid losing them to other practices or industries.
Practices should consider growing their CrVTs from within their current staff. The table in the Resources section below offers current pricing (Jan 2025) for several online veterinary technology programs accredited by the AVMA.
The investment in these programs can be compared to the cost of turnover of a staff member. According to the Work Institute’s 2022 Retention Report, the cost of losing an employee is approximately 33% of their base pay. For the average US employee, this turnover costs employers approximately $15,000 (per person). The costs of turnover for veterinary practices primarily fall under the following categories:
Separation Costs – unemployment tax, separation benefit wages, administrative time, etc
Replacement Costs – job vacancy advertising, interviewing, background checks & testing.
Training Costs – training time, duplication of staff hours, materials & equipment.
Lost Productivity – performance differences, damage to reputation, depleted team, reduction of available service hours.
Paying for these programs for staff in exchange for agreeing to continue working in the practice while learning and for a specified number of years following certification can, in the long run, be a cost-effective way for practices to improve staff retention. The practice also benefits from upskilling its staff, which allows for a more productive workforce.
