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pbrayley

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Topic: Business

What does "per diem" mean in regards to salary for employment?

I'm looking for a job. I need to know what a job ad means when they say the position is "per diem".

Posted by pbrayley on November 3, 2009 at 12:34 AM via web and tagged with business, per diem

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    pohnpei397

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    The phrase "per diem" means "per day" or "by the day."

    In terms of jobs, if the position itself is "per diem" it probably means that it is not steady work.  Instead, they will, at best,...

    (The entire answer is 106 words.)

    This is an expert answer, written by an eNotes educator. To read the entire answer, please join eNotes.

    Posted by pohnpei397 on November 3, 2009 at 1:08 AM (Answer #1)

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    krishna-agr...

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    "Per diem" is a phrase taken from Latin meaning per day. It refers to the method of calculating wages to employees or other payments such as fees for consultants.

    Payment of wages are calculated on different basis such as per hour, per day, per week and per month. In addition, to these different methods of payment based on time put in on work, The payment can also be on piece rate basis. This means payment based on quantity of work done.

    Generally wages are paid per diem basis for temporary, short term asignments rather tah for regular long term jobs.

    Posted by krishna-agrawala on November 3, 2009 at 1:14 AM (Answer #2)

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    flprof

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    "Per Diem" can have a few meanings when it comes to employment.  The literal translation from the Latin is "per day," and refers to any type of pay or reimbursement that is made by the day.

    In general, but not always, per diem work is short-term, temporary work, although there can be exceptions.

    If this is a GSA job, you can check the per diem rate here: http://www.gsa.gov/portal/category/21287.

    Jobs in health care, especially to cover a fulltime employee on leave, are often paid per diem -- you receive a set amount for each day you work.

    Posted by flprof on July 14, 2012 at 5:54 PM (Answer #3)

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    discussion1984

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    Heya,

    "Per" in Latin means "through." "Diem" is the accusative, male, singular form of "dies," which means "day." So, put together, that would mean "Through day." If you're talking about work and wages, it would probably mean you get paid day by day.

    Posted by discussion1984 on November 1, 2012 at 11:14 PM (Answer #4)

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    popan006

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    through the day

    Posted by popan006 on February 8, 2013 at 6:09 PM (Answer #5)

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    pumamom

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    I work at a hospital, and per diem means that a person is available so many times a month to work a shift.  Per Diem employees do not get any benefits so their hourly salary is a little higher than a person that works full-time and has benefits.

    Posted by pumamom on February 27, 2013 at 2:34 AM (Answer #6)

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    drnichols

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    It's Latin which translates into "per day". Many organizations in an attempt to hold the line on business costs will offer their employees traveling on business a per diem. They can only spend so much money each day they are away. An example would be: Fay has to leave Dallas to go on business for her company. While in DC. she's told that she has a per diem of $125 which could break down into $25 for breakfast, $40 for lunch and $60 for dinner. That's all she's allowed to spend of the company's money per day, if she spends any at all.

    Posted by drnichols on March 29, 2013 at 7:36 PM (Answer #7)

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