Awards Go to Outstanding Massage Therapist Employers

Massage therapists' work environments traditionally reflect the field's independent spirit. Most therapists own their own practices-and when they do work for someone, it's usually as an independent contractor.

But along with the freedom of being an independent contractor can come a few drawbacks: No vacation time or health benefits; back-to-back  sessions without adequate breaks; low pay.

Forward-thinking employers are changing that trend.

Two Illinois employers were recognized this month by the American Massage Therapy Association-Illinois Chapter for creating exceptional work environments for professional massage therapists.

Spa Space, a downtown Chicago business, is the Employer of the Year in the category for 10 or more employees. TLC Massage of Crystal Lake is the Employer of the Year in the category for fewer than 10 employees.

Spa Space was praised by the association for the variety of massage-therapy services offered and for creating an environment of ongoing skill development and learning for the staff. Natalie Tessler, president of Spa Space, provides full-time and part-time employment with health insurance and other benefits, which is unusual in the massage-therapy field. She has 25-30 massage therapists on staff.

TLC Massage and its owner Terri Latsch were praised as fair and supportive to employees, creating a respectful environment dedicated to both customer and staff satisfaction. TLC Massage provides full-time and part-time employment with support for continuing education. In celebration of TLC's 10th anniversary, Latsch treated her massage therapy staff to a week in Aruba.

The awards were given during the AMTA-IL Chapter Conference and Annual Meeting in Chicago in May.

"Consumers today look more at massage therapy as a serious part of wellness and health care," said Christopher Alvarado, AMTA-IL chapter president. "As the profession matures, we hope more employers will provide benefits to massage therapists such as health insurance and subsidies for continuing professional education. We applaud these two outstanding employers for doing so."

The AMTA is a professional association of more than 3,000 massage therapists in Illinois and more than 50,000 nationwide.