SLP Operations logo
SLP Operations
Merkel, Texas

Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) FT, PT and PRN schedules available!

Physical Therapist AssistantFull-Time

Compensation

Pay not listed

The week · per this posting · weekdays assumed

Ask the employer about the pay range, the work setting, call expectations and time off.

Posted 10m ago · Verified live

Job Description

In-House Therapy Program! $5000.00 Sign On Bonus!!

Merkel Care Center is currently seeking a full time, part time or prn Occupational Therapy Assistant to join its in-house therapy team. We seek a therapist who is innovative, positive, and team oriented.

Part of Gemini Healthcare, Merkel Care Center is a long-term care and post-acute rehab facility located in Merkel, Texas. We have an in-house team of therapists to work with, an amazing rehab director and opportunity to see a wide range of conditions.

We offer opportunity for you to create and implement speech therapy programs that will best fit the needs of your patients.

We are supported by Vital Therapy, a growing provider of therapy support and leadership to 85 locations throughout Texas and Oklahoma. We believe in giving our patients and residents moments of joy and reason to live each day, developing and supporting our leaders, and sharing a fierce commitment to quality of care.

We offer comprehensive benefits, PTO, opportunity for career growth and fun, high energy work environment.

Requirements

Texas License

We are an equal opportunity employer and prohibit discrimination/harassment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

Key Responsibilities

The Occupational Therapy Assistant will implement therapy programs tailored to patient needs within a long-term care and post-acute rehab facility. They will collaborate with an in-house therapy team to provide quality care and support for a wide range of patient conditions.

Key Skills

Patient careRehabilitationTeam collaborationClinical documentationTreatment planning

Occupational Therapist Career Context

In Texas, the Occupational Therapy weighted monthly median benchmark on WeekdayDoc is ~$96k (218 salary observations; 2,705 listings), vs ~$97k nationally (5,405 salary observations; 28,087 listings). Monthly aggregates cover 2026-01-01 through 2026-11-01; these are not the modal's selected comparable-job medians.

The cost-of-living index for Texas is 97.1 (US average = 100; BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)). 57.7% of Texas clinicians report burnout symptoms in WeekdayDoc's Burnout Index (2026-01 data).

What does the Occupational Therapy market look like in Texas?
MeasureThis jobMarket
Texas vs national$96k median in Texas$97k nationally (−1%)218 state / 5,405 national salary observations
Cost of livingTexas index 97.1US average = 100BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)
Occupational Therapy listings in Texas870 active9,043 nationallylive on WeekdayDoc, Nov 2026
Sign-on & loan repayment$5k sign-onTexas Occupational Therapist listings: 10% state a sign-on bonus (median $5k) · 6% offer loan repayment1,000 active listings, Nov 2026
New Occupational Therapy listings3,199 in the last 30 days1,617 the 30 days before (+98%)U.S., first seen on WeekdayDoc, Nov 2026
Occupational Therapy pay trend+4.5% vs prior quarter—through Oct 2026
Sources: WeekdayDoc live listing index, BEA Regional Price Parities (2024); as of Nov 2026. Same values as the Weekday Verdict and Market Insights on this page.

Location & Logistics

Texas has no state income tax, which can significantly increase take-home pay compared to high-tax states.

Top contract/1099 PTA Jobs

10 matches · ranked by pay

Salary Distribution

10 jobs · 9 employers
5
<$80k
4
$80k-90k
0
$90k-100k
1
$100k

Annual compensation range

Work-Life Balance Distribution

10 jobs · 9 employers
0
1-2
0
3-4
5
5-6
4
7-8
1
9-10

Higher = better work-life balance

#1

Physical Therapist Assistant (PTA)

Adaptive Home Health · Lakeway, Texas

$75k-$100k
#2

Home Health Physical Therapist Assistant

Elara Caring · Chicopee, Massachusetts

$38-$42/hr
#3

Physical Therapist Assistant – Flexible Pediatric Caseload

$35-$40/hr
#4

Physical Therapist Assistant PTA $10,000 Sign-On Bonus - College Station TX

$30-$40/hr
+ 8 more · ranked by pay

Work-life snapshot

median 4.8this job 3.0
Better work-life than 20% of Physical Therapist Assistant listings

Listing-based score, 0–10, across 4,946 comparable listings. Shaded area = the share scoring below this one.

SLP Operations logo

About SLP Operations

Hospitals and Health Care
Fort Worth, Texas
201-500 employees

Benefits & Perks

$5,000 sign-on bonus
Comprehensive benefits
PTO
Career growth opportunities

Living in Merkel

Typical 3-bedroom home value
$215k
Median resident rent
$1,058/mo
Residents’ average commute
27 min
Metro price indexU.S. average = 100
90.4
State income tax
None
Sources & methodology

Sources: Zillow home values (Sep 2026), U.S. Census ACS 2024 five-year.

BEA 2024 · Abilene, TX metro prices. Housing figures are city-level.

City-level figures. Not a cost-of-living guarantee.