Linda, I am a cytotech and I will say that the responsibilities/duties of
prepping specimens is very detailed.  Right now, myself and my other
cytotech prep everything.  Where I was trained, we had a tech who prepped
for us and all we had to do was screen.  It was great, but we did rely on
her tremendously to make decisions about the specimens in regards to their
integrity in order to make the best possible preperation.  The prep tech
normally takes the specimen from original accessioning to the final staining
and labeling.  Depending on whether you utilize conventional methods
(smears, cytospins, etc) or ThinPrep Technology, your preparation methods
will vary as will the time spent doing it.  If I can help you more, please
let me know, I did not know how specific you wanted the question answered.
As far as pay scale is concerned, I really have no idea.
    My Histology Department also dumps their own specimens.  We generally
keep routine specimens for two weeks and then dump them into a biohazard bag
(minus the fixative) and send them out for disposal.