Working at risk

[BrilloPad]

At this point you have all the leverage, so stick the boot in for £50 a day extra.

Don't do that. Rate negotiation will only delay the process.

Only do that if you have another gig....

[d000hg]

Nope. His contract is with an agency. The client does not pay the contractor so this would be wholly wrong. It's more likely to cause more issues than it fixes IMO.

Fair enough on that aspect. I was getting mixed up with tagging a bit of work on an existing master contract. In that situation I think I am right, but you're absolutely right in the context of mixing things between client direct, and agency.

[psychocandy]

My contract is due to finish tomorrow. End client have several times said, they would extend, but agency hasn't heard anything.
Not keen to stay, was actually expecting I would not be renewed at all or even given notice a few weeks ago. On the other hand, I haven't landed a new contract yet, have some interviews in the pipeline and one that may land in the next week or so, but not at a very good rate.

Tapping into the wisdom of you all, would you work at risk without extended contract and hope it may ever be released. Agency who normally pays in one week after time sheet signature won't pay me as long as there's no extension and will likely close their portal for me to submit timesheets

1. Do you have confirmation from client or agent even as an email?

If its verbal only, ask for an email at least from someone in authority. I had this once - client balked at sending me an email which raised alarm bells.

Found out later they'd shafted a contractor a year or so earlier when he'd worked for two weeks then got told "sorry we can't pay you extension got denied higher up"


2. What does agent say? Also, going back to the email thing...

If they say no don't do, don't do it. After all they are the ones paying.

3. Bear in mind if you let client do it once they'll do it forever more. This time it might take a few days next time, time after a month, time after never.

[psychocandy]

Organize leaving drinks for tomorrow. Bring in cakes or healthy treats tomorrow morning. It will concentrate the minds.

Don't work without a contract.

One gig I was there for two years. Every three months the same. I'd remind them three weeks to go, then every day in the last week.

Last day I'd pack my stuff up and stick in the car and say goodbye to everyone. Permies used to piss themselves.

Then I'd get a call followed by email I requested (See other post) in the evening and a panicky client manager. Then the proper contract would get sorted a day or two later.

Once, they didn't phone me in the evening so I didn't turn up next day and they got more panicky and phoned me and asked me where I was.

Used to piss me off doing this every 3 months though...

[psychocandy]

Don't do that. Rate negotiation will only delay the process.

Only do that if you have another gig....

Can't imagine this sort of thing looking good in clients eyes....

OK. So we forgot/too busy to get the renewal sorted. Sorry and all that. But we're in the tulipe now cos you're not here and trying to get it sorted and now you're trying to screw us because we're desperate.

[SlipTheJab]

Can't imagine this sort of thing looking good in clients eyes....

OK. So we forgot/too busy to get the renewal sorted. Sorry and all that. But we're in the tulipe now cos you're not here and trying to get it sorted and now you're trying to screw us because we're desperate.

That's business!, supply and demand innit

[uk contractor]

Reminds me of a well known investment bank I used to work at.....

The line manager was hardcore old school (he is long gone from there now BTW I wonder why!!). He had this thing about contractors being money grabbing pond life & that meant all contracts were only ever renewed on the last possible day no exceptions well after a few extensions like this I decided enough was enough he refused to give any clues when asked if your contract was being renewed either which was pretty stressful to live with at times! This obviously meant you were usually on your contractual notice period when the renewal via the agent arrived

So I found something else around renewal time then when I declined the renewal it left him right in it as he did not expect that & even offered a few % more to accept the next extension but I had more than enough of him after the 1st week so politely declined to leave him scrambling to find someone & me going elsewhere for the same money but less hassle. He still did this for a few years after but time caught up with his dinosaur approach eventually & he got moved sideways then forced out by newer perms who highlighted his brute force approach to management

[MrMarkyMark]

Reminds me of a well known investment bank I used to work at.....

The line manager was hardcore old school (he is long gone from there now BTW I wonder why!!). He had this thing about contractors being money grabbing pond life & that meant all contracts were only ever renewed on the last possible day no exceptions well after a few extensions like this I decided enough was enough he refused to give any clues when asked if your contract was being renewed either which was pretty stressful to live with at times! This obviously meant you were usually on your contractual notice period when the renewal via the agent arrived

So I found something else around renewal time then when I declined the renewal it left him right in it as he did not expect that & even offered a few % more to accept the next extension but I had more than enough of him after the 1st week so politely declined to leave him scrambling to find someone & me going elsewhere for the same money but less hassle. He still did this for a few years after but time caught up with his dinosaur approach eventually & he got moved sideways then forced out by newer perms who highlighted his brute force approach to management

Again, a very well known investment bank.
Been in a similar situation myself with these "reluctant" renewals, usually on the last day of contract. I went and got something, for a better rate, elsewhere, then told them over 2 weeks before contract end, that I was done.

He still had the brass neck to say "how could you do this to me".

[northernladuk]

Can't imagine this sort of thing looking good in clients eyes....

OK. So we forgot/too busy to get the renewal sorted. Sorry and all that. But we're in the tulipe now cos you're not here and trying to get it sorted and now you're trying to screw us because we're desperate.

I wish you'd drop all this screwing over talk. No one thinks like that. It's just business and process.

[psychocandy]

Reminds me of a well known investment bank I used to work at.....

The line manager was hardcore old school (he is long gone from there now BTW I wonder why!!). He had this thing about contractors being money grabbing pond life & that meant all contracts were only ever renewed on the last possible day no exceptions well after a few extensions like this I decided enough was enough he refused to give any clues when asked if your contract was being renewed either which was pretty stressful to live with at times! This obviously meant you were usually on your contractual notice period when the renewal via the agent arrived

So I found something else around renewal time then when I declined the renewal it left him right in it as he did not expect that & even offered a few % more to accept the next extension but I had more than enough of him after the 1st week so politely declined to leave him scrambling to find someone & me going elsewhere for the same money but less hassle. He still did this for a few years after but time caught up with his dinosaur approach eventually & he got moved sideways then forced out by newer perms who highlighted his brute force approach to management

Never understood this approach. Leave it until last min and this happens.

Current client is too switched on. Offers me renewals three weeks before because he knows then I have no chance to look around!

Then again one client was convinced (no matter how many times I tried to explain) that I had to give one month notice (which was notice period). i.e. I couldn't leave when contract ended - I still had to give a months notice. Weird or what. Wouldnt have it.

Never came to a head that one- they ended up giving me three days notice that they weren't renewing due to budget cuts.