Threats from agency

**northernladuk** · 1 February 2016, 18:49

Well you will have had to accept the offer at some point for them to send you the contract I expect. Verbal acceptances are binding in theory.

All that aside he will have told the client etc so everyone is expecting you to sign. Client won't be happy and neither will the agent so he's gonna want to have his say. Dumping him by mail doesn't allow him to vent at you. He might threaten you with the fact you accepted verbally but really it's not going to go any further than him being annoyed and telling you he will black list you and make sure you never work in IT again.
It's all rubbish so ignore it. I wouldn't pin too much hope in working for that client or agent on the forseable future.

**SpontaneousOrder** · 1 February 2016, 18:49

Originally posted by djm View Post

I have recently been talking to an agency about a role, and it's got as far as them issuing a contract for me to sign. Obviously, all throughout the process, I had every intention of taking the role, so I never lied to them or strung them along. However, I was obviously taking calls about multiple roles, and I received another offer today, and another contract issued from someone else. I decided to take the second one as it was closer to home, higher day rate and more interesting work.

I told the first agency, via email as my phone was out of battery for this afternoon, I wasn't going to be taking the role, and sent my apologies, etc. All very polite, or so I thought. The agency tried calling and couldn't get through, so emailed me to say "please phone us back urgently. I don't want to take this further but if you don't phone back, I will."

I picked up my emails at 6pm tonight so I'm not phoning back now, I'll phone them in the morning but I read that as some sort of threat. What is he referring to? I didn't sign a contract, although I was obviously verbally interested in the role, and have said things like "Yes, if they offer me something, I'd be interested", etc. However, nothing signed at all. Is there any trouble I can get in that I didn't realise?

You should be careful about wasting people's time. But that aside, if they're kicking off just say ok, and then when you get the contract say the terms are unacceptable. I.e. you don't agree to the clause saying you have to be in the office, or say you need the clause added to say explicitly that you can WFH.

**NotAllThere** · 1 February 2016, 20:30

Any verbal acceptance has a silent "subject to agreement of the written contract". That's obvious. Otherwise you'd be forced to accept whatever contract they came up with.

Don't bother phoning - you've nothing further to say. If the agent wants to discuss it further, be polite but firm. If he get's abusive, hang up. If he gets abusive and you hang up and then he phones back ... block his number.

It's really nothing worth getting worried about. Remember if the shoe were on the other foot, the agent and the client would drop you like a red hot brick.

**SlipTheJab** · 1 February 2016, 20:50

Originally posted by NotAllThere View Post

Any verbal acceptance has a silent "subject to agreement of the written contract". That's obvious. Otherwise you'd be forced to accept whatever contract they came up with.

Don't bother phoning - you've nothing further to say. If the agent wants to discuss it further, be polite but firm. If he get's abusive, hang up. If he gets abusive and you hang up and then he phones back ... block his number.

It's really nothing worth getting worried about. Remember if the shoe were on the other foot, the agent and the client would drop you like a red hot brick.

100% this, If it was me I would take his call and let him 'take it further' before I tell him to STFU...

**FrontEnder** · 2 February 2016, 10:06

I don't think there's much he can do, as has already been said, he might "balcklist" you at the agency, but in reality I don't think such a list exists. Their loss if it does.

I assume you've verbally accepted the other contract anyway, so one of them will be disappointing. Might as well be the on that isn't paying you as much.

Originally posted by djm View Post

... although I was obviously verbally interested in the role, and have said things like "Yes, if they offer me something, I'd be interested", etc. However, nothing signed at all. Is there any trouble I can get in that I didn't realise?

Just wondering about this though. Is there any reason you haven't been honest with them about other prospects? You don't have to tell them any detail, but I usually say something like "I've applied for a number of contracts I'm waiting to hear back on and have been invited to interview for 2 already".

I won't lie, if I have nothing on the table I'll just say I've applied for a few and should hear back shortly.

**LondonManc** · 2 February 2016, 10:52

Some points to consider from experience:
Don't expect to work at that end client that you've turned down. Ever. I know some have informal lists.

The agency will work with you again if you're the best person for the role they've advertised for. They put money over blacklists and AgentBoss won't care that you've upset SalesDrone A if SalesDrone B gets you on their books at a later day. Agents get more peed off if second best client for the job is not theirs.

As a client or agency, if I have a choice of two similar candidates and one hasn't knocked me back at the eleventh hour before, I know I'd de-risk the situation and take the other person on.

**jbond007** · 2 February 2016, 11:59

Originally posted by LondonManc View Post

Some points to consider from experience:
Don't expect to work at that end client that you've turned down. Ever. I know some have informal lists.

Probably industry specific ? I've worked in Media & Telco primarily and I've seen contractors leave mid-way through contract for another clientco and end up again at previous clientco in 12-18 months, albeit in different department. So even if the list exists it is probably department/directorate specific rather than company wide. The clientco's I've been at, usually have department specific HR reps. I assume if they maintain a list, they may not share it with wider HR community ??

**LondonManc** · 2 February 2016, 12:12

Originally posted by jbond007 View Post

Probably industry specific ? I've worked in Media & Telco primarily and I've seen contractors leave mid-way through contract for another clientco and end up again at previous clientco in 12-18 months, albeit in different department. So even if the list exists it is probably department/directorate specific rather than company wide. The clientco's I've been at, usually have department specific HR reps. I assume if they maintain a list, they may not share it with wider HR community ??

Quite possibly industry specific and depends how good the person is. I've seen someone cock-blocked for interview because they'd walked out of a previous contract at clientco. It could also simply be that people ask around to see who knows the contractor in question - hey Dave, you worked at Client X the same time as this guy, do you remember them?

**psychocandy** · 2 February 2016, 12:35

OP - standard response from agency. He was already spending his commission before its all been done and dusted and now hes not getting it.

I find that agents seem to think that a contract offer means you're going to take it. The actual contract then does not interest them.

Yes if you've verbally agreed its a bit off but hey ho. What would client/agent do if the role got pulled? Most of us have had this happen and all you get is a sorry about that.

I'd agree - don't phone them back. If he calls you then ignore if they kick off and put phone down.

Not sure I agree that client and agent will blacklist. It'll all be forgotten about next week.

Threats from agency