Agent trying to reduce agreed day rate.

[strawberrysmoothie]

I would write to the guys, if only to find out what the real deal is. You never know, perhaps he was also scammed by the agent.

It's now been written and sent off.


It will be interesting to get their feedback (if any) and find out if they were told I was no longer available for the role because of the agency shenanigans.

Also found the name of HR person there as well. If I get no joy from the person who interviewed me'might' ask this person. Still unsure though.

Either way, I can now walk away from this knowing that I did something about it.

Onwards and upwards

[LondonManc]

It's now been written and sent off.


It will be interesting to get their feedback (if any) and find out if they were told I was no longer available for the role because of the agency shenanigans.

Also found the name of HR person there as well. If I get no joy from the person who interviewed me'might' ask this person. Still unsure though.

Either way, I can now walk away from this knowing that I did something about it.

Onwards and upwards

Thanks for the update; I look forward to the final outcome.

[missinggreenfields]

I was able to find the email details of one the people who interviewed me, I am seriously considering emailing him and asking for feedback and if it was to due with rate reduction.

I would contact the interviewer, thanking them for their time and expressing your regret that on this occasion you aren't able to work together to deliver XYZ, and ask them to bear you in mind for anything in the future. I wouldn't bother with asking for feedback or trying to drop the agent in it - if the agent has told them that you aren't interested, then why would you be regretting the missed opportunity.

[LondonManc]

I would contact the interviewer, thanking them for their time and expressing your regret that on this occasion you aren't able to work together to deliver XYZ, and ask them to bear you in mind for anything in the future. I wouldn't bother with asking for feedback or trying to drop the agent in it - if the agent has told them that you aren't interested, then why would you be regretting the missed opportunity.

Have you read the thread?

[missinggreenfields]

Have you read the thread?

Yes. I have an annoying habit of reading from the top down and replying to posts as I see them rather than reading the entire thread and then going back and replying to the ones that I want to reply to. That's why I missed that the poster had already replied by the time I responded.

[Bee]

Hi,
...
Anyway, I applied for a role. The rate was advertised and the agent and I agreed a day rate.
...
I spoke to the agent and told him how things went. He then said 'I'm just wondering if accounts from the client come back and say they can't pay the rate we agreed, will you take a lower rate?'
...

This is scary and I hope that doesn't happen frequently.
The guy is a pig.

[northernladuk]

This is scary and I hope that doesn't happen frequently.
The guy is a pig.

It's standard practice and no he's not. He's doing his job which is about being devious to extract as much cash to line his pocket as possible. It's what agents exist to do. That said do you pig as in he's got his nose in the trough or pig as in just a general derogatory term?

[stek]

Happened to me twice, both times I said forget it then, both times they came back claiming it was a 'misunderstanding' and backed down....

One was £50/day difference, the other only £5/day but I wasn't dipping below £1200/day.....

[Agent]

I can understand your frustration but don't think for a second that you don't need to be competitive and going through an agency will typically mean you'll be working at the low end of your required rate.

In these situations, play the game. You must have a number that you're 'happy' with, unless you're an extremely rare talent then it's a buyers market (there's tons of posts saying how slow the contract market is at the moment).

You'll have much more luck being 'straight' with the agent. Tell them you're flexible on rate, maybe don't give an exact number, convince them that as long as you get a 'reasonable' offer then you'll happily take it. You need to get the offer first then negotiate, it puts all of the power in your hands and away from the agent.

Once the client has made their mind up that you're the man for the job and has made an offer to the agent, then it's unlikley that the agent wants to go back to square one. Yes they may come in with an offer £50 a day less that you talked about, that's fine. Figure out what you'll take and push back a little. You'll get a quick response from the agent on if he can meet you in the middle, if he can't and it's genuinely too low then turn it down. If he can move then great.

I know this works because it's what I hate about experienced contractors. Once I have an offer, I want to close it, and there's pressure internally to get the deal done. Would be a very hard nosed agent to lose a deal because they didn't quite make enough on the day rate.

[Bee]

I can understand your frustration but don't think for a second that you don't need to be competitive and going through an agency will typically mean you'll be working at the low end of your required rate.

In these situations, play the game. You must have a number that you're 'happy' with, unless you're an extremely rare talent then it's a buyers market (there's tons of posts saying how slow the contract market is at the moment).

You'll have much more luck being 'straight' with the agent. Tell them you're flexible on rate, maybe don't give an exact number, convince them that as long as you get a 'reasonable' offer then you'll happily take it. You need to get the offer first then negotiate, it puts all of the power in your hands and away from the agent.

It's what I do, I tell them a higher rate in order to negotiate.

Once the client has made their mind up that you're the man for the job and has made an offer to the agent, then it's unlikley that the agent wants to go back to square one. Yes they may come in with an offer £50 a day less that you talked about, that's fine. Figure out what you'll take and push back a little. You'll get a quick response from the agent on if he can meet you in the middle, if he can't and it's genuinely too low then turn it down. If he can move then great.

I know this works because it's what I hate about experienced contractors. Once I have an offer, I want to close it, and there's pressure internally to get the deal done. Would be a very hard nosed agent to lose a deal because they didn't quite make enough on the day rate.

A talented and a decent Agent would not came back after the negotiation to ask to decrease the negotiated rate. If we act like this is normal, in a few years will have to be prepare for the negotiation n times...