Onboarding billable?

**JustKeepSwimming** · 6 November 2023, 16:01

Well do you have approved timesheets from the 9 days?

You say unpaid onboarding, do you mean you were sitting in the office for 9 days, or as most would expect you were at home do nothing waiting for the laptop to turn up?

**WTFH** · 6 November 2023, 16:04

What work did you do on those 9 days that the client should pay you for?
Did you do other work (or search for other jobs) during that time?

...this is one of these scenarios which doesn't apply if you go to the client office at the start of the contract.

**WTFH** · 6 November 2023, 16:12

Originally posted by heathen666 View Post

The contract has a start date on x, the end client only managed to supply a laptop and login ID on y, this is after me chasing the agency on a daily basis. (difference between the two is nine working days)

Thoughts?

Actually, just to add... if your start date with the client was on day 1, then why did you go to the agent for the next 8 days chasing the agent for the laptop?
The agent doesn't have the laptop. The agent doesn't have the shipping details of it.
All you're doing is introducing an additional layer into the process that slows it down.

**JustKeepSwimming** · 6 November 2023, 16:15

Originally posted by WTFH View Post

Actually, just to add... if your start date with the client was on day 1, then why did you go to the agent for the next 8 days chasing the agent for the laptop?
The agent doesn't have the laptop. The agent doesn't have the shipping details of it.
All you're doing is introducing an additional layer into the process that slows it down.

That's a good point. It would imply that OP had no connection with the client (because they had no laptop). That's very different to turning up at the office day 1 and getting the old 'tulip, laptop not built yet, use the spare and do your mandatory training/read some docs'.

**heathen666** · 6 November 2023, 16:15

I've submitted timesheets for the days in question but they haven't been approved as of yet.

Was at home chasing up laptop, as contract is remote working.

**JustKeepSwimming** · 6 November 2023, 16:26

You're going to need to flag it with your approver.

If you were my resource I wouldn't approve the timesheets.

**Dactylion** · 6 November 2023, 16:28

Originally posted by JustKeepSwimming View Post

You're going to need to flag it with your approver.

If you were my resource I wouldn't approve the timesheets.

WJKSS

You didn't do owt to be paid for.

**northernladuk** · 6 November 2023, 16:36

Originally posted by heathen666 View Post

I've submitted timesheets for the days in question but they haven't been approved as of yet.

Was at home chasing up laptop, as contract is remote working.

How many hours did you bill chasing a laptop??? Approved by who? A person who hasn't even met you yet and won't get why you feel the need to be paid while they get you ready? That's not going to bode very well for when you land. Bearing in mind the approver will have to go speak to other people to find out what on earth is going on your name will be mud before you've even started.

Contract is delayed, get over it. Just because onboard happened in the delayed period does not mean it's billable. You wouldn't have billed them for doing this before the contract started. You are miffed it's late but acting unreasonably isn't going to help anything.

**ladymuck** · 6 November 2023, 23:48

It is an interesting side effect of WFH. An onsite contract would have been billable unless the client told you to go home as there was no work for you to do until the kit arrived.

I'd hesitate to say the time is billable but I can also see the argument that the client wasn't ready for you on the start date and you were left waiting.

Involving the agency in kit delivery isn't a good idea, as others have noted. Unless they are responsible for providing equipment you should have found out the contact at the client responsible for it and chased them instead.

Onboarding billable?