Think the agent may be ripping me off...what to do?

[NotAllThere]

When I was a hiring manager, I cared very much what margin was being paid. If the margin is high, then for the same money I'm getting a worse contractor (or at least one bad at negotiation).

[TheFaQQer]

The client was furious and ordered all the contractors from that agency off site (about 6 of them).

So, the moral of your story is - don't discuss your rate with the client. If I was told to leave by the client, based on a business arrangement that I was perfectly happy with, which the client found out about at a piss up from another contractor, I'd be well f***ed off.

I hope your former colleague was pleased with himself for getting 6 contractors canned. Well done

[Stan.goodvibes]

When I was a hiring manager, I cared very much what margin was being paid. If the margin is high, then for the same money I'm getting a worse contractor (or at least one bad at negotiation).

I just said that

[Wanderer]

So, the moral of your story is - don't discuss your rate with the client. If I was told to leave by the client, based on a business arrangement that I was perfectly happy with, which the client found out about at a piss up from another contractor, I'd be well f***ed off.

I hope your former colleague was pleased with himself for getting 6 contractors canned. Well done

Yeah, we can spin that one whichever way suits us, can't we.

I didn't mention it (and maybe it's relevant) but this was during heady boom times and I was new to contracting. There were a lot of contractors on site and a hire-em, fire-em mentality - people came and went as they were needed on projects by the client. A fair percentage got fired, some gave notice mid contract, the odd one walked - there one day and gone the next. It was my first contract but a bit of a microcosm of the contracting world, I'm glad I was there because I learned a lot.

In the current hard times, yes I would be unhappy. I would be even more unhappy at an agency taking 40% margin without the client's or contractor's knowledge. It would have been better all around if a compromise could have been negotiated, but the client saw it as a very serious breach of their agreement that they simply could not do business with that agency any more. Personally, I don't hold grudges or burn my bridges - life's too short to be bitter. You just have to learn from it and move on.

I learnt a valuable lesson from it and from then on I've always endeavoured to find out what the agency's cut is now so we can avoid situations like that. If a client raises the subject of the rate at interview or offer time then I'll discuss it openly as I don't think the agency generally adds any value to the negotiations. Likewise for renewals, I've always been approached by and negotiated directly with the client about these rather than the agency and that's the way I like it.

Each to their own, I know some clients don't like to get involved in that sort of "dirty business" and ask that the agent does it all for them, I respect that.

[Grinder]

Over here in The Land That Chavs Forgot, the agencies with Preferred Supplier Agreements are held to a certain margin by the client. For example one agent I am friends with has said that for certain clients they are bound to a 15% margin.

Thus the client is assured that the agent will find someone with the best skillset for the role instead of the agent trying to place some numpty they can take more cut off, and the agencies win by being the preferred supplier (lots of contractors on 15% = better return than a handful on 25-40%).

Fortunately over here the agency market hasn't been swamped by unskilled chavs trying to chase a buck off a few contractors and needing to charge a high percentage to survive.

I have worked with a company with this policy. However, at least 1 of the agencies on the preferred supplier list invite 2nd tier agencies to source suitable people for the jobs.

Someone sourced through 2nd tier will be on less £ than someone 1st tier.

1st tier will appear to have supplied contractor to the client, and appear to be paying a "fair" rate.

Even knowing this, and having it explained by me, I have a pal who still talks to 2nd tier suppliers about jobs at this client - you can't help some people!