Client delaying start

[nekorb]

Hi,

I have been working as an IT contractor for the past four years, the last three of which are during holidays as I started a degree three years ago. I have always worked for the same place client in the public sector (NHS) until last week, where we mutually agreed an early termination of the contract so I could start a new role with a different client (although still with the NHS).

My terminated contract ended on Friday 1st June and my new one was due to commence Wednesday 6th. The new contract is now accepted, all the paperwork signed and setup with the umbrella company. However on Friday 1st I had a call saying that my name was allegedly on a list of previously dismissed staff for the new client, however I received this call which standing in the building of the new client (both old and new contracts were for clients with a cross over of patches). This would delay me starting until the day after agreed whist it was sorted out.

This went on for three days and the agency has told me I would be best looking elsewhere as they don't know how long this will take to resolve.

I wondered if anyone had any advice on what I can do as I have never worked for the new client so cannot have been dismissed by them (I've never been dismissed from any job). I terminated my previous role early to start this new one as they were desperate for me to start ASAP however now I am not earning any money due to reasons beyond my control and after setting up the contract with the umbrella company. It will probably be a matter of time until it's resolved but I am the one loosing out and being told by the agency that they would personally start looking elsewhere if they were me.

I feel I've been lured out of one role, agreed terms (start date, contract length, rate, etc.) then been told to wait for an unknown amount of time and unpaid for the privilege.

Any advice would be appreciated, or is this just a downside of contracting?

[NotAllThere]

Sounds pretty weird to me. First that it would happen at all, and second it would take more than 30ns to sort out. Do you have the contact details of anyone at the client site that you can hassle? Alternatively, try to talk to someone as senior as possible in the HR office of the client and get it sorted - which is what you'd do if you were the manager of a BigCo, and one of your staff had just been refused entry.

Frankly though, this smells.

What did you do when the call came through and you were in the client's office? Who called you? What exactly did you do once you'd received this call - just go home? Did you talk to anyone at the client's office?

[northernladuk]

Does sound a bit odd. Most agents wouldn't be so eager to suggest you go look elsewhere. He is potentially shooting himself in the foot if you get another role straight away. That would sound bells to me unless he is a decent guy and you get on well with.

One thing that does strike me here is you mention 2 clients working for NHS with a cross over. It is situations like this that handcuff clauses are introduced. Are you sure someone hasn't f'd up and didn't take into account you couldn't work for your clients client for x months? Has only the agent told you about this or have the clients themselves confirmed this? Could be handcuff has become and issue and the agent isn't being honest?

On the whole this is contracting for you though. Although this situation is a little odd not starting on time or roles disappearing before you get there do happen from time to time. We have had posters asking what to do from the reception of the client on the first day after being told there isn't a role for him anymore. Try and resolve it, if it doesn't happen then that is contracting. Nothing you can do, can't demand cash, can't get paid for notice or losses. Shoulder it and move on.

[Gentile]

Sounds like somebody's pulling a fast one. Are your old and new contracts with the same agency, or direct with the NHS, in both cases? If so, it's difficult to see why they're having any difficulty whatsoever sorting this out. If your new contract is through a new agency that had nothing to do with your previous contract, it's just as difficult to see why your contact is trying to get you to find something else given what should be a minor hiccup over a job in hand.

I'm sorry to say that it sounds as if your new contract could maybe just never actually have been agreed with the new client in the first place, and the intermediary you're dealing with is telling you a load of cobblers about the reason why. If there's a way to get the real story direct from the people you interviewed with, you could try to do that. Fortunately it's not common, but it wouldn't be the first time an unethical agent's been unable to agree a contract with the client after having first agreed one with a contractor, and the contractor's been hung out to dry as a consequence.

[northernladuk]

If your new contract is through a new agency that had nothing to do with your previous contract, it's just as difficult to see why your contact is trying to get you to find something else given what should be a minor hiccup over a job in hand.

Again I don't think this is quite true. Care has to be taken when changing suppliers to a single customer, particularly with cross over. Handcuff clauses must be taken in to account so it isn't true to say one has nothing to do with the other. I am not saying for sure this is what happened here, just being pedantic about being blasé when a suppliers and a single customer is involved.

[Old Greg]

If it is a different NHS client then handcuff clauses do not apply. They will be different statutory bodies.

As far as the list is concerned, it sounds nonsense. Put in a subject access request under the DPA.

[Gentile]

Again I don't think this is quite true. Care has to be taken when changing suppliers to a single customer, particularly with cross over. Handcuff clauses must be taken in to account so it isn't true to say one has nothing to do with the other. I am not saying for sure this is what happened here, just being pedantic about being blasé when a suppliers and a single customer is involved.

Yeah, that's a fair one, actually. Could be that the agency from your old contract had a clause stating you wouldn't be re-engaged anywhere within the NHS within x months of leaving the contract they'd arranged, and the agency from your new contract didn't hear about that until after their contract with the 'new' NHS client had been pitched/signed, nekrob. If that is what's happened, then the agency that's new to the picture certainly wont want you discussing things with the end client, because you may well then be within your rights to take up the new contract via your old agency.

To know more, we'd really need to know a little more:

1. Was your old contract through an agency?
   
2. Is your new contract through an agency?
   
3. Are you able to speak with anyone on the new client side or old client side to find out what's been discussed from their perspective?

[northernladuk]

Yeah, that's a fair one, actually. Could be that the agency from your old contract had a clause stating you wouldn't be re-engaged anywhere within the NHS within x months of leaving the contract they'd arranged, and the agency from your new contract didn't hear about that until after their contract with the 'new' NHS client had been pitched/signed, nekrob. If that is what's happened, then the agency that's new to the picture certainly wont want you discussing things with the end client, because you may well then be within your rights to take up the new contract via your old agency.

To know more, we'd really need to know a little more:

1. Was your old contract through an agency?
   
2. Is your new contract through an agency?
   
3. Are you able to speak with anyone on the new client side or old client side to find out what's been discussed from their perspective?

This +1 but most importantly keep looking. Don't sit at home waiting for this to pan out. Carry on searching and if this does come off then you have a bargain. If it doesn't you haven't wasted days/weeks.

[Old Greg]

Yeah, that's a fair one, actually. Could be that the agency from your old contract had a clause stating you wouldn't be re-engaged anywhere within the NHS within x months of leaving the contract they'd arranged, and the agency from your new contract didn't hear about that until after their contract with the 'new' NHS client had been pitched/signed, nekrob. If that is what's happened, then the agency that's new to the picture certainly wont want you discussing things with the end client, because you may well then be within your rights to take up the new contract via your old agency.

To know more, we'd really need to know a little more:

1. Was your old contract through an agency?
   
2. Is your new contract through an agency?
   
3. Are you able to speak with anyone on the new client side or old client side to find out what's been discussed from their perspective?

To have a clause restricting contracts within the NHS is not to restrict to a client but to a sector. And it doesn't happen.

[psychocandy]

Whichever way OP I dont think it looks good to be honest. You may never find out the true reason but I fear you're new contract is now a non-runner.

Like someone said, if there was just a delay, the agent would probably be bulltulipting you to keep you hanging on. Sounds much like its dead in the water and he knows it.