getting at client's office

[lilelvis2000]

I manage to get there when my combination of waking up nipper, feeding him breakfast, chasing the bus, running flat out up a hill to the train station, taking train - hoping train is not cancelled - gets me there. then I leave at 5:15 anyway - otherwise the wife chews my head off for coming home late.

Today I left at 1 to show a relative 'round town....many upset faces in office. I worry about my contract sometimes, as the client could stick it to me for not being around when most needed.

[DaveB]

I work on site as and when I feel I need to. Exceptions are the two-three days a fortnight that the boss is actually there in which case I show willing and turn up regardless.

[thunderlizard]

2 days per week on site I reckon is optimal. Less than that and you hardly get to meet anybody, which makes it hard to get onto other projects when the current one comes to an end.

Right now it's all academic, because I'm working with very operational stuff where I can't do anything at all useful off site.

[thief]

hi all,
i was wondering one question... do all contractors here work in a 'flexible time manner' or you have to start to work at same time as permies?
i guess generally depends on the client requirements, but generally, being paid per day, i guess you can start 'whenever you want' (with some limits of course)..

is it like that in practice?


sorry for silly question.. i m still a permie and plan to start contracting soon, and was wondering if as a contractor you can work with flexible time

in my prev job (finland) all employees (contractor or not) can work with flexible time... i found out that here's in UK flexible time is not so common (especially with permies)

thanks and regards
Marco

depends on the client. if you can start late and get the work done, then it tends to be ok. when clients say i have to start at a certain time and the pay is not top end, i leave it and do something else.

they worst thing a client can do is try to boss a contractor around like a permie. today i just went to the pub at lunchtime when my cordinator was being rude and cancelled the contract.

I never tolerate being talked to like an employee. I am another company that is helping their company out and if anyone gets funny i just say **** it and leave.

[DeadKenny]

For those of you who are software developers, do you find you have to use client supplied equipment and how do you deal with working from home (e.g. remote desktop into work, or take a copy of the code on your laptop and is it your own laptop)?

Had trouble as a permie trying to work from home in my last job due to a general distrust of the staff both in terms of a perception they are not doing their job at home and security worries dialling in. They allowed it in exceptional cases but you had to use their own authorised laptops not your own equipment (totally daft when these things didn't even have firewalls on them and yet were intended to be used in hotels etc !).

My hope as a contractor is that I don't get subjected to daft rules and I'm just paid to complete the work. I just love the idea of having control with my own company.

[tim123]

For those of you who are software developers, do you find you have to use client supplied equipment and how do you deal with working from home (e.g. remote desktop into work, or take a copy of the code on your laptop and is it your own laptop)?

Yep (to the first). Even if you can solve the equipment problem, you still have the network access problem. Taking the code home on a laptop is usually an absolute no-no (see the recent nationwide fiasco!)

Few companies will take the time/expense required to set up secure access for someone who is on a short term contract and even fewer will allow you to plug into their network unsecurely. (I guess that secure access is easier now, but most managers, having got used to cons working 100% on site, can't let go).

In 25 years, I've know one con who did work from home, remotely logged in. Apart from this, working from home is for the very very ocasional stuff that you can do without network access, perhaps 2 days a year - frankly not worth the effort of persuading the boss to let you).

tim