Reply to: instead of a rate cut..

[Old Greg]

I have done something similar when negotiating a contract start with a client I knew well. They has a budget for 6 months work at a crap rate. I agreed to do 78 days work over 6 months for the full budget amount. 3 days per week mostly from home. Very nice.

[Antman]

FTFY

Apologies, I've been watching too much of the sweeney recently

[Bexter]

I think that a "yeah love, right" is more patronising

FTFY

[Antman]

I think that a "yeah love, right" is more succinct

[MyUserName]

Brave words. I've heard them before, from thousands of contrators across thousands of clients, since long before you were hired. But, now they are all cut.

*slight corruption of the Borg queen's quote but you get my drift*

[Bexter]

Everyone says that

Cause I would! I can get a new job within a week if necessary, and almost certainly for more than I'm on now. I only stay here cause I quite like it! But if they tried to reduce my pay, I wouldn't just take it and say "ok". I can understand if you're in a niche area, and would struggle to get another role, that you'd have to accept it, but I'm not, so I wouldn't.

[BolshieBastard]

This question of avoid rate cuts comes up all the time. People suggest working less hours but maintaining the rate and other such ideas.

IMO, clients wont generally go for this. They want a cut in the headline cost ie rate, not the amount invoiced.

To avoid a rate cut, you have to be more than essential to delivery of the work ie on best buddy terms with the company boss or really important.

Of course there are always exceptions in every rate cut and there's no harm trying to negate it. But, I think for 99% of contractors, its suck it up and look for something else. But even then, are you going to get a pre cut rate and even then, are your costs going to go up because you have to commute more \ work away from home?

All in my opinion though.

[northernladuk]

I've thought about this before and I don't understand why everyone is jumping on this as a bad idea. I would love to work 4 days instead of 5, and have been on the verge of suggesting it to my client!

From my perspective, if they wanted to enforce a rate cute, I would quite simply walk, no questions asked. But if they wanted to keep me, and reduce their costs I would quite happily work 4 days at my current rate as it still reduces the cost and they get to keep me, as opposed to me leaving. Isn't everyone happy then?

Everyone says that

[Joeman]

That's just you. I've worked a contract where it varied over the months between 3-5 days a week and I simply worked each day as a full day either way, it didn't really make much difference.

I'll take your point about "having you on tap" for an overall cheaper cost but I still think it's a bit cheeky/naive personally.

Friday's normally a write off anyway, after the team have been in the pub the night before. The permies pull a sickie, and the contractors struggle in, and the first few hours are always spent dissecting the previous nights pub antics.

[d000hg]

Practically, the amount of work done in four days is not significantly different from five. You tend to be more focussed - since working for different concurrent clients, I'm definitely working harder, than when it was 5 days a week at the same place.

That's just you. I've worked a contract where it varied over the months between 3-5 days a week and I simply worked each day as a full day either way, it didn't really make much difference.

I'll take your point about "having you on tap" for an overall cheaper cost but I still think it's a bit cheeky/naive personally.

[Bexter]

I'm keen to get Plan B off the ground too and this is the only way I can think I would actually have time to do it!

[Joeman]

I agree, I think it depends what you do too. I'm a PM in a large IB at the moment, and technically I'm a finance person, not an IT person. My contract seems to work very differently than at a lot of people on here. For example, in general, I have no defined hours, I work the hours that are required to get the job done (not good as I'm on a day rate!). I would probably rack up to 37.5 hrs by thursday afternoon, but I can't just get up and walk out and say thats it I'm done for the week. So if they wanted to enforce a day rate cut, I wouldn't accept it, but if they want me to do 4 days instead of 5, to meet the budget targets, they might go for it. Shame we haven't got any budget cuts going on right now, cause I'd be quite happy!

Exactly - I totally agree. im in the same boat working for a London Investment manangement company. I work "proffessional working days" which means if the job takes a bit longer, i stay a bit longer, so a 10% rate cut cannot easily translate into hours.
Since the reason for a rate cut would likely be to cut project costs, to be able to offer the client a potential 20% cost saving (instead of just 10%), would likely work very well.. Unfortunatly, it would result in slighly longer working days, but my skills would not have been devalued, and i would have time for PlanB/(pub)
Win-Win for everyone

[Bexter]

Agreed, i think its a London thing... the market works differently here than to the rest of the UK

I agree, I think it depends what you do too. I'm a PM in a large IB at the moment, and technically I'm a finance person, not an IT person. My contract seems to work very differently than at a lot of people on here. For example, in general, I have no defined hours, I work the hours that are required to get the job done (not good as I'm on a day rate!). I would probably rack up to 37.5 hrs by thursday afternoon, but I can't just get up and walk out and say thats it I'm done for the week. So if they wanted to enforce a day rate cut, I wouldn't accept it, but if they want me to do 4 days instead of 5, to meet the budget targets, they might go for it. Shame we haven't got any budget cuts going on right now, cause I'd be quite happy!

[jmo21]

Not sure why the OP is getting such a hard time.

I know of one contractor who did exactly that, dropped to 4 days a week at a renewal, and he was spending the free day with his wife and daughter.

He didn't do it to try and avoid a rate cut right enough.

Ever since then I have been looking to try and get this into a contract but haven't found the right opportunity so far.

[Joeman]

I've thought about this before and I don't understand why everyone is jumping on this as a bad idea. I would love to work 4 days instead of 5, and have been on the verge of suggesting it to my client!

From my perspective, if they wanted to enforce a rate cute, I would quite simply walk, no questions asked. But if they wanted to keep me, and reduce their costs I would quite happily work 4 days at my current rate as it still reduces the cost and they get to keep me, as opposed to me leaving. Isn't everyone happy then?

Agreed, i think its a London thing... the market works differently here than to the rest of the UK (i used to contract on the south coast as well) and so when we talk about ideas like this, people from other parts of the country dont seem to relate well,

(And people like "SteelyDan" just get all bitter and insulting as they are not cut out for LONDON contracting market)