Reply to: 3 weeks in hand...

[GeekSquad]

The agency are likely on 30 day payment terms. Which means the client won't pay the agency for 30 days (at least). So for them to pay weekly, they are paying out of their pocket... which will annoy stake holders, especially if it is a large agency.

Perfectly fair I think, and its always nice finishing a gig and getting paid for the next 4 weeks.

hi guys,

i've been offered a role and the agency are agreeing to pay weekly. but they have told me that they can only start paying after 3 weeks. that sucks i feel... why would they do that, interest accrual? i guess it adds up to a lot of you do it to x amount of people...

anyhow, what are the chances that i could get them to pay after one week if i say i won't take the contract unless that's the case. (they are a big well-known agency). i've also said i want paying after one week and they said that wasn't possible... v. annoying as i pretty much need the cash coming up to christmas!

please replay asap, as i want to decide what to do as soon as i can!

[catboy]

wow, thanks guys... great response! i've got them down to a week by playing hardball! :-)

[TheFaQQer]

woooo

is it free ?

It's free as part of being a PCG Plus member

[EternalOptimist]

Join the PCG Plus scheme that has agency bankruptcy protection

woooo

is it free ?

[TheFaQQer]

i pretty much need the cash coming up to christmas!

Its not waiting 21 days that is the problem, its the worry that you might never get paid.

Join the PCG Plus scheme that has agency bankruptcy protection

[expat]

Its not waiting 21 days that is the problem, its the worry that you might never get paid. At what point do you cut your losses.

I have sweated over 20k, about 5 years ago, and 15 k a couple of years ago. Its a real nightmare.

It sure is: you daren't even quit because you know where that will put you in his order of priority. So you sweat all the time about whether you are pouring more earning time down the same hole and should just cut and run.

I had this in spades once when the agency going down the tubes wouldn't release me from the handcuff clause, which was IMO unfair because I had found the contract myself and was just obliged by HR to go through an agency. More fool me for signing the contract as is. How you learn, I suppose.

[EternalOptimist]

If you can't afford to wait 21 days, then you'd better start looking for a permie job sharpish!!

Its not waiting 21 days that is the problem, its the worry that you might never get paid. At what point do you cut your losses.

I have sweated over 20k, about 5 years ago, and 15 k a couple of years ago. Its a real nightmare.

funny enough, they were different agencies, but set up by the same guy. I will never go near this chap again, or any business that he has anything to do with. Dodgy know who I am on about.

[TheFaQQer]

This is a perfectly reasonable B2B arrangement. If you can't afford to wait 21 days then you should decline. You can then sit at home with no prospect of any money smug in the knowledge that the agent is not getting one over you.

If you can't afford to wait 21 days, then you'd better start looking for a permie job sharpish!!

[Turion]

The agency is not making interest on 'your money'. The more time the agency has before paying you, the cheaper it is to finance. They will get paid 30 - 60 days by the client, but pay you after 21 days, so there is a gap. This gap must be financed by a factoring company. Paying after 21 days is cheaper than paying after 7.

This is a perfectly reasonable B2B arrangement. If you can't afford to wait 21 days then you should decline. You can then sit at home with no prospect of any money smug in the knowledge that the agent is not getting one over you.

[expat]

how can they get interest on OUR money ? that assumes that they get paid by the client immediately, then pay us later. They dont.
Even if they pay us late, they themselves get paid a lot later.

imo, the big risk here is the agency going under, or performing some other rip off. I would like to know which agency

Absolutely. Until you get your hands on the money, it is not your money. If whoever has it goes bust, you are just one of the people they owe.

Edit: that is why you have to be careful whom you do business with, as well as how you do it.

[EternalOptimist]

that is crazy! Id never agree to that! Most Ive had is a week

Those that hold on to your money for 4 weeks are collectively earning interest on YOUR money - yet again these waste of space agencies up to their tricks

how can they get interest on OUR money ? that assumes that they get paid by the client immediately, then pay us later. They dont.
Even if they pay us late, they themselves get paid a lot later.

imo, the big risk here is the agency going under, or performing some other rip off. I would like to know which agency

[Peoplesoft bloke]

that is crazy! Id never agree to that! Most Ive had is a week

Those that hold on to your money for 4 weeks are collectively earning interest on YOUR money - yet again these waste of space agencies up to their tricks

Sorry I didn't explain that very well - my pimp only gets paid monthly so he's not making cash out of that. In your case (OP) it depends how much you want the gig vs not taking it - if you don't need the gig, tell 'em you'll walk unless they pay sooner - otherwise you could ask nicely and just have to accept it if they say no. If you're expecting everyone to play fair, you maybe aren't cut out for contracting

[TheFaQQer]

Essentially, it sounds like you are on 21 day terms. Doesn't sound unreasonable to me - my first contract paid monthly but on 30 day terms, so I had no income for that first month but still got paid every week once I'd left the gig which was nice.

[Liability]

Depends how badly you want the gig - I get paid monthly and am lucky if I get the cash within 30 days, but I knew that when I started this game.

that is crazy! Id never agree to that! Most Ive had is a week

Those that hold on to your money for 4 weeks are collectively earning interest on YOUR money - yet again these waste of space agencies up to their tricks

[Pogle]

I had that with Alexander Mann - payment 28 days after receipt of correct invoice.
But if they felt there was a problem with the invoice they took 2 weeks to tell you and It was always a problem that they had created!

In the end I had to get my client to intervene as I was owed a lot and they kept getting it wrong.

Whinge over