If there’s one thing I absolutely cannot stand, it’s unscrupulous employers.
Freelancers have got it bad
The good companies aside (and i’m glad there are still some), it’s no secret that freelancers get screwed over day after day. Work is expected to be delivered on time, but payment is made whenever the client feels like it, no matter how much paperwork you prepare to compel them to pay you on time. This is especially the case with big corporations with a “finance department”. If you’ve ever had to deal with them, you’ll know what I mean. These are people who have been trained to delay payment for as long as possible. Usually the person you have deal with is a complete idiot who just chucks your invoice into a pile and deals with it as and when he pleases. If you’ve ever found yourself wondering “How could the company hire somebody like this?”, wonder no more because this person has been hired specifically for his incompetence. His complete lack of urgency buys the company time, and helps with cashflow problems. Whenever you encounter a twit like this, you know it’s gonna take a while to get your cheque.
There must be a “Book of Excuses for Douchebag Employers” out there judging by the amount of bullshit they are able to dish out. Passing the buck (to everyone but you), writing the wrong name on the cheque, not answering calls, disappearing altogether… anything just to avoid issuing your cheque. And by the time it’s ready (if you get it at all), chances are you would have been reduced to a decrepit heap living under a bridge, covered in flies, dying of AIDS.
I hate it when other freelancers tell me they actually feel ashamed to ask for their money after asking so many times. Why should anyone be ashamed to ask for money that is due to them? There can be no excuses when you’ve done the work and it’s certainly not idealistic to expect clients to pay up when they owe you money.
Cashflow? That’s your problem, not the employee’s.
If you ask me, there should be a new form of discrimination against bad employers. These are the sort of people who deserve to be dragged behind a horse. Somebody call the KKK. Boss is the new Black.
Meanwhile, in Australia…
You can imagine how angry I was when my sister rang me this morning to tell me that she’d been fired from her job. She went into work and they just told her it “wasn’t working out” and gave her money in an envelope. Shocked, she went home, then later realised that it wasn’t even the full amount that was due to her. When she went back to confront the owner, he had left and they weren’t able to speak to him. They talked to the head of staff but nothing came of that. He had delayed giving her a contract, even though he’s required by law to do so. He was obviously aware of this because he had previously asked for all her details with the intention of giving her a contract, but when she turned up to sign it, gave her some excuses and told her he’d sort it out later.
Why did he do that? Because he’s a douchebag, that’s why.
The more important question you should ask is : what can be done?
As I said, we must think of new forms of discrimination. If you must discriminate, discriminate against the common enemy: The Unscrupulous Employer. Think about it: everybody’s got to work, so this sort of thing is going to affect you sooner or later. By allowing bad bosses to get off scott free, you’re effectively setting yourself up to be screwed over.
So this is a shout out to those of you who are fond of drive-by shootings, looting, grievous bodily harm, and any other forms of violence or discrimination. The next time you feel like going bat crap crazy on gays, blacks, asians, mexicans or dwarves; think about how your acts could better benefit the masses if they were targeted at unscrupulous employers instead.
And now that i’ve got your attention, here’s a really good place to start:
Shop 2, Shearwater Resort
Kings Beach QLD
Australia
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Happy Hunting