Ten Really Filthy Tricks That Agents Play On Contractors
We published an article called Ten Dirty Tricks that Agents Play on Contractors. This is the follow up.
1.They keep taking invoices from contractors even when they know that their agencies are going bust, to the effect that the contractors lose all their money to the liquidator
2.They send your CV off to clients without telling you, involving you in inter-agency disputes that could cost you the chance of an interview with the client
3.They dont tell you about the latest status of a job that theyve put you forward to, and they get annoyed when you call asking about it. They say Well call you when theres any news. What they mean is that theyll call you when there is any news that they can profit from. Theyll seldom call to tell you bad news. They want you to quietly disappear then
4.If they know that you are up against one of their candidates, they will run you down to a potential employer or client. Theyll often have found out this information about the potential client or employer by asking you who youve been put forward to in the first place. Their gratitude for that information wont extend to not putting the boot into you when they get a chance
5.They have no sense of decency when it comes to their cut. Most people would say up to 20% is fine, but 25% in some circumstances would be OK. However, many of them would take 90% if they thought that you would never find out
6.They will tell you that theyve put your CV forward to a company or client, even when they havent. They do this so that youll tell other agencies that youve been put forward already, in order to cut down the competition against the candidate or candidates that theyve already put forward with the same skillets as you have
7.At renewal time, they will sometimes tell the client that they have someone better than you, when all they have is someone on whom they can make a greater margin than they can from you
8.Once theyve got you a contract, theyll come back to you and tell you that the rate is less than youd agreed before, and that this was because of the client. They are almost certainly just trying to increase their margin
9.They have clauses in your contract that say that you cannot approach the client yourself for more work for periods of up to a year after you have left the company. These clauses are illegal and are a restraint of trade. However, the client doesnt want all the hassle and a possible court case, so you are left with no option but to go through the agency again, even though you have contacted the company yourself, say six months later
10.They will slip changes into your contract at renewal time without telling you that the changes are there, e.g. cutting the notice period that you are entitled to, or cutting it out altogether
I am sure that there are more where these came from. If you know of any more, please let us know.
1.They keep taking invoices from contractors even when they know that their agencies are going bust, to the effect that the contractors lose all their money to the liquidator
2.They send your CV off to clients without telling you, involving you in inter-agency disputes that could cost you the chance of an interview with the client
3.They dont tell you about the latest status of a job that theyve put you forward to, and they get annoyed when you call asking about it. They say Well call you when theres any news. What they mean is that theyll call you when there is any news that they can profit from. Theyll seldom call to tell you bad news. They want you to quietly disappear then
4.If they know that you are up against one of their candidates, they will run you down to a potential employer or client. Theyll often have found out this information about the potential client or employer by asking you who youve been put forward to in the first place. Their gratitude for that information wont extend to not putting the boot into you when they get a chance
5.They have no sense of decency when it comes to their cut. Most people would say up to 20% is fine, but 25% in some circumstances would be OK. However, many of them would take 90% if they thought that you would never find out
6.They will tell you that theyve put your CV forward to a company or client, even when they havent. They do this so that youll tell other agencies that youve been put forward already, in order to cut down the competition against the candidate or candidates that theyve already put forward with the same skillets as you have
7.At renewal time, they will sometimes tell the client that they have someone better than you, when all they have is someone on whom they can make a greater margin than they can from you
8.Once theyve got you a contract, theyll come back to you and tell you that the rate is less than youd agreed before, and that this was because of the client. They are almost certainly just trying to increase their margin
9.They have clauses in your contract that say that you cannot approach the client yourself for more work for periods of up to a year after you have left the company. These clauses are illegal and are a restraint of trade. However, the client doesnt want all the hassle and a possible court case, so you are left with no option but to go through the agency again, even though you have contacted the company yourself, say six months later
10.They will slip changes into your contract at renewal time without telling you that the changes are there, e.g. cutting the notice period that you are entitled to, or cutting it out altogether
I am sure that there are more where these came from. If you know of any more, please let us know.
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