Re: Re Fair Cut
...Well, not entirely. Part of that $25--a significant part--covers the employer contribution to FICA, unemployment insurance, worker's comp, and any benefits the contracting agency provides to the worker. Then there is the agency's rent, payroll, and other overhead. I'm sure that an agency can make good money, but please don't mistake the agency's "cut" for margin or their margin for profit.
Well, actually, in my recent experience:
1. I found the jobs, or, the NWU found me the job. THEN the employer insisted I use the "approved provider", who gets, like at least 15% of every hour I work. And the employer chose my approved provider. I paid the NWU's 10% out of MY earnings (gratefully). The approved provider's costs make ME look less efficient, more expensive. They do, bottom line, cost ME money.
2. The approved provider provided NO, zero, zilch benefits:
NO INSURANCE, NO WORKERS' COMP, NO EQUIPMENT, SUPPORT, or SUPPLIES, NO PAPER, NO SOFTWARE. In fact, in one of my current contracts, the approved provider does not even know when the contract he signed on my behalf terminates. (I am incorporated, so I pay for all of these things for myself.)
4. ALL that the approved provider provides is re-assurance to the employer. Re-assurance of what, I am not sure. But, in one recent fun episode I had with a very, very large company whose services every North American one of you probably uses every day you are not on a desert island, the employer chose the approved provider, the approved provider totally lost track of how many hours they'd sold to my employer, and I ended up not paid for 160 hours of my work and out of a job with NO notice, NO severance, NO benefits, and severely depressed. It took the NWU and me THREE MONTHS to get them to send me a check, during which time they demanded I drive 1.5 hours to return a laptop they'd foisted on me which had never worked. (I kept sending them email requesting that they give me an invoice number to any carrier they chose.)
5. I'm wondering why I'd WANT to be paying the agency's rent, utilities, payroll, let alone "margin for profit", etc. It's not like I've even SEEN them, let alone their facilities.
Andrew Plato, (most) approved providers, the ones I've dealt with at least, are the scum of the earth. Perhaps you do more for your indentured servants.
At present, I am working with one agency that did, at least, find me the work. But I've been on the project since Sept. and since then they have done precious little for me except get paid for the time I work. And, so far, knock wood, they do send me the checks. After theirs clears, natch.
--Emily
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On the web at www.armadillosoft.com *** Armadillo Associates, Inc.
~Extremely-technical technical documentation that developers use.~
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