[H-GEN] Forming a consultancy [was: New HD in Sunblade 100]

[Jason Henry Parker]

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Greg Black <gjb at gbch.net> writes:

> I have a policy that I apply to all large customers: pay me what I
> bill you weekly or I down tools and, if I have to do that even once,
> then for the entire future, pay me in advance.
> 
> Lots of them just say "not a chance" and then look surprised when I
> walk out of the room.  Mostly they call me back because they want me
> and then they try to negotiate.  I don't negotiate on this, ever.
> Mostly, they agree and all is fine for a while.
>
> Then comes the first late payment and invocation of the "pay up front"
> clause.  They always spit the dummy in a big way, but they also always
> back down once it's clear to them that I simply won't be bullied and
> won't work without a certainty of getting paid.

I have seen other people swear by `20% now, 60% when the job is mostly
done, the other 20% on completion' (I may have the phrasing wrong.
It's late and I read it long, long ago.)

Quite frankly it's a disgrace that any company of any size should
baulk at paying their employees or contractors.  I applaud you for
refusing to stand for it.

I've seen a number of people get shafted by being asked to
`demonstrate their skills' on some important problem:  the prospective
employer could always do it themselves, of course, they just want to
see if the contractor can live up to expectations.

(To jump on the lefty wagon for a bit, hundreds of people around the
world died to give us the forty-hour week, safe work environments, and
a great many of the other workplace rules we take for granted.  Their
legacy deserves respect just as does any other.)

jason
-- 
||----|---|------------|--|-------|------|-----------|-#---|-|--|------||
| `I think the environment without razorwire will      jasonp at uq.net.au |
|  have much more amenity associated with it.' -- Phillip Ruddock       |
||--|--------|--------------|----|-------------|------|---------|-----|-|

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