Last year I was hired for a longterm freelance gig at a major company where the boss was a friend. i was told i had to be paid through an approved vendor, as the company couldn’t pay freelancers directly, but not to worry, they had a vendor number i could use. fast forward to start day, where i quickly realized this “vendor number” was actually a shell company set up by the BFF of my “friend”/boss that was acting as a “talent agency” to which i was now beholden. The person running this “agency” has zero experience or professional skill set or demeanor. in fact, i found out later, they have a terrible reputation as being very shady. besides all this, i have run my own business for years and would never work under this type of structure, as it takes away my ability to negotiate as well as being extremely predatory. I decided to just shut up, do the work, and remove myself from the sutuation. but then came a twist: the company wanted to hire me full time. the moment i told my “agency” i was no longer interested in working with them and would be negotiating myself after my contract was up, all hell broke loose. I will skip the details, but obviously I am no longer friends with the person who brought me in... and of course the job offer mysteriously and conveniently disappeared. whatever. i have work, it is fine. However, the “agency” is retaliating against me, screwing with my pay schedule at whim, then not paying at all, and is now refusing to respond to me. i am currently owed $16k I am not a vengeful person. There are other people still working there who i really like, and if i blew the whistle on this shit they would lose their jobs. I tried incentivizing them to pay me $6k that is quite past due by telling rhem i would have to instate the late fee noted on my invoice. it didnt work. i then said “ok heres the late fee, now pay it all or i will be taking further action.” no response. what should I do?
Lawyer up
With that amount of money at stake, don't try to figure it out yourself. Talk to a lawyer ASAP.
Don’t worry about others. Do what’s right and best for you. If they screwed you over then they can screw others over too. Make an example out of these idiots. Lawyer up and don’t even give it a second thought
That is a good point. Thank you
Couple additional things. 1. This happened in the state if NY where there is a "freelance isn't free" act... I have unfortunately had to file thru the state labor bureau before for another shady situation, and they make the threats and assess the fines for you, almost like a free lawyer that works for the state. So I could do that, but it means serious shit for any business owner to go thru this tax wise. I will essentially ruin someone for a long time and I really don't want to do that, I just want to get paid. 2. The assholes of this situation have better social clout than I do. I'm a very private person and I know i will face some kind of smear campaign. We are all part of the same community and it is small. The thought of dealing with this is what hs me up so late at night with insomnia. I have been having stress dreams about it for months. I know who I am and I know I'm a pretty decent human, but going thru a public rumor mill is a serious point of anxiety at the level of a health concern. I thought about maybe contacting Hr at the company I actually did the work for (they know and liked me) and just kind of saying "hey I know this isn't your fault but my agency hasn't paid me and they won't return my emails"... Is that too gossipy and weird? Again trying to find gentle solutions to de-escalate the situation first if possible
I still do think you need a lawyer, but talking to HR at the real company isn't a bad idea. If they're hiring this company for contractors they have some leverage. There's a good chance they will refuse to get involved, especially since you're not working for them anymore, but it doesn't hurt to try.
Thank you
Of course you should all take action and leave
I'm already out. But not everyone in the situation has the kind of work I do and they are scared to leave. And since I'm now the example they are also scared to say something. It is so messed up.
This is precisely why you should take legal action ASAP. Based on the above, they are in direct violation of US labor laws, and I’m sure other “discrepancies” will surface during discovery. I hope you documented everything! If not, sit down RIGHT NOW and start writing. Names, dates, anecdotes, amounts. These will be invaluable to your attorney. You have a strong case.
I've been in very similar situations before and have learned that doing things amicably is ideal, but don't be afraid to escalate with an attorney demand letter or even by submitting the issue to the city/state. I don't automatically think that the owners of the shady company began the company with ill intentions, but they've decided to run their company in a shady and illegal manner. Most likely because they've learned that it's hard to sustain a profitable business nowadays without bending the laws. Nevertheless, they need to a reality check and smack on the wrist imo. And shoot,if they learn from this now then you may be teaching them a lesson that only costs them minimally compared to the numbers they may receive from someone that comes at the harder in the future for damages and late invoices.
Lawyer up, hit the gym and leet code hard
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Legal advice and action. Letter from legal team to the agency threatening with court action