Agency gone back on terms of verbal contract

[Birker2020]

I am so angry. My contract with my current agency is ending this Friday and last week I managed to secure a three month booking with another agency at a company down the road. We agreed verbally (me and the recruitment consultant) that the rate of pay would be a particular rate per hour (what I happen to be on at the moment), I met the client, they liked me and agreed to take me on for the three months (contract is ongoing contract with minimum of three months).

I was due to see the agency on Wednesday to sign the contract (normal standard recruitment agency contract) and now the woman from the agency has rung me to say she’s sorry but she got the rate of pay wrong and I will be on 40p an hour less than I was promised and she got the information all wrong.

I am fuming and told her in no uncertain terms that I was very dissatisfied with the new terms and that she had gone back on the agreement we made between ourselves and therefore my acceptance of the role when I was offered the job. She says because it wasn’t in writing nothing can be done. I said I was very angry about it and that she had me for a bargain price before, but now she has me engaged with the client for three months very cheaply indeed.

I have been temping for approx 20 years and I am well aware of the various scams the agencies use, and the cut throat methods they adopt in order to ‘snare’ both their temps and their clients but this is a totally new one to me. It’s only the fact that I am possibly looking at a potentially expensive vets bill (vet out tonight to possible tendon strain) that I didn’t tell her to stick her job where the sun don’t shine.

But do I have any recourse? Should I contact the head office or should I just let sleeping dogs lie? What would you do?

 

[BigRed]

I would say its very simple. Don't take the contract. They have reneged on their verbal contract (the rate), so you can renege on your verbal agreement to take the job. If the customer wants you - tell them you are happy to start, but at the rate agreed with the agency, tell the client the agency screwed up. I have not tempt'd for years, but when I did do it, I always worked at above the recommended rate because the companies always wanted me to stay, and I negotiated with them, not the agency, because usually the agency staff were numpties.

 

[Birker2020]

I would say its very simple. Don't take the contract. They have reneged on their verbal contract (the rate), so you can renege on your verbal agreement to take the job. If the customer wants you - tell them you are happy to start, but at the rate agreed with the agency, tell the client the agency screwed up. I have not tempt'd for years, but when I did do it, I always worked at above the recommended rate because the companies always wanted me to stay, and I negotiated with them, not the agency, because usually the agency staff were numpties.

Believe it or not the woman from the agency has just rang me back to say that she's spoken with her manager and they have agreed to let me stay on the rate of pay they verbally agreed with me in the first instance.

Yeah right. No doubt she considered I was a likely threat to complain to those higher than her and get her into trouble.

Sometimes I think I will cut the middle man altogether and just be a freelance temp, then I could get a better rate of pay and negotiate my own terms.

Honestly they must think us temps came off yesterday's banana boat.

 

[Luci07]

Push back. The agency made a mistake so they can pay for it from their profit not your salary. Call the woman back and say the verbal is binding and if she wishes to renege, you will want to speak to her manager and if that does not work, you will call the head office. Failing that, as you don't have a contract and have been mucked around I would personally call the company myself and explain the situation..I did work in recruitment ages ago and none of the temp consultants would have done that - good temps and contractors are the "product" and a reliable contractor worth his/her weight in gold. Take the assumptive route on this and when queried, ask just why they expect YOU to pay for THEIR mistake..!

 

[Luci07]

ah, we cross posted...

Still while you are in this next position, think it would be worth while to ring around and see what other "benefits" other agencies give you. While I appreciate its not the same job but my sister used to let her temps build up holiday pay to keep her people happy!