Sub Contracting

[chirpychippy]

If they’ve come to you, tell them your pay date requirements. That’s what I used to do with one on my private school customers (no probs with my local authority customers). Don’t take any bull about "just missed the cutoff date" or "next cheque run is in three weeks time etc". If they genuinely want to work with you, they’ll come to an agreement.

How and why have you come to be working for them - what happened to those that used to do their work?

I was recommended to them, i did try and make the initial face to face there after, but they were too busy to talk, So I wrote them off, then they approached me.

At some point last year the arse fell out of the kitchens market, or the market parse. It was then I realised I have depended for far to long on the company I have subbed to for years, their product is high end and in a volatile market orders quickly dried up as did my income.

Our business relationshio is fine, but i put to many eggs in one basket, other than the new contractor im refocusing on my own business and creating my own leads and work again.

Fundamentally its laziness, kitchens are easy, somebody supplies the product, i quote to fit, dont spend hours designing and working things out or have to run around sourcing materials, i just turn up fit it and get paid well.

Back to reality now.

 

[pete01]

Mrs Mottie once worked in accounts for a building firm like that. She didn’t stay long. The manager didn’t care who they made wait. The mantra was “do we need to use them again". If the answer was no, they went to the bottom of the payment list. Once, Mrs Mottie had great joy when someone who they were fecking about for months that was owed about £15k had had enough. When he phoned up and was told yet again that the manager wasn’t availible and would he like to leave a message, the message he left was "Tell him I know where he lives and if I’m not paid by this Friday, I’m coming round his house and I’ll cut off his cock and Bollux and stuff them down his wife’s throat". The message was passed on. He got paid.

I wouldn't have passed the message on just to see what happened Friday

 

[johnny2007]

Make up some excuse and don't do any work until payday.
If they don't pay you then you need to start some sort of recovery process.

 

[chirpychippy]

I got paid the full amount and on the day stated.

My lesson is not being so heavily indebted and to set a limit to the amount im owed at anyone time, which may have been suggested in this forum.

Long term - I dont see a future with this supplier.

Thank you for all of the helpful advice.

 

[endecotp]

I got paid the full amount and on the day stated.

Long term - I dont see a future with this supplier.

Do let them know that you’re happy about everything except their payment terms which don’t suit your cash flow situation. It probably won’t change anything in the short term, but it’s always helpful for both parties to fully understand why a good employee / contractor / whatever has left.

Thank you for all of the helpful advice.

While you say “thanks for all the helpful advice”, actually most posts said “walk away”, yet you did get paid on time…. so was any of the advice actually helpful?

I didn’t comment earlier because I work in a very different field so my experience is no so relevant to you, but I’ve always been paid many weeks after doing the work. The time periods described in this thread all seem really quick! For example I’ll be paid on 1st October for transactions in August - and the contract actually allows them to wait until the end of October IIRC. Managing cash flow and risk of non-payment are some of the most important aspects of running a business; you are often stuck between a rock and a hard place, especially when you’re in an asymmetric relationship i.e. the other party is a much larger business than you. In, say, a 5-person business, having a smart admin/finance person who can make the right choices can make a huge difference. When it’s just you, there’s not much you can do.

 

[chirpychippy]

Do let them know that you’re happy about everything except their payment terms which don’t suit your cash flow situation. It probably won’t change anything in the short term, but it’s always helpful for both parties to fully understand why a good employee / contractor / whatever has left

Initially it was trust, but they fulfilled their end of the agreement.

Its two things that have lead to my decision to not continue.

Design. They dont design kitchens they design a Concept, the plans contain very little information that help the fitter actually fit the product. No heights, no unit lengths, so you have to measure everything, measure the room and then workout how to make the units reflect the kitchen projections when fitted.

The product, it is poor, it is purchased flat pack my the kitchen company and then assembled "badly" by someone in their workshop, so i end up redoing their work to my standard.

I did three jobs there were things missing on all of them and one job I did twice and even on the second attempt there were still huge issues.

When you consider they price the installation cost on behalf of the fitter "a figure they weren't willing to divulge" then given my experience of the trial.

Its not for me.