> consider renegotiating it if you can/want (but TBH, just invoice properly), and don't agree to this type of thing in the future.
Op said "large tutoring group company" so I would assume they have standard contracts with very little room for negotiations.
In my country, this type of contract would absolutely allow you to contract freelancers (general idea, I've obviously not read the actual contract OP signed).
OP needs to check local legislation, I guess.
In the USA, the more control the company has over the Independent Contractors, the weaker the claim that they aren't actually employees.
So having a standard contract with no negotiation is one more element of control.
Though of course it's widely ignored as in a "large tutoring company".
IANAL, but as far as I know, a "take-it-or-leave-it" deal that doesn't set the *when/where* the person does the work should not prevent the person from being considered a freelancer in my country.
Of course, OP should probably talk to a local employment lawyer instead of me, haha.
What does the contract say? By continuing to work for them you may have a tacit agreement - you didn't sign but by continuing to work you accepted their terms.
Realistically, you could probably sue for your entire invoiced amount, and probably in small claims so you don't need a lawyer. But how much were you penalized, and is it worth losing the income you earn with this company over? You may just want to chalk it up as a learning experience and take the hit this time.
Are you an employee or a contractor?
If employee, they owe you for what you worked. Plenty of labor laws out there to back this up.
If contractor, they're Company A and you're Company B. You don't work for a large tutoring group, you work for yourself and the group is a client of your company. Refer to the contract.
Is it legal? Contract. And with anything, things are as legal as the enforcement allows them to be. I've had to let a $3,000 invoice go due to it not being worth the effort chasing it down. That's like 8 hours of my lawyer's time. And getting small claims judgements to actually pay… just had to wash my hand of it and learn the lesson.
Since this is r/freelance, I'm assuming it's contractor. It's all about the contract. Personally I wouldn't sign a contract that allowed a 75% reduction in my fees unless it also included a provision for a 75% late fee upon slow payment.
Either NY State or NYC has a Freelancing Isn't Free law that makes these kind of tricks harder to pull off.
More resources: https://www.freelancersunion.org/
Attack this another way... Since you haven't invoiced, they've made 5 percent interest on your labor. You'll waive the interest and late fees as long as the invoice is paid in full and in the next 15 days.
In the future, invoicing is part of your job. Do it immediately. Don't let this story repeat ever again.
If you did the work they theoretically have the money they didn’t pay you in the bank? Unless you not charging means they never collected from the client? Even so, it’s just a small mistake. I can understand a small “extra bookkeeping” fee for a 6mo late invoice, but a 75% discount? No.
You say invoice but you also say session reports. The session reports might be considered deliverables that you are not delivering. They might also be necessary for your client to invoice their customer.
Ultimately what matters is the contract.
[удалено]
> consider renegotiating it if you can/want (but TBH, just invoice properly), and don't agree to this type of thing in the future. Op said "large tutoring group company" so I would assume they have standard contracts with very little room for negotiations.
Another reason this really should be considered an employment rather than freelancing relationship.
In my country, this type of contract would absolutely allow you to contract freelancers (general idea, I've obviously not read the actual contract OP signed). OP needs to check local legislation, I guess.
In the USA, the more control the company has over the Independent Contractors, the weaker the claim that they aren't actually employees. So having a standard contract with no negotiation is one more element of control. Though of course it's widely ignored as in a "large tutoring company".
IANAL, but as far as I know, a "take-it-or-leave-it" deal that doesn't set the *when/where* the person does the work should not prevent the person from being considered a freelancer in my country. Of course, OP should probably talk to a local employment lawyer instead of me, haha.
I actually have avoided signing their updated contract. So theoretically the last contract I signed with them didn't have this term.
What does the contract say? By continuing to work for them you may have a tacit agreement - you didn't sign but by continuing to work you accepted their terms. Realistically, you could probably sue for your entire invoiced amount, and probably in small claims so you don't need a lawyer. But how much were you penalized, and is it worth losing the income you earn with this company over? You may just want to chalk it up as a learning experience and take the hit this time.
Are you an employee or a contractor? If employee, they owe you for what you worked. Plenty of labor laws out there to back this up. If contractor, they're Company A and you're Company B. You don't work for a large tutoring group, you work for yourself and the group is a client of your company. Refer to the contract. Is it legal? Contract. And with anything, things are as legal as the enforcement allows them to be. I've had to let a $3,000 invoice go due to it not being worth the effort chasing it down. That's like 8 hours of my lawyer's time. And getting small claims judgements to actually pay… just had to wash my hand of it and learn the lesson. Since this is r/freelance, I'm assuming it's contractor. It's all about the contract. Personally I wouldn't sign a contract that allowed a 75% reduction in my fees unless it also included a provision for a 75% late fee upon slow payment.
Either NY State or NYC has a Freelancing Isn't Free law that makes these kind of tricks harder to pull off. More resources: https://www.freelancersunion.org/
Attack this another way... Since you haven't invoiced, they've made 5 percent interest on your labor. You'll waive the interest and late fees as long as the invoice is paid in full and in the next 15 days. In the future, invoicing is part of your job. Do it immediately. Don't let this story repeat ever again.
Job fired me for being 2 gud
Tell them you definitely submitted it and it must be a problem with their system. There's zero chance they can prove it wasn't a problem at their end.
If you did the work they theoretically have the money they didn’t pay you in the bank? Unless you not charging means they never collected from the client? Even so, it’s just a small mistake. I can understand a small “extra bookkeeping” fee for a 6mo late invoice, but a 75% discount? No.
You say invoice but you also say session reports. The session reports might be considered deliverables that you are not delivering. They might also be necessary for your client to invoice their customer. Ultimately what matters is the contract.