Oh, you have got to be kidding me!

[witzend]

The megalomaniac client I wrote about the other day - who was trying to cheat his one employee out of a few dollars raise while we all work in his mansion and he goes off on the river to jet ski - wrote back to me on Friday and said "Oh, don't worry, I just hadn't thought it through. "Come in super early Monday because I have a 1 PM appointment" - he knows I don't sleep well and have a hard time getting out of the house - "and we'll work through it."

So, sure as shooting I go in at 9:00 - battled cross-town traffic and 4 school zones to get there - he's in his hot tub. Then he does his stretches. Then he gets dressed. He pops into the office at 10:25. Then he's on the phone doing his own stuff, and I go off to the bathroom, and come back through his office (the only way to get to my desk) past the printer. He has e-mailed himself and is printing up a note that says "Witzend -in" and a time. I know what he's doing because he did this to his one other employee that ticked him off before he fired him. Excuse me? I'm not his employee! I'm a business-woman! He's a client! Does he really want me to bill him for every moment that I'm there? Should I start going by the 100ths of the hour? Shall I start billing him for every time he emails me at home will stuff he could do himself at the office? I think he doesn't want to go there.

Then he has 30 minutes before we go over the weekly jobs progress chart. He's also eating his lunch. I type into it as they all watch me on his 60 inch HD tv. Every time a note needs to be made, he says "Don't make it now! I don't have time for you to take a note now!" And he's out the door. Nothing about wages for the other guy. Nothing about nothing.

I do what I have to do, knowing that he'll be back after 1, and try to get out of there. But I realize that there is one more thing I have to file with the state before the end of the day. I'm going full-tilt boogie. Mind you, our agreement was that I would give him 8 - 12 hours a week, and I never take a lunch or break because I just want to GTFOOT! Of course, as soon as he walks back in the door at 2:30, he chooses the most vague thing we went over on the jobs sheet and wants to know if I've done it? No. "Why not, I told you I wanted you to do that!" "Because I've been incredibly busy and that's the one thing I haven't gotten around to." Now mind you, this thing he wanted me to do is:

"Mark from Doug Neal called and wants us to work on all of their buildings. Find out what he wants." I've never heard of "Doug Neal" and there are a million "Mark"s. "What company?" "I don't know." "What buildings?" "I don't know." "What kind of work?" "I don't know. That's why I want you to call him." Why the ---- would he want someone like me who knows nothing specific about what we do to call a new client to talk to them about what they want when I don't know what we do?"

I'm going to have to take him to neutral territory if I can - not if I can't - and explain to him that I would be happy to continue to do his payroll and pay his bills, but I'm I won't do the office work anymore. If he prefers I can quit altogether today, or I will give him two weeks to hire someone to learn that they can train. He can hire a 90 day probationary employee, he doesn't have to give them a lifetime commitment if they don't work out. But I am SO done! Seriously! He's going to track my time? I don't think so! Do some work your da--ed self!

 

[keista]

Witzend I so totally understand your frustrations. been there done that. Do you have a contract made up that you have your clients sign? If not, you should. Protects you as well as them.

The way I see it, you are one of those nice ppl that will do whatever you can to help out. Unfortunately being nice just makes ppl take advantage of you. Set your boundaries and stick to them because you are NOT his employee, you are a BUSINESS WOMAN! (hear me roar! )

That whole time thing made me laugh. The last job I had as an independent contractor, halfway through the contract period, my "boss" instructed her assistant to instruct me to email when I came in and left. What made this so laughable was that I was providing detailed time sheets, and was even "signing out" for cigarette breaks! I asked the assistant if she wanted me to email her for each cigarette break as well? No skin off my nose. No, just in and out was sufficient. GRRRRRRRRRRRRR

 

[DaisyFace]

Witz--

I very dear friend of mine said that everyone needs to weigh their decisions using the "Axx Meter" (sorry mods...)

You need to decide whether the client/job/employee etc is more of an "Asset" or an "Axxh*le"...

If they are an Asset - stick with them. If they fall the other direction on the meter - cut your losses.

 

[AnnieO]

GEEEESH!

I think you are absolutely right.

 

[DDD]

I would assume that working with this guy is not good for your physical health..to say nothing of your mental health.
Some people are not rehabilatable and I'm guessing he is one. Hugs. DDD

 

[witzend]

Keista - I also provide detailed timesheets - in so far as I list a total of hours worked and the details of work done. He'd have a cow if I did a detailed time card. But I could definitely do that. Quickbooks has the capabilities. I have no problem with that. Certainly he wouldn't mind if billed him for all of the time I spend sending him detailed billing sheets? Because I'm not doing that on MY time!

Daisy - There's no way he would hire someone else to do his payroll. He knows full well that he would pay someone else my entire monthly wage just to do payroll for him once a month. Then add in filing sales taxes, renewing business licenses, paying bills, he'd never spend that much money. He's playing "Chicken" with me and thinks that I'm going to blink. I won't. There is work out there for people like me who will work a few hours a month doing skilled work for a reasonable wage. He's trying to guilt me into doing a 40 hour a week job in 12 hours, and I won't do it anymore. Definitely an "Axxhole". We may have a lean month or two if he calls my bluff, but I'll find work. If all else fails, SSI has a contract with NCI that wants to hire me to do "phone help" from home and will make sure that I don't go over my earnings limit. Plus, no gas money, no car expenses. We could sell husband's car and he could use mine unless I need it for something specific. Fine by me.

Thank you all for being here to listen, and for your comments! I'm so tired of whining to husband about this, and I can't say anything anywhere else because the people there know me and this guy in real life, and it would get back to him for sure!

 

[Malika]

Whatever pain you are giving yourself to work for this man, he will never recompense you for it and will likely push you over the cliff at the drop of a hat... So...

 

[muttmeister]

Maybe you should suggest to him that he enter politics. Sounds like he would fit right in.

 

[keista]

One more thing I forgot. When you write up your new contracts, don't forget to put in provisions for "point two fiving" IOW charge .25 of an hour for every contact made in your home. Those pesky emails would instantly stop.

 

[DDD]

Yesterday one of my easy child adult daughters called. She has worked for a number of years for a medical professional with a similar personality. She has always doubted his honesty and in fact quit twice only to be seduced back by salary increases and reduced in office time. She was very nervous when she called because out of the blue a Federal government enforcement agency sent two representatives to the office. Not only is she anticipating her job may disappear...she's also nervous because even though she didn't "know" she has often "suspected" that he was not following the law. As husband said "if you hang out with dogs you will get fleas". Sad. DDD

 

[MuM_of_OCD_kiddo]

Not only would I grab him by the ears and give him a piece of my mind - if you can afford quitting without a replacement job lines up - I would totally renegotiate my salary in order to continue taking his *(&_&^*.

"Not only do I squeeze x amount of work into x amount of hours, for which you would pay someone else $x more, as they would need so and so many hours more to keep up with your stuff not including the extras I end up doing for you that were not even included in our original agreement. Furthermore you are wasting a lot of my time while I am in the office trying to get work done with this endless back and forth. I am sorry - if I end up doing secretary work plus [whatever you do as his book keeper], then you need to pay me accordingly. Either you will raise my hourly rate to $xx.xx and pay me by the hour on the hour, or we agree on a set workload for a set amount of $$$ and you pay extra for anything in addition. Your third alternative is you can find someone new to take care of your c(*p, as I have had a job offer with roughly the same amount of hours and earnings, comfortable working from home with considerably less stress and chaos. So which is going to be???"

Forget being nice and offering to train a replacement, let him deal with his own mess. I'd totally put the squeeze on this slimeball and not fee bad or back down [unless you absolutely must have this income, in which case I would find another job first and then tell him to stick it]. This guy is stressing you, playing you and being a difficult child boss and totally dizzing you.

 

[witzend]

Thanks, all!

 

[buddy]

I left a job a few years ago that I loved....in terms of what I was doing and the kids I worked with. I put up with the gossip that I refused to join and all the back stabbing. Well, I thought I was putting up with it well. After quitting (to care for my son, not because of anything at work) I slowly began to realize what a strain that had been. I am a much better mommy now not to have all that stress and grief. I thought I'd go back there part time when things improve at home, but now that my health is so much better overall, and that my family life is so much better as well.....NO WAY. It is not worth our mental health to be in such a state!
I'm sorry you are having to deal with that. Sounds like a good decision you are making to leave!