I saw a freelancer post that a client sent them a "We're not paying invoices due to [the economic environment]" notice. I won't link to it due to my no shaming policy. The responses from freelancers to this are fairly predictable. I have some slightly different ones:
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This is not a refusal to pay. It *says* it is a refusal to pay, in the same sense that I might *say* that I need
$X to do some particular thing, but these are steps in a negotiation rather than absolute positions. You can't take it at 100% face value.2 replies 4 retweets 113 likesShow this thread -
The right response to this is probably "I have received your letter. The invoice is good. I demand payment by the date on the invoice, under the terms of our contract." Most people sending that demand *will likely be paid.*
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This behavior is so common there is a word for it among consultancies. It is "slow rolling." If the client is in a cash flow crunch, and you can imagine a lot of clients in cash flow crunch right now, slow rolling allows them to prioritize accounts receivable & buys time.
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Many freelancers are extremely offended by slow rolling. As a former consultant, I get it, but you can't afford to think like an employee when you're running a business. You should do what all the "real" businesses did when they got that letter; treat it as a nullity and move on.
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Replying to @patio11
I agree with everything you say on this thread, but I'm not sure why you keep bashing employees. I'm employed, but I hope I think like a business owner. I'm a business owner who decided the best way to sell my services is to this one employer. "Don't call yourself an employee".
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Not bashing employees. Employees have a reasonable expectation to be paid like clockwork every other Friday and should *immediately* go nuclear if payroll doesn't arrive that very day. Businesses... are not employees, and if they have that expectation, they're operating badly.
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