Thursday, February 14, 2008

Lots of stick, Not so much carrot  

Got a blanket message from a company I work with this afternoon, going out to me and (I assume) a significant number of other people who contract with them.


Turns out that a number of us have been missing some "important documents" in our personnel files for several months that are somehow vitally necessary, but rather than bring the issue up on a case-by-case basis or head the problem off at the pass in an efficient and diplomatic way, the solution was to simply cut us all off from future work.

Got an email about it in the afternoon, and I'm locked out of the online work distribution system by evening.

It's sort of complicated to explain all the ins and outs, but I've done this work for a long time and I can't help but feel a wee bit frustrated at the situation as a freelancer who depends on this sort of setup for my livelihood. Even worse, I feel as though there's no recognition for the work I've personally done to help make this particular company successful, and this sort of hands-off, one-size-fits-all approach to a simple paperwork problem leaves me feeling put off and disaffected.

I'm sure it will all be resolved soon one way or another -- the company needs people to do the work just as much as we workers need a company to help coordinate our efforts. That said, the sort of bad feeling that gets stirred up by these kinds of heavy-handed actions can have far-reaching repercussions; something I've learned from personal experience.

Not exactly the way I wanted to end my day. Hopefully tomorrow will be better.

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