So my GF goes around to various community and private pools and teaches kids to swim. This is under a contract (actually e-mail agreement) with a company that markets the 'we come to you & teach your rugrats to to swim.'
One client of her's had to cancel a session and asked to move it to the following week. My GF couldn't do it that week, so they agreed to another week later. When that rolled around, she got into a fender-bender. She attempted to contact the company to ask what to do but it was after hours, so she emailed and at some point realized she wasn't going to get an answer. So, she called the client that she wouldn't be able to make it. No idea how the client responded at that moment.
Days later, she was contacted by the company that the client complained that my GF acted unprofessional - deferring the session several times in three weeks, and then did not show. The company told my GF to not contact the client and that she behaved unprofessionally by not informing them. So, she has other clients and went ahead and did sessions. All seemed ok, until...
She went to get her paycheck and, as she expected, she wouldn't get paid for the session that never happened. But, what she didn't expect is that she was penalized (wages withheld) for the unprofessional conduct. As an independent contractor, I didn't think they could do that. She looked up in her e-mail 'contract' and it reads, "Unexcused cancellations could result in a pay fine or contract termination."
I don't think this is legal. She should be paid for work performed.
Any thoughts, ideas, steps to go forward?
Proud member of FISHTWITCH: doing a bit more than fish exercise now.
One client of her's had to cancel a session and asked to move it to the following week. My GF couldn't do it that week, so they agreed to another week later. When that rolled around, she got into a fender-bender. She attempted to contact the company to ask what to do but it was after hours, so she emailed and at some point realized she wasn't going to get an answer. So, she called the client that she wouldn't be able to make it. No idea how the client responded at that moment.
Days later, she was contacted by the company that the client complained that my GF acted unprofessional - deferring the session several times in three weeks, and then did not show. The company told my GF to not contact the client and that she behaved unprofessionally by not informing them. So, she has other clients and went ahead and did sessions. All seemed ok, until...
She went to get her paycheck and, as she expected, she wouldn't get paid for the session that never happened. But, what she didn't expect is that she was penalized (wages withheld) for the unprofessional conduct. As an independent contractor, I didn't think they could do that. She looked up in her e-mail 'contract' and it reads, "Unexcused cancellations could result in a pay fine or contract termination."
I don't think this is legal. She should be paid for work performed.
Any thoughts, ideas, steps to go forward?
Proud member of FISHTWITCH: doing a bit more than fish exercise now.