Contract Non Starter

[fastrack1966]

I am due to start a contract soon but am a bit suspicious that the agency are going to announce that their client has changed their plans. In the contract it states that :
"The failure by the employment business to obtain suitable assignments for the contractor shall not give rise to any liability on the part of the employment business.".
The thing is the contract is already signed by the agency consultant, which surely demonstrates that they have/had an assigment for me? This is doubly important since I left an existing job to take up this one. Can they just lay me off before the job even starts with no compensation?

[suityou01]

If you want there to be a mutuality of obligation, then you would be better off being employed.

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[darsa]

That's the nature of the contracting market, I think you might just be paranoid. Perhaps ask your agency to hook you up with someone that works in the team for that end-client and have a chat with them on general things? The contracts almost always have clauses like that, but it's nothing to worry about.

[ladymuck]

Did you get the contract professionally reviewed? What did they say?

[Old Greg]

I am due to start a contract soon but am a bit suspicious that the agency are going to announce that their client has changed their plans. In the contract it states that :
"The failure by the employment business to obtain suitable assignments for the contractor shall not give rise to any liability on the part of the employment business.".
The thing is the contract is already signed by the agency consultant, which surely demonstrates that they have/had an assigment for me? This is doubly important since I left an existing job to take up this one. Can they just lay me off before the job even starts with no compensation?

Yes they can. But it's probably a standard clause so no need to panic. However you do need to be prepared for the event that a contract falls through before you start.

[malvolio]

I've had it twice, once with enough notice not to get too upset, once with 4 working hours notice before starting, meaning I was out of pocket for the interview effort and the pre-booked tickets and accommodation for the first week.

I've also pulled out of starting twice, both times when the contract contained stuff that I was simply not going to accept and the agency stuck to their "It's not open to negotiation" line. Fine, that's your commission and reputation with that client gone walkies, not mine (and one of them I got a gig with a while later through a different agency... ).

It happens, nothing you can do about it. The trick is not to invest too much time and money for the first week, just in case.

[PerfectStorm]

All part of the deal. Which feeds into the general advise here to "not let up on applying, keep applying at the same rate and even going to interviews until you're sat down at the client's desk on the first day"

No one will pick up that lost time but yourself. Fib to agents about not having other prospects if you have to.

[Lance]

I am due to start a contract soon but am a bit suspicious that the agency are going to announce that their client has changed their plans. In the contract it states that :
"The failure by the employment business to obtain suitable assignments for the contractor shall not give rise to any liability on the part of the employment business.".
The thing is the contract is already signed by the agency consultant, which surely demonstrates that they have/had an assigment for me? This is doubly important since I left an existing job to take up this one. Can they just lay me off before the job even starts with no compensation?

Yes.

HTH

[CheeseSlice]

This is a standard clause, seen it before. They don't want to be responsible or liable for hooking you up with other gigs when this one ends or if it falls through/finishes early or whatever, either during the contract period or afterwards.

Yes the contract offer could vanish into dust before you arrive on site, but unless you've got some other reason to suspect that I'd ignore the contract wording. It was likely stuck in there 'years' ago by the agents legal/contracts person.

Seriously though, if you're not comfortable with the risk then why leave permdom?

[MasterBait]

This is one of the reasons you should not stop applying and interviewing until the day your bum is actually on the end client's seat.