Evidence needed...

[blueocto]

Hey guys,

It has now gotten to the point where I may have to take a client to small claims court for non payment of work that I have done.

Without having to go into all the nitty gritty, I was wondering if anyone can give their 'expert' opinion as to what is a reasonable amount to charge, per hour, for general graphic design work.

I need some 'evidence' to back up my claim that I feel it is reasonable to charge £10 per hour, based on my skills, experience and education.
My CV is freely available to view on my website CM Designs » About

So I would appreciate it if anyone can give me their recommended amount per hour, or their opinion/reasons why the figure of £10 may or may not be suitable for me.

Thanks in advance guys

[Toon]

We charge general studio time at around £56 per hour but Web and Branding changes depending on who is asking for the work. What did it say in the contract?

[blueocto]

ahahahahahahhhah there was no contract! lol
That is partially the problem, but my solicitor states that its not a total loss, hence the need for 'evidence'.

The complicated part is, the job was advertised as an employed job, but when i had my rather informal interview, he stated he'd already given the job to someone else and told me to go freelance. I thought, hell why not, I'd be thinking about doing it for ages anyway. But Im not nitwit, and constantly asked him for a contract as he was always harassing me to be in a certain time, give him specific hours and so on.
I work for the Rev afterall I know that problems can occur.

But he said he would pay me based on what he thought the work was worth... but he didnt pay me for 5 months, and now that he has, he has given me a figure under National Minimum Wage. So either he has to legally pay me the mininmum, or the figure I believe I am worth.

I derived that figure from researching other business fees, starting salaries for juniors and word of mouth. And it is probably less than I would probably get in an employed role anyway! I get £8 p/hour as an Admin Officer, so I am hardly going to get £5.30 for something I have more quals in, grief. Ok I'll shut up now lol

[Cwilk]

blue,...

If you didn't set a rate before the project started, you may have a difficult time in court (even in small claims court).

Some questions:
Is there a contract or some sort of agreement regarding price?
Have they paid you any money at all for your work?
Have they accepted any design work you've completed as approved?
What sort of communication have you had with the client? Mail? Emai? Written? Phone?
Do you have any emails from them regarding payment of some sort?
Do you have receipts of anything you've had to purchase for the project?

As for the per hour cost, it really depends on how you regularly charge for a project. I think what you state is too low. I can average about $125.00 an hour depending on the project.

If you really don't want to go to court, I recommend you turn the client over to collections. They purchase the clients bills from you at a discount and then they go after the client.

Let me know what happens.

[blueocto]

Is there a contract or some sort of agreement regarding price? No
Have they paid you any money at all for your work? yes, so far, £600 for 139 hours of work
Have they accepted any design work you've completed as approved? I worked in the office, so everything I designed was on their computers and stayed there
What sort of communication have you had with the client? Mail? Emai? Written? Phone? Yes, Yes, Yes, not anymore
Do you have any emails from them regarding payment of some sort? Only me asking about contract and being fobbed off
Do you have receipts of anything you've had to purchase for the project? Didn't need to purchase anything, but kept a milege count and a record of worked hours

I can average about $125.00 an hour depending on the project. That equals around £62 over here, try $9 that they are trying to pay me!

I recommend you turn the client over to collections. This will be my final letter to them, then the solicitor will chase them.

[Cwilk]

From what I'm reading from you, you were considered 'work for hire' or a temporary employee. There are laws in the U.S. regarding this type of arrangement, but I'm not sure how it works over there. You'll need to check the laws governing work for hire.

Otherwise, good luck with your pursuit.

[ooyes]

You can use emails as official evidence

[zumojuice]

I'd say just having a brief read through that you might find it hard to get anything through. What was it that involved so many hours work?

[tommylogic]

Here i believe we would consider you an "at will employee" meaning that you worked for place "A" and accepted rate"B", and you did so at your free will.
Any work you did at this place is considered property of that company. You accepted the terms of the agreement when you cashed their first check.

[LeadMagnet]

Originally Posted by tommylogic

Here i believe we would consider you an "at will employee" meaning that you worked for place "A" and accepted rate"B", and you did so at your free will.
Any work you did at this place is considered property of that company. You accepted the terms of the agreement when you cashed their first check.

Irish law is very similar to UK law, so i think the same applies in this situation and it's different to the US.
I believe in this case, you are considered 'work for hire' and you retain the copyright to work you have done regardless of where you did the work because there was no written agreement to the contrary.
If you haven't accepted the payment, then you can refuse to sell your work to that employer. If he tries to use it, you can sue him. But i don't think you can legally force him to pay what you want.

I think the tricky part is proving copyright, but as i understand it, the employer sent you written correspondence with some reference to paying you for your work? That might be enough.

However, i'm no lawyer... this is just what i remember from studying intellectual property rights recently.


As for proving that £10/hr is a fair wage for this kind of work, i think any designer will tell you that £10/hr is about fair for someone who's working straight out of a "Designing for dummys" book. I'm sure you could probably get some written statements to that effect from local design companies if you asked nicely.