Ok, for those that know me, you will understand that I absolutely despise companies that screw over their contractors. Partly because I have been the victim of unscrupulous companies, and the other reason is that I get oodles of emails from guys who are getting screwed over by companies. I shake my head and wonder why is it so tough for these companies to do the right thing? Where is the courage to do good or what happened to taking care of your people? The funny part, is that the companies that actually do take care of their people, are the ones that usually attract the best of the best, and have more contract stability. I am a firm believer in this, and I also think that in the long run, companies will make more money if they focus on taking care of their people, because it will minimize turnover and keep contracts stable.
I also think that the companies are staffed with guys who apply too much of their war fighting ‘cheat at all costs’ and ‘ big boy rules’ concepts to managing the contractors and contracts. Which is fine, if you guys want to keep getting contracts and out compete the other guy. But if you are screwing over your people in your vain attempt to obtain these contracts, then what price glory? Or if you implement the ‘rob Peter, to pay Paul’ business practice, then what sense does that make? Focus on being straight with your contractors and stop playing these unethical stupid games with their pay. Contractors don’t like it, and we will just leave your company hanging when you treat us like that. Worse yet, we won’t care about doing a good job for you, because you don’t care about us.
So with that said, lets discuss some of the latest scummy tactics that I am hearing about out there, when it comes to unethical company practices. Let’s call this one, the ‘bait and switch’ game. I have heard of this happening with several companies, and it pisses me off to no end.
The way it works is that a company signs a contract with a independent contractor for a specific salary. They fly that contractor to the war zone, and then once they are on the ground, the company then creates some excuse to lower the contractor’s salary. Companies like to say things like ‘things have changed, and the position we hired you for no longer exists…..but if you would like to stay in Iraq and keep working, we will pay you this lower salary with this new position’? I will argue that this was the tactic all along, to bait a contractor with one salary, get them in country, and then switch their salary to a lower one. When a contractor has made it all the way over to that war zone, and they are finally settled in, and then this is thrown at them, it psychologically makes it very hard for a guy to say no. Lesser salary, versus no money and a trip home, is usually what comes to mind.
And because of the practice of implementing ‘at will’ contracts with ‘non-disclosure agreements’ attached, companies really don’t care if the contractor is pissed off by the practice. The contractor also has little hope of forcing the company to abide by any labor laws, perceived or real. There is also no labor unions to protect contractors and force companies to do the right thing. The whistleblower stuff is a joke, because the actual success rate and pay off for being a whistleblower on anything to do with these companies, is dismal. Or if you do succeed in getting attention for your case, it still won’t equate to you getting more money or being treated better at your job site. If anything, reprisal will happen, and your reputation will be torn apart by the company and those that you turned in.
Besides, your one of those despicable civilian contractors that the media loves to crap on, so who is going to stand up for you? POGO doesn’t care about contract disputes between contractors and their companies. So what can you do, if you are the victim of a ‘bait and switch’ game?
For one, I say stay on the contract as long as possible, and look for another gig. That is the financially sound way to play it. As soon as another contract comes up, leave your current contract pronto. While you are on that current contract, I would also suggest submitting as many anonymous tips to as many hotlines as you can, in order to force the company to get ethical and treat their people correctly. Remember, if you are reporting fraud, waste and abuse, it is not a violation of the non-disclosure agreement. The law trumps this little agreement we all sign, but the law won’t protect your reputation or your career–reprisal sucks and it will find you. So anonymously is the best way to go in my book. It protects you, and the acts of bad companies makes it to those that need to know that stuff.
The companies will also get screwed by mass exoduses from contracts. The more folks just leave, the better, and companies will get a default on contract because they do not have the required individuals for that contract. I know of several companies that just use ‘floaters’ to cover for these kinds of situations. But turnover is certainly expensive, and certainly brings negative attention to the company. Defaults on contract have really screwed over companies in the past. So if you and your crew that are displeased with the company your in, all put in a two week or whatever notice, all on the same day, then that would be an expensive shock to the company system. Just leaving without notice, is an even bigger shock to the company, but it also puts your reputation as a contractor at risk. I recommend just putting in a notice, unless things are so bad that your life is in danger, family problems, or something like that.
If you are the victim of the bait and switch game, deal with it smartly and really think out your options. Do not act out of emotion, act out of practicality. This is a business, so act like a shrewd businessman. Some guys are willing to deal with the bait and switch, and just chalk it up as ‘getting screwed over by the company’. Money might be a big factor for these folks, and they did not have the luxury of having ‘saved their pennies’ so they could leave.
For most though, when a company plays this game with them, they will instantly switch into ‘jaded contractor’ mode, and do all they can to get the hell off of there. I see this over and over again, and jaded contractors are not good for a company. They provide poor customer service, and really don’t care about the company’s reputation at that point. Why should they?
When you are in this mode, I sympathize and empathize with you, and I am here to say that there is a right way to leave and a wrong way to leave. But leave none the less if you can swing it, because turnover and defaulting on contracts is not good for companies, and that is how you really hurt their bottom line. You could also bring in a lawyer, if you have the time and money. Be forewarned though. If you go the legal way, companies have lawyers too, and they are very schooled at dealing with this stuff. Legal action is a tough game to play, and you better be mentally prepared for that, because it can be very taxing. You sometimes end up with little to show for all that time and money expenditure, and legal action is a difficult road to go down.
The other way, is to submit all the bad practices that you can to all the groups I have listed below. Start with the IPOA, because if the company you are working for is on their list, then they need to pay the price for what they did to you. Hopefully the IPOA will actually do something about it, but most importantly, it is a symbolic act, and it puts you in the right frame of mind for dealing with a company. After all, the company signed on to that code of conduct, and if they don’t want to abide by that code of conduct, then I say do all you can to right the wrongs. You should also try to use the chain of command with a company, but if that has fallen short, and you are getting nowhere with that, then you need to take matters into your own hands. Be smart with your actions and good luck. –Matt
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From the IPOA Code of Conduct 12
6.6. Signatories shall act responsibly and ethically toward their personnel, including ensuring personnel are treated with respect and dignity, and responding appropriately if allegations of personnel misconduct arise.
Submit a complaint to IPOA here.
Check list of IPOA member companies here.
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Submit a tip to the DoD hotline.
Mr. Leonard Trahan, Jr., Director,Defense Hotline
Anyone, whether a service member, civilian employee, defense contractor, or private citizen, who witnesses what he or she believes to be a violation of ethical standards and/or the law, including but not limited to fraud, waste, or abuse of authority, potential leaks of classified information, or potential acts of terrorism, should report such conduct through his or her chain of command, respective service Inspector General, or directly to his or her respective service Inspector General or directly to the Inspector General of the Department of Defense Hotline at 800-424-9098 (e-mail: hotline@dodig.mil)
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Special Inspector General For Iraq Reconstruction
Report fraud, waste and abuse
The mission of the Hotline for the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR) is to facilitate the reporting of fraud, waste, abuse, mismanagement, and reprisal in all programs associated with Iraq reconstruction efforts funded by the U.S. taxpayer. Cases received by the SIGIR Hotline that are not related to programs and operations funded with amounts appropriated or otherwise made available for the reconstruction of Iraq are transferred to the appropriate entity. The SIGIR Hotline receives walk-in, telephone, mail, fax, and online complaints from people in Iraq, the United States, and throughout the world.
Click here to submit a complaint.
The SIGIR Hotline office serves as a clearing house for complaints by maintaining an audit trail of all complaints received and the complaint file records until they are sent to the SIGIR Records Management Office. When a Hotline complaint is received, the Hotline Analyst will evaluate the complaint to determine if the complaint is within SIGIR’s purview to investigate. This evaluation includes a screening to eliminate unacceptable complaints and to determine if the complaint involves funds appropriated or otherwise made available for the reconstruction of Iraq. If the source of funding identified in the complaint is not apparent or identified, a check of the SIRIS database will be conducted. If this check meets with negative results, the SIGIR Hotline Analyst will complete a thorough inquiry with contracting points of contact in Iraq provided to our office by the Investigations, Audits, and Administrative offices in Baghdad.