| Pages in topic: [1 2 3] > | This outsourcer has been banned... Thread poster: Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
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Today, I noticed something bizarre: the indication "This outsourcer has been banned..." in the BB of an agency with plenty of "5s" in 2022. At first, I didn't understand what was going on until I clicked on "Show all entries" and saw that between 2007 and 2010 things were disastrous and they had a profusion of "1s".
I've never worked with this agency, but it seems to me that:
1. To avoid any manipulations, when an agency is banned from advertising jobs it should not b... See more Today, I noticed something bizarre: the indication "This outsourcer has been banned..." in the BB of an agency with plenty of "5s" in 2022. At first, I didn't understand what was going on until I clicked on "Show all entries" and saw that between 2007 and 2010 things were disastrous and they had a profusion of "1s".
I've never worked with this agency, but it seems to me that:
1. To avoid any manipulations, when an agency is banned from advertising jobs it should not be possible to make entries until the situation is resolved;
2. When this happens, that indication should be removed, leaving, however, an indication that the agency was banned for a while, but is no longer so.
What do you think?
Teresa
P.S. Please feel free to move this post as I'm not entirely sure where it will fit in... ▲ Collapse
| | | | Samuel Murray 
Netherlands
Local time: 18:40
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
Teresa Borges wrote:
To avoid any manipulations, when an agency is banned from advertising jobs it should not be possible to make entries until the situation is resolved;
Disabling entries isn't going to prevent manipulation. And it's going to be difficult for ProZ.com's staff to know when "the situation is resolved". And I'd rather allow more people to share their views about the agency, regardless of its job posting privileges.
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I can’t name names, so I will not, but the fact is that this particular agency has 14 positive comments in 2022 and still has the famous banner “This outsourcer has been banned from…”. Isn’t this rather misleading? Just saying…
| | | | Lingua 5B
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Local time: 18:40
Member (2009)
English to Croatian
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| from posting jobs? | Sep 3, 2022 |
They are banned from posting jobs, however I believe they can still contact people directly through directory. Once they contact them and they arrange a job, the translators can still leave them reviews. Perhaps they behaved better in 2022.
I agree it’s misleading. The banned warning is not always very noticeable either.
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Michael Newton
United States
Local time: 12:40
Japanese to English
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| Outsourcer banned | Sep 4, 2022 |
Time after time I see outsourcers with a sea of "1s" on their BlueBoard entries and they are still allowed to post jobs.
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Michael Newton wrote:
Time after time I see outsourcers with a sea of "1s" on their BlueBoard entries and they are still allowed to post jobs.
Is there a logical explanation why some seem to keep on posting jobs despite their sea of "1s" and others are in the opposite boat? I'd appreciate if Proz staff could enlighten us or look at these situations…
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Teresa Borges wrote:
Is there a logical explanation why some seem to keep on posting jobs despite their sea of "1s" and others are in the opposite boat? I'd appreciate if Proz staff could enlighten us or look at these situations…
Scores of 1 by themselves don't lead to a ban. It's failing to pay our invoices that does.
On the other hand, I am not completely sure if being banned means a lot. My second biggest client, a big multinational agency, has been banned for several years but has always paid my invoices in full (sometimes a few days late, but a single reminder was always sufficient).
| | | | | It's a rough sea | Sep 4, 2022 |
I have seen agencies that were really great to work with suddenly - or gradually - go downhill or become bad payers.
Others have gone through a rough patch, or started with unrealistic ideas, whatever. Then they listen to translators, understand the real world better, and improve. I have not seen many myself, but I have seen stories like that in translator networks. It happens regularly.
What if a ban from posting applied for a maximum, say of three or five years, and t... See more I have seen agencies that were really great to work with suddenly - or gradually - go downhill or become bad payers.
Others have gone through a rough patch, or started with unrealistic ideas, whatever. Then they listen to translators, understand the real world better, and improve. I have not seen many myself, but I have seen stories like that in translator networks. It happens regularly.
What if a ban from posting applied for a maximum, say of three or five years, and then came up for review?
If it lapsed automatically, scammers and swindlers could just carry on.
If an agency has been through a bad patch, but sorted itself out, I think it would be fair to lift the ban. A long series of 5-ratings suggests they have learned their lesson!
[Edited at 2022-09-04 09:37 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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Like you I’ve seen much more agencies move from "5s" to "1s" than the inverse, that’s one of the reasons why this one caught my eye…
| | | | Samuel Murray
Netherlands
Local time: 18:40
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
Teresa Borges wrote:
This particular agency has 14 positive comments in 2022 and still has the famous banner “This outsourcer has been banned from…”. Isn’t this rather misleading?
No, I think this just shows that there are multiple ways to judge whether a client is good or bad, and the two things you mention are two separate metrics. It would defeat the purpose if you were to artificially force these two metrics to show the same result at the same time.
It is good that these two metrics are independent of each other: indeed, the larger an agency (i.e. the more different PMs and more different departments it has), the more likely you're going to see exact thing happen: e.g. one department neglects to pay 2 or 3 translators in a short time, and suddenly the entire agency is "banned from posting", but that doesn't mean the agency as a whole is bad, and this is borne out by the overall LWA ratings.
| | | | finnword1
United States
Local time: 12:40
English to Finnish
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| It should work both ways | Sep 5, 2022 |
I have seen translation companies receiving 15 or even more fives in two days. How do you explain that? At least I don't believe the abundance, and would not work for them.
| | | | Michael Newton
United States
Local time: 12:40
Japanese to English
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| Outsourcer banned | Sep 5, 2022 |
I have been contacted several times via my proz page by agencies that have been banned from posting. i asked them why they have been banned and why they have so many "1's" on their BlueBoard entry. I get responses like, "the translators are lying", "it is a mistake", "we are taking care of this right away'. The only time I would post a "1" is if the agency didn't pay me. I would never deal with an agency with a sea of "1's".
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The same has happened to me and I don’t even ask why. I either say that I’m not available or I refer to their BB. That’s exactly why I would suggest some change in cases like this one.
| | | | Samuel Murray
Netherlands
Local time: 18:40
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
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| @Michael: the true meaning of a "1" rating | Sep 5, 2022 |
Michael Newton wrote:
The only time I would post a "1" is if the agency didn't pay me.
That is you, but other translators may give a "1" rating for other reasons, even if the agency always paid on time.
The rating on the Blue Board is for "willingness to work again", but the reason you're unwilling to work again can be literally anything. E.g. their rates are too low, their PMs are rude, they're in an uncomfortable time zone, the work they offer is dull and boring, etc. Literally anything. E.g. the PM is named "Keegan" but it is a woman, and you strongly believe that only men should have the name "Keegan", then you can give them a "1" rating.
Of course, it would be more honest to your fellow-translators if you could write down WHY you gave them a "1" rating, but you don't have to.
| | | | Michael Newton
United States
Local time: 12:40
Japanese to English
+ ...
| Outsourcer banned | Sep 5, 2022 |
Oftentimes translators who specify why they have given a "1", e.g. rude personnel, low rates, slow payment, illegible texts, etc. find themselves banned. "low rates" will incite ire from the moderators and they will force you to remove the comment. The only time I give a "1" is when the agency has not paid me and it is an incentive to pay me. Once they have paid me, I remove the "1".
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