Hourly protection

[92ebe181]

I currently have a contract with a client however, I add time manually on the timesheet. I have read that manually added times aren't included in upworks hourly payment protection. Are there instances that freelancers aren't paid for manually added time?

[prestonhunter]

re: "I currently have a contract with a client however, I add time manually on the timesheet."

That's okay.

I personally prefer to follow the rules for Upwork hourly protection. Was there a reason that you didn't use the desktop time-tracker?

re: "I have read that manually added times aren't included in Upwork hourly payment protection."

That is correct.

re: "Are there instances that freelancers aren't paid for manually added time?"

Yes, there are such instances.

But that is rare.

If the client is 100% honest, and if you are doing honest work for the client, then you don't have anything to worry about.

But to answer your question: Yes, if a dishonest client wants to avoid paying you, he can click a button to dispute manually-added time, and he won't need to pay for that time.

[92ebe181]

re: Was there a reason that you didn't use the desktop time-tracker?

The client suggested the manually added time option.

Since I am new to upwork, I searched how it works and most of the discussion I have read caused me to have doubts. 

[wlyonsatl]

Troy Lin M.,

Even if a client "allows" you to add manual time to your weekly timelog for their project the client can also refuse to accept any or all of those hours and never pay you for such hours.

Manual time is not protected in any way under Upwork's payment protection rules and Upwork will make no effort to enforce payment due to you for such work time.

https://support.upwork.com/hc/en-us/articles/211062568-Upwork-Payment-Protection

If you want to try to be sure you're paid for all manual hours you book, the best you can do is only use manual time for a client you know well and trust completely.

[92ebe181]

Thanks, Preston and Will. I appreciate your response. However, that is very disheartening to read. I just hope that my client would be as honest as I am.

[brandonekai]

If Upwork doesn't protect manually added time; it will be wise if they drop it. We've cunning clients who will allow manual time, then at last dispute it.

[nhansen]

I disagree. There are time when I forget to start the tracker and once I realize, I add that time manually. I've never had an issue with a client about this. Of course, I add more detailed notes to the time tracker. Obviously, they have the option to not pay me for that time. But if it is a long term client and they were refusing to pay for such accidental failures, I'd stop working for them and they would be the ones who lose out.

Now, I once had a freelancer work for me and he hadn't added any time at all but told me how much time he had worked on the project. I believed him and told him I would pay him, but asked him to use the tracker for future work. He continued to not use the tracker so I simply did not pay him at all. Even he didn't figure out a solution to our issue, he was clearly trying to do so, but I wasn't going to pay him if he was willfully refusing to track time the normal way when there was no reason for him not to do so.

[92ebe181]

In addition to this topic, I hope you could answer this question as well, assuming that the client didn't accept any of those manually added time, what should I do? Is there a way for me to cancel the contact? And if there is, will that job appear on my profile's work history?

[nhansen]

Did the client ask you to add time manually? How long have you worked for this client?

I had one client that I originally tracked time using the Upwork tracker but then they decided it was more important I track time in their internal tracker in Harvest so that they could bill their clients for my time properly. Because it was a hassle to add time in both places, I just used their internal tracker and added my time to Upwork manually and they never disputed any of my time even though we worked this way for years. But it was a matter of establishing trust. They knew I was tracking time fairly and I knew they would pay me for it even if it was recorded manually. Obviously, they could have woken up one week and decided not to pay me, but that would have destroyed the trusting relationship we had established.

[92ebe181]

Re: Did the client ask you to add time manually? How long have you worked for this client?

No. It was me who asked him if I should add time manually because that was the option he suggested in the contract. I am new to Upwork and I have little idea how it actually work. He is my first client and my contract only started this week.

[nhansen]

This sounds like someone trying to get free work to me.  A client would have to be an idiot to ask for manual tracking from the outset if their intention was to actually pay you becuase you could state any number of hours you wanted and inflate it.  By suggesting this to you, I think he's looking for an excuse not to pay you. 

[759e32fa · Accepted solution]

Hi All,

Yes, your clients may approve manually added hours on a contract, however, when their payment method fails, Upwork can only pay for the hours that meet the Hourly Payment Protection guidelines.

I can only suggest that you use either a fixed price contract or salary payments for activities that cannot be accurately tracked using the time tracker since manually logged time is not guaranteed for payment because Upwork cannot confirm if work was actually being performed during those hours.

While there is no means of knowing ahead of time whether or not a client's payment will be successful, ultimately that should not be a concern for you as a freelancer as long as you are protecting yourself. By reviewing the Hourly Protection for Freelancers guidelines, you can ensure that you are paid appropriately even when a client's payment fails. Time logged appropriately via the Work Diary will qualify for payment protection from Upwork.

I hope this helps!

[92ebe181]

Hi, Annie.

As I said this is very disheartening to hear but all I can do now is wait for the weekly billing cycle and see if my first client is a success or not. 

[ashrafkhan81]

If the client "suggested" adding the hours manually, I would be very skeptical of that client. If the contract says Manual hours are allowed that just means the client did not change the default settings of the contract. There are a few clients who proactively disable this option as well. 

One little disagreement is all it takes to turn things sour between you and the client and at that point, the client can dispute the hours logged, Upwork will also not pay if the client's payment method fails! 

I've read so many stories of people losing money because of manual hours, I have since made it a point to always use the Time Tracker. And if for any reason I have to use manual hours, I am mentally prepared to lose that money! But thankfully, all my clients have never questioned the hours nor failed to pay. 

Better be safe than sorry, for this contract I suggest you wait and see what happens. Do not bring it up with the client now, but for future contracts be careful and decline any suggestions from the client that puts you at risk of losing money! 

[92ebe181]

In addition to this topic, I hope you could answer this question as well, assuming that the client didn't accept any of those manually added time, what should I do? Is there a way for me to cancel the contact? And if there is, will that job appear on my profile's work history?