I want to report a client that made me work for free

[jetpromaster]

I've been very patient with him, I tried to keep calm even though he was very demanding and not paying me at the same time. One thing I didn't like was though he was not paying me any longer he was so demanding and now everything I worked for is wasted and to think I wasn't paid for it. 

[prestonhunter · Accepted solution]

re: "I want to report a client that made me work for free"

No.

That is not what happened.

A client can not make a freelancer work for free.

re: "I've been very patient with him, I tried to keep calm even though he was very demanding and not paying me at the same time. One thing I didn't like was though he was not paying me any longer he was so demanding and now everything I worked for is wasted and to think I wasn't paid for it."

You're doing it wrong.

This is not about the client. This is about the freelancer.

You need to develop your strategies for NOT working for free.

You may research this topic here in the Forum. You may ask questions here in this thread.

Until you do that, you need to only accept hourly contracts.

[jetpromaster]

Ok Sir, thank you for your response. I appreciate your perspective on the situation and will take your advice into consideration moving forward. As a freelancer, it is important for me to develop strategies for ensuring fair compensation for my time and effort. I will continue to research and learn from the community here in the Forum. Thank you again for your input.

[bobafett999]

Your fault that you didn't get paid.  Ponder on what went wrong and learn for future.  Sometimes walking away from a gig rather than exploited is the best route.

[jetpromaster]

You are right that it is important to reflect on what went wrong and learn from the experience. I will continue to work on developing my skills in identifying red flags and avoiding situations where I may be exploited. Walking away from a gig can be a difficult decision, but it is important to prioritize fair compensation for my time and effort. Thank you for your input.

[celgins]

You should only report a client if the client is committing an act of fraud, has a fake account, or does something that violates Upwork's terms of service. Based on your description, it doesn't appear any of this is happening, so reporting this client to Upwork won't do much.

Like Preston said, this one is on you. These things happen to thousands upon thousands of freelancers, and it's a tough way to learn a lesson.

Upwork, in essence, is a middle-man and doesn't do much to police the interaction between freelancers and clients--they simply facilitate the interaction. Unless the interaction involves one of the activities mentioned above (i.e., fraud, spam, fake accounts, TOS violations, etc.), Upwork does not do much to protect freelancers from clients or clients from freelancers.

[jetpromaster]

Thank you for your perspective on this matter. I understand that Upwork is a platform that facilitates interactions between freelancers and clients, and that it is ultimately my responsibility to protect myself from situations where I am not adequately compensated for my work. I appreciate your advice to focus on learning from this experience and developing strategies to avoid similar situations in the future.

[data_divas]

If this is a fixed price project, only work when each milestone is funded.  If the milestone is not funded, wait until it is. If they say they are going to fund the milestone after they get the work then your answer is no, they have to fund it first.

[jetpromaster]

No, it's hourly. It's more of a mis communication problem.

[data_divas]

If hourly then make sure you use th Upwork tracker to track your hours, always make meaningful memos of what you are working on and have high activity levels so you will get paid.

[tlsanders]

Your attitude toward this is promising. You won't make this mistake again.

[0f01a666]

You're not the only one there dude,the one I worked for said I should pay him before he pays me