Pending Bonus and Paused contract

mazajanine · ‎09-01-2022

Hi, guys I just want to ask something. I received a bonus last 29th of August it is already in my pending and yesterday 1st of September I got an email that our contract is on pause. What I would like to ask is if we have an hourly contract which I tracked on the last 29th of August. Will my hourly work and my bonus be paid even if our contract is paused?

jeremiah-brown · ‎09-01-2022

Who paused it? The only time I have ever encountered a paused contract is when the client's method of payment has been declined.

You should cease all work until the contract is resumed. If not, you run the very real risk of performing work and never getting paid for it. Been there, done that.

mazajanine · ‎09-01-2022

I think upwork paused it. But I run my tracker when I work. Does my bonus still withdrawable even our contract is paused?

feed_my_eyes · ‎09-01-2022

Bonus payments aren't protected, and hourly contracts are only protected if you charged your normal profile rate, not a ridiculous price like $450/hour. What was the job - did you buy crypto for the client?

mazajanine · ‎09-01-2022

It means that even my bonus is in report page there is possibility that I can't withdraw it?

sofia2008 · ‎09-02-2022

It means you will not be paid if the payment method of the client is declined and if you bought anything for the client ( which is a violation of Upwork's Terms of Service) you loose that as well.

feed_my_eyes · ‎09-02-2022

It's highly unlikely that you'll get any payment. You must have known that you were taking part in a scam - who in their right mind pays $450/hour for entry-level VA work? Nobody. Why can't you say what the job was?

martina_plaschka · ‎09-02-2022

If a client tries to hire you at more than 40 times your profile rate, ALWAYS decline and tell them that you ONLY work at your hourly rate. Why? Because it looks bad on your profile. Why? Because it tells future clients that you either

took advantage of a client who has absolutely no idea how to find your hourly rate or has absolutely no idea how much to pay for this specific task. Both of these possibilities are remote.
participated in something not quite right

Either way, you will turn off potential clients. It is very likely that you will not get paid for either the bonus or the hours, if you recorded any. Scams usually appear like that.

If you don't get paid, the contract will disappear from your profile completely. This is a good thing. You will have a hard time finding more clients with this on your profile.

wlyonsatl · ‎09-02-2022

If the client "paused" the contract then that is not, in my experience, unusual. But it should not affect your receipt of funds that were pending when the project was paused.

If the contract is on "hold" or, worse, "suspended," that was applied by Upwork, and usually means there is a problem with the client's payment method. There is no payment protection for bonuses "paid" on either hourly or fixed price projects.

Has Upwork notified you to stop working on this project for the time being?

a_lipsey · ‎09-02-2022

Janine, the client in question has numerous jobs posted for "acquiring crypto." Purchasing crypto as a job on Upwork is against the TOS and not allowed. While the job post you responded to does not say this outright, if you were indeed purchasing crypto for the client, that would be a violation of TOS and could be the reason the contract is on hold and why Upwork has intervened. I hope you did not send any crypto to this client because you will likely not be reimbursed for those funds.

m_terrazas · ‎09-02-2022

Janine M wrote:
Hi, guys I just want to ask something. I received a bonus last 29th of August it is already in my pending and yesterday 1st of September I got an email that our contract is on pause. What I would like to ask is if we have an hourly contract which I tracked on the last 29th of August. Will my hourly work and my bonus be paid even if our contract is paused?

You have already had several answers that indicate what can happen.
If you tell us what you did for the client (buy something?), we can tell you more.
- You say you tracked the hours. Automatic or manual?
- If manual, you will not see the money. If automatic, you will only cover your price per hour, not the absurd 450/h.
- And, if you bought something for the client, no matter how you tracked the hours, you have broken the TOS and you can lose, in addition to the money, your account.
So, tell us what you did?

m_terrazas · ‎09-02-2022

Some mod should review this client and freelancers.
Or in two days we are going to see several freelancers complaining about the same thing.
Multiple jobs at ridiculous hourly rates (up to $999/hr). All of August 28 and 29. All freelancers with profiles of one line and little else (I guess very recent).
Something smells pretty bad, don't you think?

a_lipsey · ‎09-02-2022

Maria T wrote:
Some mod should review this client and freelancers.
Or in two days we are going to see several freelancers complaining about the same thing.
Multiple jobs at ridiculous hourly rates (up to $999/hr). All of August 28 and 29. All freelancers with profiles of one line and little else (I guess very recent).
Something smells pretty bad, don't you think?

Yes, Maria, I agree. I reported some of the open jobs from this client, but that doesn't always do anything.