Question on "Would You Work with This Client?"

[#1]

I took a freelancing position with a private individual.  He works for a consulting firm.  It turns out that I was doing his work for the consulting firm, but he did not want his employer to know.  Because I needed to be invisible,  we could not screen share, document share, Zoom, Teams, etc.  I found him very demanding from the beginning and it only got worse.

My question -- would this scenario be enough for any of you to say, "I don't think we should work together."  Please let me know.

[#2]

I wouldn't work with him. Your client is acting in a pretty underhand manner. If I were his boss and I found out what he was doing, I'd fire him.  I would stop working with him. I'm sure you can find a tactful way of backing out, without a hideous impact on your profile, which is tops anyway, so you could  use your perk to mitigate this if needed.  

[#3]

I've found a way to back out with no review.  It's getting bad.

[#4]

Go for it. Just do not go on working for him. I expect he could still leave private feedback, which is what counts on one's JSS, but you can mitigate that too. 

[#5]

Will I see the private feedback?

[#6 · Accepted solution]

No, it's private. But it is the one factor with the most impact on your rating. But since you are top-rated, you can have it removed if you feel it dinged your JSS.

[#7]

No. Freelancers never see how a client has rated them privately.  If your JSS is dramatically dinged, then use your perk. It is my feeling though that since your client is so insistent on anonymity, there will be no come back. Let us know how it goes and good luck. 

[#8]

Thank you so much for your input.  It helps to have another voice add to this.  I hope to not do a repeat with another client like this.

[#9]

Martina, thank you for putting my mind at ease.  So, I should watch my JSS score and then investigate if it drops (it is currently 100 percent)?

[#10]

Yes. It sounds you want to end the contract, so watch out for the next update afterwards. If you end it and the client never leaves feedback, then there is nothing to worry about.