AIBU to refuse this money?

[gwenneh]

A bit of back story: in 2016 I did some freelance work for an organisation over a period of a few months. The business relationship ended on a sour note -- turned up one day to find myself locked out of all of the work tools, etc. with no warning and no explanation. At the time I found it quite upsetting but I moved on, found another job, life went on. These things happen.

Today I received an email from the head of the organisation stating that she would be sending me £1,000 because when I worked with her, the company was a small organisation and she would like to make up what she perceives as a salary discrepancy based on the going market rate for my job. This has made me extremely uncomfortable and brought back a whole load of unpleasant emotions so I don't think I'm thinking clearly about the whole thing.

Part of me is delighted, I'd love to top up the savings or buy something nice. Part of me thinks this is making me so uncomfortable I should refuse, say thank you but no thank you, and move on. Should I take this money, or WIBU to refuse it?

YABU - take the money, you did the work
YANBU - refuse the payment

Something fishy is going on. Would you contact a plumber you’d used five years ago to tell him that you’d had a pay rise so, even though you’d paid his bill in full, you felt he deserved a bit more? No, nobody would. Businesses don’t do that sort of thing either.

Listen to your gut. I think they’ve done something wrong and are trying to get a pre emptive payment in now, before you realise what’s happening.

If it’s genuinely for making up salary - i.e. you were employed by them, then they need to pay your Nat Ins on it, and tax if you were PAYE, and supply you with a payslip.

Otherwise, how could they have underpaid you against someone else, if you had an agreed contract to work freelance for a set sum? If it’s to make up the rest of the contract, then they need to do the paperwork to go with it so you can keep your tax straight.

Any way round it sounds very dodgy, so I would definitely be asking them for the relevant paperwork to accompany the payment - otherwise, I’d walk away from it.

Take the money...but don't say thank you.

That’s very weird. It does sound to me that this is meant to be compensation for unfair dismissal, though why they’d even be worrying about that now is odd.

Be interested to know if you have to sign a waiver to get it, but certainly I’d take it.

OK, based on replies here it's nice to know that I'm not the only person who finds this extremely odd!

I have had literally zero contact with this company since the day the business relationship ended in 2016. I maintain no contacts with anyone who works with them. On the day where the business relationship was terminated, my access to tools was literally cut off in the middle of a regular business day with zero explanation from either the head of the org (who is now offering me money) or any other employee. I received a single message after the fact from another employee to confirm that the revoked access was intentional, see you later. This was very upsetting and obviously extremely unprofessional; not the shittiest experience I've ever had as a freelancer but certainly close.

There wasn't any further explanation in her email about needing to sign anything and as I have no business contacts at the organisation it would be difficult to find a roundabout way to an explanation.

I think there's two parts to why this feels so bad; one, the email from a person who I really respected and enjoyed working with who treated me so unprofessionally has brought back everything I felt about the situation and two, there's money involved.

Good to know I'm not the only one who would find this EXTREMELY strange, though!

Maybe they’ve cooked the books in the past, are being investigated and are now trying to minimise any fraud.

It sounds like you don't really need the money. I'd just ignore the email and see what happens. If there is something dodgy, they'll come back to you for sure.

They are obviously trying to buy you off, which suggests that for some reason you may be entitled to more.

@BlackCatShadow The money would be nice to have, especially after Christmas, but I'm not sure I need it so much that it's worth how weird it's made me feel - if that makes sense?

Take the money. It is being sent to you from good motives. You've moved on which is excellent but this shows you were appreciated at the time. Just say, "Thank you", end of.

Yeah, I understand.

Re-reading your post, it sounds like they are just sending the money to you, so maybe you don't have to do or sign anything. In which case, I'd keep it and not reply. They sound like arseholes.

It could be some kind of hedge against possible legal action, so needs treating warily. If you feel you are entitled to it because of the abrupt way they terminated your contract, you could before accepting it - 1. ask for the precise reason they are offering it now, and get it in writing; 2. make sure that it comes with no strings attached whatsoever; and 3. put in writing when you accept it that you do so 'Without Prejudice' because you feel it is owed in lieu of notice.

I wonder if they thought you did something, then recently found out it wasn’t you.

I’d take the money but also request an explanation.

As everyone else is saying don’t sign anything. Keep a copy of what they’ve said (in that it’s to make up the market rate) as evidence.

Other than that I would take it. I don’t believe for a second it’s to make up market rate but it’s not been the most usual of years - perhaps cutting you off is playing on her mind.

I would take the money - but without any obligation to feel gratitude or beholden.

Treat it as a a score settled, a debt paid, do something constructive with the money and move on.

Look, I have thrown away or given away expensive gifts before because they held bad feelings and I am glad I did it. But this is a business that you had a business relationship with them. Think of a good use for the money. Make it sit right somehow. But don't work for her again! Unless it makes business sense and you want to.

I would be questioning why she emailed you prior to sending you the money instead of just sending the money with a note to say what it is for. Or email if the money was transferred into an account.

This is very odd indeed, and I would also be worried that the company is trying to either hide money or cover up dodgy practices. If this were me, I would reply asking them to explain why they are contacting me with this offer now and how they have arrived at the sum of 1k. I would also ask them not to make any payment until I had agreed in writing to them doing so.

If they start asking you for your bank details, then be wary. At the moment, you have no idea whether this is legit, or their databases have been hacked and/or there's something fishy going on.

Tell them to put a cheque in the post instead.

I'd assume they are trying to get out of something. They have made some error. And of course treated you horribly.

But I would still take the money, though not sign anything, and if I couldn't feel happy about spending it on myself I would put it in my DC account or spend it on something for my mother. Then I couldn't feel bad about the money.

[quote gwenneh]@BlackCatShadow The money would be nice to have, especially after Christmas, but I'm not sure I need it so much that it's worth how weird it's made me feel - if that makes sense?[/quote]
It’s the contact that has brought up the feelings, would refusing the cash make the feelings vanish?

Tame the money and see it as a healing thing.

Take!

Accept and be glad of an unexpected windfall!🙂

Consider it unfair dismissal money. Or unfair termination of contract and keep it.