It's a freelance life

Cleaning out old emails, I found several from Graphcom when I was interviewing with them. They were asking me to drop everything I was working on at the time immediately but I insisted on at least giving full notice with my freelance and long-term (part-time) temp gigs and providing any assistance I could in finding my replacement before leaving. After I came in there, Ken Carter, the vice president, kept assuring me that they were thrilled to have me on their team and what a great full time job this would be with full benefits.

I had a bad feeling when I started work in a graphics department that was completely new employees with the exception of one older man, who had some sort of undisclosed health issue, that was responsible for training everyone in every department. No one had more than one or two weeks more time with Graphic Industries (the parent company) than I did. No one knew exactly what procedures were supposed to be or who was responsible for what. Even the pressmen were fairly new to the company. One had just left and another would probably soon be replaced because, as Ken said, he made too many mistakes. There was a new girl training on the Indigo printer, who started the same time I did that, who always had very unfortunate wardrobe choices. They kept trying to get her to wear the official Indigo blue lab coat and she kept working in t-shirts an leggings, which was not a good work outfit for anyone (leggings are NOT pants - I don't care what you see at Walmart) especially an especially fleshy girl. Even one of the people who interviewed me was no longer with the company.

I'd been there for a while, getting to know the ever-changing cast of characters there. I got a phone call at home at 8:30 p.m. on Sunday night, before the Monday morning my full employee benefits be in effect, Ken phoned me to tell me not to come in on Monday. He said it would be awkward since they had hired someone else for my position. No reasons were given why. I still have my key card somewhere, which I'm told is immediately de-activated. They still have my Pantone mug and a drawer of snacks and a gray cardigan sweater. I never cared much for the sweater anyway but I needed it for the cold office. I do, however, miss the Pantone mug.

The next week, I saw a want ad for the Indigo operator position at Graphcom, which was open for a new hire. They are constantly re-stocking employees in all areas. What I don't get is this - Why couldn't they just hire me as a subcontractor or temp? That would have been far less damaging than having me drop absolutely everything else in my professional life, including independent health insurance, to work for them while they needed me. Instead, everyone is a short-term "full-time employee" with that corporation. Really, being officially an independent contractor is far easier for anyone working for them. I am sure there is some business-savy reason for them to be that way and it is a formula Graphic Industries has worked out, with no consideration for the human factor.