Scum Incarnate

Here's a true story about short and not-too-sweet engagement with one of the major consulting companies that unfortunately, is not that uncommon.

Spaghetti - USA (wholly-owned subsidiary of one of the Big Five)
Jacky B. (account executive), "Absolutely, Stan! You have nothing to worry about! This is a long-term project. And of course, should it end sooner than expected we have plenty of other opportunities. And finally, should the worst come to the worst; we have consultants that we kept on the bench for months!"

Stan, "Do you have an actual bench policy?"

Jacky, "No, no, we don't. But we're absolutely committed to a long-term relationship with you."
…
Stacy M. (recruiter), "I understand your concerns, Stan, but you really have nothing to worry about. This project is scheduled to go on for nine months. And that's just phase one; there are three phases in total."

Stan, "That's great! But should the bank decide to can the project, what is your bench policy?"

Stacy, "We don't have an official policy at Spaghetti, but I can assure you that we've had developers on the bench for months; we retrained them in other technologies, and staffed on other projects. And we have so many other opportunities for you, trust me, we'll keep you very busy."
…
Stan, being an incredulous fellow, asked both, Jacky and Stacy three times, and grilled them as much as he could regarding the off-chance of the project ending prematurely. He was married and had a child. He also was working on a five-year project that was barely in its second year.
…
A few days later, Stacy, "Stan, I have spoken to our executive VP, Raj, and he expressed an absolute commitment to you. And as a sign of our commitment, we'd like to offer you 10K more."

Stan (to himself), "Hm… I would've preferred a severance package. But they all seem to be on the same page as far as the project is concerned, and being on the bench doesn't appear to be an anathema. Beside, I have a pretty good set of skills, and if they have half as many projects as they claim, I shouldn't be on the bench for a long time." "OK! I'll join Spaghetti."

Jacky, "Congratulations! You won't regret it! It's an excellent company, and we have great plans for you. As a Principal Consultant, you'll be very busy in our BI practice."
…

Three days later the bank pulled the plug on the project.
…

Jacky, "Don't worry, Stan, enjoy the long weekend, and come in to the office on Monday."

Monday. Jacky (with hands shaking, and face that was somehow a subject of stronger gravitational force than anything else on the planet), "Stan… We have to staff you this week…"

Stan, "Yes, that would be great. What projects do you have on-going?"

Jacky (with her eyes shifting from one corner of floor to another), "Well,.. nothing at the moment…"

Stan (in disbelief), "Really? OK, well, perhaps I can take some training for whatever the upcoming projects you have. You have something in the pipeline, don't you?"

Jacky (looking at her feet, hands trembling), "We have to staff you this week. Otherwise, we'll have to let you go."

Stan, "Excuse me?!" "What happened to other projects, training, months on the bench, etc.?"

Jacky (pale, still not looking at Stan), "It's not my call. We'll try to staff you this week."

Stan, "But you have no projects going on, that require any resources, right?" - "Right."
Stan, "This is unacceptable! We have discussed this scenario at length only a few days ago, and both, you and Stacy assured me that nothing of this sort would happen."

Jacky, "We'll do our best to staff you this week."
…
Four hours later. Jacky, "We've discussed your situation with Raj, and he said that we can keep you on the bench for two weeks as we're trying to staff you." (followed by an obsequious smile)

Stan, "OK, it's better, but two weeks is still a very aggressive timeframe to staff a resource. Especially considering that you don't have any new projects coming up during this time."

Jacky, "Well, you can also look for another job. Perhaps you can contact your former employer and ask them whether they'd take you back… And one more thing… We'll be able to keep you on the bench for two weeks, but… at 50% of your salary."

Stan's eyes widened, jaw dropped, and he grew speechless. "OK…" To himself, "I guess, I'm not in the position to bargain at the moment." To Jacky, "But once I'm staffed it goes back to the level that was agreed upon last week, right?"

Jacky, "Well… Almost… Raj said that it should be 'more reasonable', so it'll be 10K less"
…
In the end, Stan agreed to travel to West coast just to keep the job. His salary was cut even after he was staffed. Spaghetti allowed him to come back to Midwest twice a month. Within six months he was able to find another job, and left the project just weeks before Spaghetti failed there.

Neither Spaghetti, nor Jacky, nor Stacy offered an apology. Furthermore, Jacky thought that Spaghetti was "more than fair" in its dealings with Stan.