I (M24) work for a janitorial company in the southern US. My current contact is for a church building, all their offices, and the school next to them. I work M-F 9-5 for $11.50 and hour. Pay isn't great, but it is one of the higher paying contracts we have and it let me have weekends off.
Two weeks ago, my boss let me know he was drafting up a “trial” contract for a new potential client. Basically one month of cleaning service provided, and if they like what we do, a longer term contract will be drafted. Boss told me he has high hoped for this new client and thinks they can get a really good deal out of a longer term arrangement with them, and to make sure they're satisfied with our service, he wanted me to fulfill the trial contract. For the trial, it is M-Sat 9:30-5:30 for $9/hr. So I'd be working more hours than I am now, losing one of my days off, and getting paid less total than what I am now.
I apologized and told him I could not afford to take that significant of a pay cut, especially at this time. (I just had a dental surgery that's costing me ~$10k AFTER insurance). He assured me it would be only for the trial period and I'd be paid much more after that period is over. I again apologized, but I wasn't going to lose my current contract for a worse one over the possibility of it maybe paying more in the future. He seemed quite upset with me and had me leave his office.
Now, this boss is quite stingy with his pay, with most starting contracts only offering $8-$9 per hour. We've been really struggling for new hires, and he always complains about this generation not wanting to work. One point I told him that maybe no one wants to work for him because the Burger King across the street is paying 4 more dollars than he does. Which then sent him on a tirade, ending it with “It just pisses me off that burger-flipping teenagers are making more money than honest, hard-working men like you.” He did not appreciate when I said that he was the one deciding how much I got paid and could easily change that.
Fast forward to yesterday, and am informed the church did not agree to renew their contract, and I would be done working with them this Friday, and will be put on the trial contract instead. Now I had a great reputation with the employees at both the church and the school, so I was quite shocked. I got a look at the new contract he gave to them.
The original contract was $350 a month plus the cost of the cleaning supplies. The new draft he gave them was for $675 a month, PER BUILDING. A total of $1,350 a month for me to the exact same thing I'm doing now. Very obviously, they declined the new contract and are now hiring a different company. I am positive my boss gave them a ridiculous deal so they would purposely decline it and I'd be available to be put on the new contract. So starting next week I'm going to be working more hours for less pay. Yay