I'm finally writing off Robert Half after a slew of terrible experiences from their “salaried professionals” program.
It finally occurred to me that the reason I have had some of the worst experiences of my entire 15 year career is because I work for a terrible organization with terrible clients.
While being in this program, I dealt with a barrage of hostility, chaos, and disorganization from most of the clients I worked with. The thing about working for Robert Half, despite being their full-time employee, is that the client still views you as temp. And with clients who already create a poor environment for their own employees, they treat temps like subhuman excrement.
I realized that a lot of clients I worked with called upon Robert Half due to high turnover rates caused by systemic cultural issues within. Poor management, no WLB, messy overall environment. Think about it. Why wouldn't companies like this be thriving with opportunity for firms like Robert Half, who provide staffing services. When I worked for these clients, I would be heavily micromanaged, treated lesser than the perm staff, and treated with complete disregard at times. A lot of these places would be composed of more temps/contractors than full-time, permanent employees. It all makes sense now as to why these organizations could not hold on to perm employees.
The final straw that broke the camel's back came from working under a sociopathic manager who allowed a project under her to run afoul. She started out with all sorts of charm when she sat with me during an interview. But as I spent the first couple of weeks realizing and communicating to her how badly in shape the project was that I was brought in to 'fix', she started to unravel. My requests for additional support to meet deadlines were met with accusations that I wanted work to be fun and thought the work was beneath me. When I told her about upcoming plans for time off, she accused me of stealing time from her that she'd have to pay for (which isn't true, because our PTO is unbillable to the client and it's accrued over time). She finally snapped and called up the agency to have me removed without any explanation other than it wasn't a good fit. All this despite having built out a sophisticated tracking system for the project and getting us on track when it had been completely derailed. Even though this woman desperately needed help on this project, her sociopathy and ego could not handle the fact that I couldn't read her mind.
These are the types of clients you will work for with Robert Half. They cater to clients who already tend to treat their own employees as disposable. As a temp/consultant/contractor with Robert Half, you will have no ground to stand on. The client doesn't care about you, nor does Robert Half. If you have any grievances or hardships, do not expect RH to be there to support you. They do not care for you any more than what $$$ you bill out for.
Avoid this monstrosity of an organization at all costs! It may be the best career decision you'll ever make. Good luck!