mari pet Poland Local time: 23:06 Member (May 2012) Spanish to Slovak + ...
Nov 29, 2011
Dear colleagues,
Since few months I am working on a translation project where I have to strictly adhere to the glossary the agency send me.
However I have found a lot of mistakes in that. I always told it to the agency but since I have no direct contact to the final client nor the agency knows my language, it is difficult. Obviously, I didn't adhere to the glossary 100% and the agency (or client) were complaining but I still tried to explain the situation.
Since they never asked me to correct the glossary, I never did that because it is a lot of work and obviously nobody was planning to pay me for that.
Today I was sent another file to translate and the reference file and I was also told strictly adhere to the reference file. At first sight I found few mistakes in the file, which I told to the agency. I was then asked to send them the mistakes I will find.
Should I ask for the payment for that (treat it as a profreading job)? This reference file is not large, about 2 maybe 4 pages.
Thanks for your opinions,
marianna
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Spencer Allman United Kingdom Local time: 22:06 Finnish to English
Depends on the nature of the relationship
Nov 29, 2011
if this is a good customer, revise the glossary free of charge.
If they are not regulars, act in accordance with instructions but point out that some of the translations of terms are wrong. If they then insist that you review the glossary, charge them a miniumum charge
best
Spencer
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Tina Vonhof Canada Local time: 15:06 Member (2006) Dutch to English + ...
It depends
Nov 29, 2011
It depends. If this is a regular client and they are paying you a fair price for translation, I would not charge extra for pointing out errors in the reference file. If they want you to revise the entire file, then you could charge an hourly fee for that.
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Sheila Wilson Spain Local time: 22:06 Member (2007) English + ...
It's always tricky
Nov 29, 2011
Hello Marianna,
I think there are a few variables that need to be taken into account, but I would normally be prepared to offer them 15 minutes, maybe 30 minutes. If it approaches an hour then my normal hourly rate normally applies. On the other hand, if it's a big job and/or a really good client that I don't want to lose, then I might be a little more generous.
However, this does rather look as though it might turn out to be the thin end of the wedge. If you correct terms in this file for free, how will you charge next time when the file is much bigger? If this client has been saving money by using cheap translators who don't bother to research the terms, then there's no way you should help them.
Sheila
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mari pet Poland Local time: 23:06 Member (May 2012) Spanish to Slovak + ...
TOPIC STARTER
they really don't want to pay for that kind of job
Nov 29, 2011
I finally asked client (agency) if I could consider it a proofreading and after that they answered me that I should only tell them if there is a lot of mistakes, so that the final client decides if to ask the proofreading of the file. Then he has decided that I should only not use the incorrect terms (no surprise).
If this is a good client and a big job?
Not really, and I have been considering to give it up since two or three monts (because of the mentioned reasons - problems in communication, bad quality of glossaries, strict requirements and very narrow room for manoeuvre) but the situation now is not for giving up the job even if I don't like it especially.
Anyway, thanks for your inputs.
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TransAfrique United Kingdom Local time: 22:06 Member (2011) Japanese to English
IMHO
Nov 30, 2011
I'd say finish this job (whether you correct the terms or not is up to you) and then never work for them again. It's not worth the aggravation and will only harm your translation skills.
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