Wonder where exactly people get the entitlement to someone else's free labor. I'm confident the same individuals would not work for free if the tables were turned. Is it lack of empathy?
Desperate people do desperate things. They probably invested a lot (emotionally, financially, etc) in the company. They have no money. Its either convince people to work for free or close up shop.
Everyone is virtous when things are good. When the chips are down is when things get ugly. I think the vast majority of people lack empathy given the right circumstance. They'll do much worse things than try and manipulate someone into free labour.
I don't think it's lack of empathy. Most clients aren't looking to screw you in advance; they just want the work done, but don't always have the money in time to pay for it (true, sometimes as a result of their own failings).
Without a contract, either party is free to prey on the other: the client can try to guilt the worker into working longer before they get paid, but the worker can also try to ask the client for money up front (yes, that's a thing).
That's why a contract is so important: it describes what happens when a client pays late, and presumably sets terms to either make it worthwhile for the worker, or gives the worker an easy way out of the contract.
Maybe lack of empathy, although I don't think it's because managers are especially unempathetic people. We have a deeply encultured expectation that deference, gratitude, and loyalty are owed much more in the upward direction, than the downward direction. We expect employees to act as though they are subjugated, rather than merely subordinate.
Typically yes, a form of lack of empathy, an inability and unwillingness to relate to people that prioritize money over their “amazing groundbreaking idea”
I deal with this a lot, some clients are talking payment, equity, and other sharing right out the gate.
Other clients are thanking me for working for free an hour into an intro call where that assumption wasn't warranted. And then acting like I’m not into their vision enough, when even the future % compensation hasn't been detailed, offered, or considered at all.
Had a call yesterday like that where I pointed out that every founder’s idea are fairly interesting software problems and they also pay to retain me so there is competition for my time. This founder needs capital or to drop the idea until they do, like everyone else.
