加急費 Thread poster: Kenneth Woo
|
|---|
不少客戶總喜歡把譯者當成機器人，下午五點把一份兩千字的稿子發來，次日早上十點就要你把譯文給他；也有客戶總以為譯者隨時在候著他，中午飯點之時發來一個幾百字的稿子，要你下午兩點就完成。
譯者在文化學術交流、知識傳播、國際貿易之中發揮的作用不可謂不大，我想是應當受人尊重的，也應有權按正常時間作息。如果翻譯某稿件需要犧牲正常吃飯、休息的時間，我們就應該收加急費。
Rant over.
| | | | clearwater
China
Local time: 00:38
English to Chinese
这些年翻译下来，还真没有收过一笔加急费。
都是老客户了，也不好意思提出这个名目的费用来。
不过，现在很少遇到特别急的活儿了，客户都会尽量提前发来。
| | | | Ying Li 
United Kingdom
Local time: 17:38
English to Chinese
下午五点的稿子，第二天上午十点交，一两千字，怎么可能做得完呢。做得完质量大概也不会太好吧。我觉得这不是加不加急费的问题（当然，加急费是要收滴），这完全看你要不要跟这种公司合作。自由译员也要一个工会，这个东西，大家也讨论很多年了。呵呵
为广大自由译员争取一点权利，你也要出一份力。坚决抵制不合理稿子。。。：）
| | | | Kenneth Woo
China
Local time: 00:38
English to Chinese
TOPIC STARTER
謝謝二位回覆。
的確，收加急費有時有點兒難為情，還可能把客戶嚇跑，但我認為健康比什麽都重要，為滿足這種無理要求而犧牲健康不值得。所以，遇到急件，我要麼不接，要麼就收一筆加急費，前提是身體吃得消，心情好。
我想，如果我們都團結起來抵制不合理的要求，翻譯市場的秩序會好起來的。:D
| | |
|
|
|
| Especially problematic in the Chinese market | Apr 17, 2014 |
Not sure if you all will agree with this, but I notice a marked difference between time expectations from Chinese agencies and US/UK agencies. Seems as if Chinese agencies need things much faster...Good example, two weeks ago my favorite Chinese agency gave me 7,000 characters (source) of proofreading at 7PM on Thursday due 10 AM on Friday (was my fault for accepting it, the source was a .pdf, and I thought there were fewer characters than there were, should have checked more carefully). Had to ... See more Not sure if you all will agree with this, but I notice a marked difference between time expectations from Chinese agencies and US/UK agencies. Seems as if Chinese agencies need things much faster...Good example, two weeks ago my favorite Chinese agency gave me 7,000 characters (source) of proofreading at 7PM on Thursday due 10 AM on Friday (was my fault for accepting it, the source was a .pdf, and I thought there were fewer characters than there were, should have checked more carefully). Had to stay up the entire night to get it done decently.
This week I was contacted by a US agency I work with sometimes, asking me to clean up another translator's translation. The source was 1500 characters, but because I have another project, I told them that I'd need 3 days to finish, to which they quickly agreed. Just one example, but I've noticed this difference in approach many times.
Obviously one reason for this is the intense competition in China, and another is that many agencies doing Chinese to English work (my pair) in China are third or fourth on the pecking order (US client to US agency to Chinese agency to Freelancer). A third reason, I think is expectation of difficulty: In the US Chinese is regarded as a difficult language, and I think this makes longer deadlines seem more natural to end clients (Client: 'Not just anyone can do this'), whereas because of the wide use of English in China, my theory is that Chinese companies feel that English to Chinese work is relatively simple, easy and fast to do (Client: 'How hard can it be to translate an English document'). Just theories made while procrastinating today's project, any other thoughts? ▲ Collapse
| | | | wherestip
United States
Local time: 11:38
Chinese to English
+ ...
I hate to say this, but perhaps more respect and more consideration for other fellow human beings?
| | | | Kenneth Woo
China
Local time: 00:38
English to Chinese
TOPIC STARTER
Hello Preston,
I agree with you that the difference in time expectations really exists between Chinese and western markets. A possible explanation is that we translators in China who translate from English into Chinese or vice versa are in a fiercely competitive market in which translation agencies are always able to find someone who is willing to work for lower rates and accept unreasonable requests; they know that clients often lack the expertise to judge the quality of a transla... See more Hello Preston,
I agree with you that the difference in time expectations really exists between Chinese and western markets. A possible explanation is that we translators in China who translate from English into Chinese or vice versa are in a fiercely competitive market in which translation agencies are always able to find someone who is willing to work for lower rates and accept unreasonable requests; they know that clients often lack the expertise to judge the quality of a translation and a fast turnaround is all that is needed to make them happy; they also know that it’s very hard for most translators to turn down their job offer; so at the expense of the translator and the quality of the translation, they set unrealistic tight deadlines to please their clients, and more importantly, to make the greatest profit possible.
[Edited at 2014-04-18 00:50 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | David Lin
United Kingdom
Local time: 17:38
Member (2013)
English to Chinese
+ ...
Moderator of this forum | A ring from California | Apr 17, 2014 |
Hi Same feeling here.
I got a ring from California (frequent client) two days ago saying that she wanted a fast turn around job (next day for a couple of thousand words). She was very courteous and careful (and even to the extent sweet - asking whether she woke me up and in fact it was afternoon London time and 10 a.m. WST). She asked me with a nice West coast Californian accent (like those you heard at LA Law), but before she told me about her extremely fast requirement I already ... See more Hi Same feeling here.
I got a ring from California (frequent client) two days ago saying that she wanted a fast turn around job (next day for a couple of thousand words). She was very courteous and careful (and even to the extent sweet - asking whether she woke me up and in fact it was afternoon London time and 10 a.m. WST). She asked me with a nice West coast Californian accent (like those you heard at LA Law), but before she told me about her extremely fast requirement I already said I could only help in two days time as I had a job on hand with the deadline the following day.
In the end it was probably a disappointment for her but I found that we translators be open and honest up front to PMs about your availability is better than taking the job and hurting your health.
David ▲ Collapse
| | |
|
|
|
ysun
United States
Local time: 11:38
English to Chinese
+ ...
| That may explain | Apr 17, 2014 |
why the US clients may have paid high prices, but the China-based freelancers often get very little!
Preston Decker wrote:
Obviously one reason for this is the intense competition in China, and another is that many agencies doing Chinese to English work (my pair) in China are third or fourth on the pecking order (US client to US agency to Chinese agency to Freelancer). A third reason, I think is expectation of difficulty: In the US Chinese is regarded as a difficult language, ...
| | | | Kenneth Woo
China
Local time: 00:38
English to Chinese
TOPIC STARTER | I'd rather do a little and do it well. | Apr 18, 2014 |
I don't want to work like a slave churning out shoddy work at ridiculous rates; I'd rather do a little and do it well at a relatively decent rate. This means I'll have to work with good western agencies.
[Edited at 2014-04-18 01:02 GMT]
| | | | ysun
United States
Local time: 11:38
English to Chinese
+ ...
Kenneth Woo wrote:
的確，收加急費有時有點兒難為情，還可能把客戶嚇跑，但我認為健康比什麽都重要，為滿足這種無理要求而犧牲健康不值得。所以，遇到急件，我要麼不接，要麼就收一筆加急費，前提是身體吃得消，心情好。
公事公办，收加急费是理所当然，没什么可难为情的。客户要是真的着急，一般还是愿意付加急费的。不必担心把他吓跑。但如果客户急得太过分，那就不给他干，影响了健康收多少加急费都不值。
| | | | Kenneth Woo
China
Local time: 00:38
English to Chinese
TOPIC STARTER
ysun wrote:
客户要是真的着急，一般还是愿意付加急费的。不必担心把他吓跑。但如果客户急得太过分，那就不给他干，影响了健康收多少加急费都不值。
確實！
| | | | To report site rules violations or get help, contact a site moderator: You can also contact site staff by submitting a support request » 加急費 | CafeTran Espresso | You've never met a CAT tool this clever!
Translate faster & easier, using a sophisticated CAT tool built by a translator / developer.
Accept jobs from clients who use Trados, MemoQ, Wordfast & major CAT tools.
Download and start using CafeTran Espresso -- for free
Buy now! » |
| | Trados Studio 2022 Freelance | The leading translation software used by over 270,000 translators.
Designed with your feedback in mind, Trados Studio 2022 delivers an unrivalled, powerful desktop
and cloud solution, empowering you to work in the most efficient and cost-effective way.
More info » |
|
| | | | X Sign in to your ProZ.com account... | | | | | |
Login to reply/comment 
