1. Terms and Conditions
1.1
These Terms constitute the agreement between Lingua GM C.I.C and the
Interpreter governing assignments undertaken by the Interpreter with Lingua GM C.I.C.
1.2
No variation or alteration to the terms shall be valid unless approved in
writing by Lingua GM C.I.C
2. Purpose
2.1
These Terms and Conditions aim not to establish an employment relationship.
2.2
The interpreter is not entitled to any paid leave of absence for sickness,
injury, holiday or any other reason.
3. Assignments
3.1
This agreement places Lingua GM C.I.C is not obligated to offer any work at any
time to the Interpreter. There may be periods when no assignments are available to be provided by
Lingua GM C.I.C to the interpreter.
3.2
Upon the acceptance of the assignment by the Interpreter, Lingua GM C.I.C shall
supply the Interpreter with an assignment confirmation specifying relevant information to the
assignment.
3.3
The Interpreter shall be required to provide interpreting services to Lingua GM
C.I.C suppliers at the location and time in the assignment details.
4. Payments
4.1
For any Face-to-Face, phone call/video call, the Interpreter shall receive
payment for the assignment period stated in the assignment confirmation booking form.
4.2
The Interpreter shall be paid for attending the assignments and providing the
service upon accepting the job and receiving an assignment confirmation.
4.3
Payment will be processed at the end of the month once the job is clicked as
completed on the app by the interpreter on their own profile. The system will generate an automated
invoice for the interpreter.
4.4
Payment rates
Scheduled Face-to-Face assignment:
Basic rate of £20 per Hour and £0.45/mile travel expense for the journey to and back from the
completed booking.
Scheduled telephone assignment or video assignment:
Basic rate of £17.50 per Hour
Rates for specialized roles or rare language skills
are subject to approval by management/the company.
4.4.1
F2F interpreting for the first hour, the agreed fixed rate fee shall be
payable. Any additional time shall be paid in 15-minute increments to the nearest quarter.
4.4.2
Remote interpreting for the 1st hour; the agreed fixed rate fee shall be
payable. Any additional time shall be paid in 15-minute increments to the nearest quarter.
5. Cancellation
5.1
Late Cancellations by Providers
If a provider cancels a face-to-face assignment on the day of the booking or with less than 24
hours’ notice, the interpreter will be compensated for 1 hour of interpreting. We will compensate
their time and travel expenses only if they travelled to the venue.
5.2
If a provider cancels a telephone or video assignment on the day of the booking
or with less than 4 hours’ notice, the interpreter will be compensated for 1 hour of interpreting.
5.3
No-Shows & Delays
If a provider or service user does not attend an assignment, the interpreter will be paid for their
attendance time. In cases of delays or lateness by either party, the interpreter is required to wait
for a minimum of half of the scheduled duration unless notified earlier by Lingua GM C.I.C of the
cancellation via email, SMS, or phone call.
5.4
Interpreter Cancellations
Interpreters must notify Lingua GM C.I.C in writing at least 24 hours in advance if they are unable
to attend an assignment for any reason.
5.5
Delays in Attendance
If an interpreter is enroute to their scheduled face-to-face assignment and is unable to arrive on
time due to unforeseen circumstances, they must inform Lingua GM C.I.C management or the booking
team immediately.
6. Fair Treatment
6.1
Equality and Integrity
6.1.1
As an independent freelance interpreter, you must always maintain impartiality
and be perceived by others as impartial. Any perception of bias may compromise your role.
6.1.2
Integrity must be demonstrated in all professionally allocated assignments.
This requires acting with honesty, fairness, and impartiality at all times, ensuring you are not
improperly influenced by self-interest or the interests of others.
6.1.3
You must also only accept assignments you are certain you can fulfil.
6.1.4
Lingua GM C.I.C expects a consistently high standard of interpreting service
delivery. Breaches in performance, including lack of professional timekeeping and punctuality for
assigned bookings, whether isolated or repeated incidents, may result in a formal warning being
issued.
6.1.5
Prompt and decisive action will be taken by Lingua GM C.I.C upon becoming aware
of any alleged inappropriate conduct. This is in the best interests of the organisation, the
interpreter, the involved parties, and the wider public.
All interpreters alongside Lingua GM
C.I.C are expected to adhere to the government and NRPSI Code of Professional Conduct:
This code requires interpreters, in recognition of their responsibility to
society, clients, colleagues, and professional bodies, to always act with integrity and uphold the high
standards appropriate to practitioners within the profession. Interpreters must refrain from conduct
that could bring the status of NRPSI, the National Register of Public Service Interpreters, or the
profession generally into disrepute.
Interpreters found guilty of a relevant criminal offence may be deemed to
have breached professional standards. You must report, without delay, any unspent conviction, as defined
by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, or caution received in either the UK or overseas. Lingua GM
C.I.C will act in accordance with its disciplinary procedures to determine appropriate action,
considering all circumstances. Interpreters must not knowingly or negligently act in a way likely to be
detrimental to the profession of linguist, NRPSI, the status of registrant on the National Register of
Public Service Interpreters, or the officers of NRPSI.
This clause does not preclude or prohibit the lawful exercise of the right
to free expression and reasonable debate.
Practitioners must refrain from knowingly and wilfully acting in a manner
likely to damage the reputation of a registrant on the National Register of Public Service Interpreters
(NRPSI) or an officer of the NRPSI, except when fulfilling a definable professional duty or where there
is a clear public interest. This commitment does not preclude or prohibit the lawful exercise of the
right to free expression and reasonable debate.
Furthermore, interpreters must adhere strictly to the following principles
regarding the acceptance and execution of work:
- Interpreters shall not accept or carry out work they believe might render them liable to prosecution
for criminal behaviour, might incur civil liability, or contravene the United Nations Universal
Declaration of Human Rights.
- Interpreters shall not accept any work that would, directly or indirectly, infringe the Code. They
must not knowingly act in contravention of the Code, even when instructed to do so by a Principal.
- Interpreters must only accept work for which they possess the requisite competence, both
linguistically and in terms of specialist knowledge or skill, to execute to the standard required by
the client. This requirement is satisfied if the work is sub-contracted or if the interpreter is
informed that their work will be revised by a competent person who will ensure the work meets the
standards set out in the Code.
- The competence required for an assignment includes an advanced and idiomatic command of the relevant
languages, awareness of dialects and linguistic variations relevant to the commission, the necessary
specific specialist skills, and, where appropriate, an adequate understanding of relevant cultural
and political realities concerning the country or countries involved.
- Interpreters are required to disclose any potential conflict of interest or any other factor that
might make it inappropriate for them to accept work in a particular case.
Your diligent adherence to these standards is essential for maintaining the
integrity and reputation of the Register.
Interpreters shall treat as confidential any information they acquire
through a commission of work. They shall not disclose such information to a third party unless
instructed by the principal to do so, provided that such disclosure would not be unlawful or infringe
the rights of any party concerned. Such information may include, for example, working practices and
lists of clients.
Interpreters shall always act impartially and shall not, in any way, affect
that might result in prejudice or preference on the grounds of religion or belief, race, politics,
gender, age, sexual orientation or disability, other than as obliged to translate, interpret or
otherwise transfer meaning faithfully.
Interpreters shall always respect confidentiality and shall not seek to take
advantage of information acquired during or because of their work. The duty of confidentiality shall not
terminate on the completion of a commission of work and shall persist, where appropriate, beyond the
cessation of registration.
The duty of confidentiality shall not apply where disclosure is required by
law. Interpreters are solely responsible for work assigned by Lingua GM C.I.C when attending a given
booking.
Interpreters must respond to any complaints forwarded to them by Lingua GM
C.I.C in a timely fashion and assist the Professional Conduct Committee and Disciplinary Committee in
their investigation.
Interpreters shall not make any direct contact or provide a means to do so
with a client or clients of a Principal without the Principal’s express agreement.
Obligations to Principals
1.
Interpreters shall always strive to produce work of the highest standard and
ensure that the principal is aware of any factor that may affect the standard of the work produced.
2.
Interpreters are obliged to carry out all work contracted to them with
impartiality and shall immediately disclose to the principal any factor which might jeopardise such
objectivity.
3.
This shall include any financial or other interest they may have in the work
contracted to them.
4.
Interpreters are obliged to treat work contracted to them with complete
confidentiality.
5.
They shall use their best endeavours to ensure that such confidentiality is
also observed by others, whether checkers, revisers, editors or any other individuals employed by
the Practitioner on a permanent or freelance basis or to whom work has been sub-contracted or
delegated.
6.
Interpreters shall carry out any consultation that may be necessary (for
example, on language or terminological difficulties) in a manner such that confidentiality is
safeguarded.
7.
Interpreters shall not subcontract work without the prior consent of the
company/Directors.
8.
Interpreters shall only recommend another person whom they have good reason to
believe has the necessary competence and is subject to this Code or a comparable code of
professional conduct by the discretion of the company/Directors.
9.
Interpreters shall endeavour to carry out work by agreed dates and by other
agreed terms and shall advise Principals in good time of any delay or need to amend the agreed
terms.
10.
Interpreters shall not, other than in exceptional circumstances, withdraw from
or fail to complete a commission of work once accepted without reasonable notice to the
company/Directors.
11.
Interpreters carrying out work as interpreters shall only carry out work that
they believe is within their linguistic and relevant specialist competence.
12.
Interpreters shall, other than in exceptional circumstances, only interpret
between the language(s) for which they are registered.
13.
Interpreters shall interpret truly and faithfully what is uttered without
adding, omitting or changing anything; in exceptional circumstances, a summary may be given if
requested.
14.
Interpreters shall ensure they understand the relevant procedures of the
professional context in which they work, including any terminology.
15.
Where the interpreter lacks relevant background knowledge, such as
significantly impairing their ability to commission work, they shall inform all relevant parties and
withdraw.
16.
Interpreters shall disclose any difficulties encountered with dialects or
technical terms and withdraw from the commission of work if these cannot be satisfactorily remedied.
Interpreters shall observe any special rules and protocols relating to interpreting in the
professional context relevant to a particular work commission.
17.
Interpreters shall not interrupt, pause or intervene except:
- To ask for clarification
- To point out that one party may not have understood, the other party has assumed something which the
interpreter has good reason to believe.
- To alert the parties to a possible missed cultural reference or inference
- To signal a condition or factor which might impair the interpreting process (such as inadequate
seating, poor sight lines or audibility, inadequate breaks, etc.).
- Interpreters shall not delegate work nor accept delegated work without the full and informed consent
of the principal; where practicable, such consent should be in writing.
- Disclose immediately if the interviewee or their immediate family is known or related to the
Practitioner.
- Not accept any form of inducement or reward, whether in cash or otherwise, for interpreting work
other than payment from the principal.
Any translation document from Statutory, NHS, or
government bodies provided to Lingua GM C.I.C. for translation, its Intellectual Property Rights remain
with the provider body and cannot be shared externally without the prior written consent of the other
Party.
For queries and questions, you can reach out by
email to: admin@linguagm.com
Please sign below and return:
- I hereby agree that I will respect and adhere to all the terms and conditions
- I understand that I shall be paid gross and, therefore, be responsible for my tax liability.
- I consent to my personal data (Name, Phone number) being forwarded to providers.
- I confirm that I will not directly approach or accept offers from clients of Lingua GM C.I.C to work
for them independently. I understand that doing so may result in the termination of my contract with
Lingua GM C.I.C.
- I agree to inform Lingua GM C.I.C of any offers I receive from its clients to ensure transparency
and avoid any conflicts of interest.
All intellectual data is kept
encrypted on secure database for all interpreters.
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