What do you mean I'm on my own?
On the day of the booking the trainee interpreter receives a message from the agency asking if they are available for a booking on the same day at a certain time. The trainee realises that this is the same booking that they are already doing. The message indicates that the co-worker is, for some reason, not available. Telephoning the agency for clarification they find that the co-worker has phoned in sick and therefore can not attend. Should the trainee continue with the booking or not? No advance materials have been received although they have been asked for. The trainee doesn’t even know who the presenter is. (The information was promised to be passed on when the booking was accepted). It is a 3 hour voice over session, an unknown speaker and unknown material.Could the trainee refuse the booking and still claim the fee?
Professional and Customer perspectives
The deaf clients would have all travelled a long way to attend the session. The palantypist would be left with no voice over and therefore lack of access to the information. However the trainee interpreter would have worked just under a 12 hour day when they arrived to the booking. The only reason they had accepted the booking was the promise of the information and the fact that a co-worker would be there.