Workers Wanted!!

[bartimaeus]

Katika stood looking at the broken axle on her kart softly cursing every Supreme Being she could think of. This was the last straw for her. She had put up with her hired help for too long, they were costing her far more money in repairs and compensation than the money they were bringing in.

As soon as she had let go her two helpers ('more like saboteurs' she had thought at the time) Katika had posted in the merchant guild a notice asking for anyone interested in joining a caravan. She had specifically asked for anyone who could drive a team appropriately and had competent battle skills. Katika had lost count on how many times she'd lost a cargo of expensive silks or rare spices because her hired help had run in the opposite direction screaming incoherently. Katika suppressed the urge to kick something at the memories. It had taken months to make up the costs of each trip before she had started to gain profits again.

Still it all came with the trade and Katika had learnt from each experience taking from it everything she could to turn it to her advantage. Something her cousin lacked. Katika decided to instead take her vengeance out on some paperwork. Her office was in desperate need of an upgrade, but Katika had just invested in a new warehouse just after purchasing her house just a few blocks from where she stood now. New offices were on the bottom of the priority list. Katika's urge to kick something came back uncontrollably as she started to move towards her office and the broken kart was the only thing close enough to take the full brunt of her frustration.

Giving the kart a good solid kick and screaming at it, Katika became much more relaxed and taking a deep breath headed into her office just near the front of the warehouse doors and submerged her self in the mounds of paperwork. Most of them were bills and loan repayments. After filling in several forms and signing off a healthy amount of money to those she owed Katika spared a small amount of time to wonder if she should have asked for an accountant as well. Something about trusting all her money onto someone else though made her feel uncomfortable. At least if she got into serious debt she had no one else to blame but herself.

The paperwork never seemed to end for Katika, for every one she managed to fill in and file away she was sure that two more had sprouted while she had turned away to place everything in her filing system. Sometimes in her moments of madness she could have sworn that the piles had grown. It wasn't long before she lost track of time, stopping only to light lanterns in the office so she could see what she was doing. At least it was keeping her away from home where instead of bills and loans she had to deal with family or fellow merchants trying to gain her favour as they realised that she was starting to gain a healthy amount of wealth behind her name.

[Kender Bard]

A knocking came at the door. Lily scuffed her shoes lightly against the cobblestones as she thought about the wanted ad she'd scene while in the market district. Work was tough to get, and she didn't hold much hope that she'd be hired. Proper ladies don't get hired for grunt work, even in this fair city, she thought to herself, and sighed lamentably. It can't hurt to try though. Forces know I could use the money.

She glanced at the ground again, making sure there really was a little glow showing, indication that light was within. She had been passing by and wouldn't have stopped were it not for that telltale sign, and thought that now was as good a time as any. If whoever it is in there is still awake, they must have sleeping problems or be addicted to work, she thought to herself in amusement.

[bartimaeus]

At first the knock at the door didn't register, so determined at taming the piles of paper work, in Katika's head. It was about the third knock that she realised there was a noise, and that it was coming from her door. Sighing softly at the interruption and making a quick note of where she was up to, Katika heads over to the door and opens it.

There are many things that happen at night, especially in an area like where Katika worked, and never had anything really surprised her. However opening the door to find a woman standing there wasn't something she was expecting and it caught her off guard.

"Are you ok? Are you lost?" Katika points towards the direction of the residential area of Ronduin "If you head in that direction, avoiding the ally-ways, you'll make it to the housing part of the city pretty much unmolested"

[Kender Bard]

"N-no," Lily stammered. She'd been equally caught off guard at seeing Katika. "Er, I saw that someone was looking for a battle-wise driver for a business. Are yo-, er, am I at the right place?" There's no reason to get presumptuous here. That could be bad, given that it's the very thing I'm trying to avoid. Still. It ruffled her a little that the immediate thought on the other woman's part was that she was lost. What, do I give off an aura that says 'Helpless young lady! Please patronize!'?

[bartimaeus]

Katika takes another look at the woman, eyeing her down as she studies the potential help at her door. She didn't look like much, but then Katika knew first hand what under estimating someone could do. Especially a woman.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but do you know how to drive a team? I mean honestly? Have you ever been in a fight? Picked up a sword?" Katika sighs before continuing, "Don't get me wrong, I'm in sore need of some help, but I don't want anyone getting blood on my cargo in between transits."

[Kender Bard]

Lily stiffened a little more at her words. "I know how to fight. I haven't driven a full team before, but I've handled animals, so I don't think it will be entirely too difficult." Despite herself, her voice took on a bit of an edge, "I may look frail, miss, but I am not a pampered pretty lady looking for something to while away her pastime hours."

[bartimaeus]

Katika assumes a sceptical face but in light of the situation, she couldn't afford to be picky. She needed to be off to Reave to sell her silks and she didn't have time to wait for someone more qualified to join. Katika scans the lady in front of her once more as if staring at her hard enough would clarify any concerns Katika was having. In the end Katika grunts and begins to head inside the building again, sparing a moment to gesture an invite to the woman.

"I'm Katika" she says over her shoulder as she enters her office. Heading straight for the back she sits down and starts to fumble around for some parchment she had written up her employment terms on the day before she'd put up the work wanted poster. "If you can find somewhere to sit, feel free,” she mutters over the towers of paperwork, not even checking to see if the woman had followed her in the office.

[Kender Bard]

Lily's frown deepens as she observes Katika. Grudgingly, she came inside and glanced around for somewhere to sit. "My name is Lily. Could you explain the job in more detail, so I know what's expected of me?"

You would think another woman might understand how hard it is to get ahead in the world, Lily thought sullenly. I hope success doesn't change my mentality into a man's, or something equally unpleasant. She struggled to keep her expression from turning sour.

[bartimaeus]

A small cry of triumph fills the room as Katika finds what she's looking for. Her first attempt was to try and slide the bits of paper out without causing the tower to fall. After several attempts, (each different to the other) Katika makes an audible sigh of frustration and in the end just yanks the small section of parchment out. Turning back to Lily she hands a copy of she had dug out over to her, looking almost comical in the blizzard of paper swirling about her office.

"This basically is the contract I've designed. I've pretty much written down everything I expect from you as a worker and what you can expect of me as your employer. When you've read and fully understood the terms and conditions you sign your name at the bottom and then the hard work begins. If you have any questions at the end feel free to ask away" Katika flicks a stray bunch of hair back over her shoulder and brushes away a parchment that had decided to settle on her head, rather than with the rest of its devil-reincarnates on the floor.

Katika re-reads her copy as she waits for Lily to organize herself. It was a quick scan over the paper, double checking the important parts; Employee is to perform to the best of his (not expecting to be hiring a woman, the document had been written up a little one sided) ability, first and foremost responsibility is to safely transport and receive goods of trade to all destinations. Second responsibility is to work and behave in a manner that was respectable towards the company and its workers. Third responsibility is to ensure that the employee protects the reputation of the company to the best of his ability provided it doesn't breach the first two responsibilities.

Katika scanned over the next few paragraphs that briefly explained a few examples of what would be considered breach of responsibility. Katika reached the section on employee rights and decided to go over them as well. Written down were things like; Employee has the right to paid family, sick and long service leave. Employee is entitled to compensation claims approved by the Merchant Guild board. Employee has the right to grievance in any area he sees as unfit. Getting bored of the standard workplace issues Katika scans ahead again down to the employers’ responsibilities.

Katika had spent a long time trying to come up with a way that was fair to both sides of the party but in the working class world it wasn't easy and most of the time Katika felt like she was getting the short end of the stick. She found it was always best to tell herself that the fairer you treated your workers the harder they would work. That rule had apparently been mislaid with her previous two 'workers'. Squelching down the concerns that were starting to rise up again Katika began reading again.

First responsibility of the employer is to ensure that the work environment is safe and risk free to the best of her ability provided it is within reason. Second responsibility is to ensure that all employee's rights are practiced and maintained at all times. Third responsibility of the employer is to ensure that he/she provides appropriate and adequate support towards his/her employee to the best of his/her ability, provided it is within reason.

Katika continues on to the employers rights. She'd added them new to the document this time, which was the reason for writing up a new one in the first place. She thought it would be better for the employees to know before hand what they were really in for. Katika's rights read thus; The employer has the right to terminate all contracts of employment when and as he/she see's fit, provided it is within reason. The Employer has the right to delegate employees task and working hours as he/she sees fit, provided it is within reason. The other rights were again just standard rights that anyone in the work force has, so Katika nearing the end decided to skip through the rest, knowing that everything said the same thing it had the last one hundred times she had gone over the document.

Katika places her copy on her desk behind her, filling the last free bit of space on her desk and looks over at Lily. She guessed that the next part would be negotiating pay. Katika makes a mental note to add the pay into the contract as a set item if this worker ended up like her previous ones. Negotiating was something she felt at ease with, stubbornness and greed was what she had little tolerance for and it had cost her on several occasions. Controlling tempers was something she needed to work on.

[Kender Bard]

Lily scanned through the contract and gave Katika a slight nod to show she understood. She did not, however, sign it just yet. "Very well, this all seems fair and in order. May I inquire to the pay I'd be receiving?" She leaned back and studied her prospective employer. Lily had worked enough to know what the 'bare minimum' passed for in the merchant's guild and, even, what didn't. There were some people out there who preyed on misfortune and would give you only a couple coppers a week. Barely enough to keep their labor fed.

But Lily guessed that Katika was no such person. The contract made her head spin a little in places with disorientation; it was all so bureaucratic really. Lily figured Katika must be a strong adherent to the Merchant Guild rules, and that suited the young woman just fine. It meant this might be a job worth keeping, at last. "I don't have any set price in mind so feel free to just toss me something in the way of an estimation."

[bartimaeus]

Knowing that this would come before any hint of gaining a signature Katika prepared herself for the negotiations.

"I'll start you off at five coppers a week for the first three months. If I'm happy with the work you've put in I'll raise that to ten coppers a week." Katika knew it was low and that she could easily afford to pay more. In fact she was happy to pay ten coppers a day for the first three months and then work on a raise afterwards. She could easily afford that, but she wanted to see what skills this woman had. Perhaps in the long term there could be a potential partner.

[Kender Bard]

Lily tried to keep from showing her obvious tenseness at the low wages. "Considering the work I'll be doing, I'd say seven a week is more than fair. Ten as a raise will work, if I am to your satisfaction." She crossed her arms stubbornly. Well, even if this woman didn't back down, five a week was still much better than two, which is what the last employer had offered her.

[bartimaeus]

Katika begins to feel the day catching up with her and even with the excitement of a good barter; she found her eyes had discovered a will of their own. Before the real negotiating could begin Katika decides to end the games she's playing, already envisioning her head on her pillow.

"Listen, the hour is late, I'm tired and to be honest in such desperate need of workers that I'd employ a fish if it said it could flick the reins occasionally. So I'll start you off at ten coppers a day for the first three months. Prove to me that you can work hard and help me deliver and sell everything on time and I'll work on what your raise will be then. At the moment all I need is a warm bed and a chance to claim what's left of the night from behind my eyelids." A small yawn escapes her as she pushes the image of her warm bed away. "What do you say?"

[Kender Bard]

Lily's eyes went as round as saucers. "That sounds wonderful!" she exclaimed, jumping up and grabbing Katika's hand to pump in a hearty handshake. "Thank you! What time should I come around to begin work?"

[bartimaeus]

Katika suppresses a yawn.

"I guess sometime just after sunrise. I'd have loved a chance for a sleep in but these silks aren't going to sell themselves, so I guess we'd better be off soon. I was hoping to have more help, but maybe we'll come across some more as we travel. For now it's just us two, so the work is going to be harder. Just remember that when you forget what your arse feels like after sitting on a horse drawn kart for hours."

Katika hands a quill and over to Lily for her to sign the contract. "Where are you staying at the moment? I can send one of my servants to get you if you like. It's not like I'm not paying them enough for them to actually do something for me. Other than allow entry to my family before letting me know who's at the door. I'm rambling again. I do that when I'm tired." Katika eventually holds her tongue while she waits for Lily.