EssayWriters: Sweatshop Labour

EW is inviting what it calls their "most treasured assets," its writers, to triple their earnings. As EW writes on its Available Orders' page, "Season is here! Triple your earnings today!" After reviewing the per page compensation rates on their Available Orders' page, I really don't see how that can be. With a handful of exceptions, most orders are going for $3.6 to $4.2. How is this a trebling of earnings?

Let's me try to calculate EW writers' hourly rates. Suppose any is assigned a 3 page order at 3.6 per page = $10.8. Shall we say that the writer would need about 20 minutes to collect 2-3 sources, 15 minutes to read through and annotate them, and about 20 minutes per page? Total time spent on the order would be about 90 minutes? So, on average, an EW writer makes about $7.2 per page. Minimum wage rates for unskilled blue-collar workers in the US is about $8 per hour (corrected, courtesy of Pheelyks) and in the UK it is about £6 - mind you, we are talking of unskilled, manual labourers.

EW writers are earning less than would an uneducated and unskilled, manual labourer in either the UK or the US.

EW pays writers less than 20-25% (in the absence of fines, etc) of what clients pay per page.
What is compelling EW writers to tolerate sweatshop labour wages? Yuri is reaping big bucks and is an extremely wealthy buffoonish baboon because you, as his writers, are putting up with it. Why???

I agree with you in principle, of course, but this is just plain wrong. Federal minimum wage is $7.25; though many make more than this, a lot of workers in the country are still in the $8-$15 dollar range.

Sorry. I got it from the New York Times (Week in Review, 20 April, 2008). I should have been more thorough. For some reason, I just assumed that you people had a higher minimum wage rate than the UK.

No, just lower taxes. Not that I think it's worth the trade off (I'd rather have healthcare and the knowledge that I won't be on the street when I'm seventy), but I'm in the minority here.

You meant per hour, right? This is true only if writers actually take the $3.6 per page orders. I for one only take orders that pay at least $10/page. The only exception to this are PowerPoint orders that already have the content completely prepared. For such orders, I take them so long as they're not less than $6/slide. However, I admit that I do get to charge direct clients and essaybay clients much more, which explains why I haven't taken any essay orders from ew for quite sometime now.

Yes


You, rightly, do not pick up these orders but, the majority do. Are their average rates, in any way at all, defensible or justifiable?

Nope, they're not.

Good for you for refusing those rates

I wonder about that 10$/page you claim to have at essaywriters. I have been working for them for over a year now, the only orders that reach that rate are those that have to be done in something like 1 or 2 hours. There are some fields of study which pay better, but 10/page is an exception, and a very rare one for that matter.

And now, for the incredibly numerous mistakes on their site. The latest announcement says, I quote:

"We are terribly sorry for temporally inconveniences?.

Thank you for ? understanding and cooperaiton.

Regards,
Writers' Support Team"

And also:

""Writing is my passion, and I'm enjoying it now with EssayWriters. It is really appreciable to work with you, guys. I like the attitude, the transparency of the system. And direct communication between writers, support, and customers is of great help in daily decisions! I am thinking of making this my basic income."

Jennifer Bangot, USA"

Now this is supposed to be one of the testimonials they have from their very satisfied writers (and note: the writer is supposed to be from...USA). Does anyone know what "appreciable to work with you" means? I also wonder when was it ever possible for writers to communicate at EW?

They really need English lessons badly:

"In my experience this is the only company that allows writers to contact customers in writing process. All in all, you guys are very professional and you keep up improving this site to make it easier for each of us. Thanks!"

To make what easier? "keep up improving?"

Not to mention lessons in honesty, if the thing was possible. Now, for your information dear essaywriters.net, I know of at least 3 other companies that allow you to have direct communication with the customers (I work for them).

Anyway, reading through the stuff on their site would actually be fun, if I hadn't wasted so much of my time and money with them.

LMAO!!!!!! :)))


This is actually a very good rate where I'm from. Therein lies the problem. We have engineers, lawyers, and even some doctors who don't make that much; and don't get me started on teachers' pay. I'm even tempted to try it out myself.

*AsianWriter is still on the fence.*

I think that you are giving essaywriters.net's average writer far too much credit, especially the "20 minutes per page" part. I believe that the hourly rate for the average order breaks down to about $4.00-$5.00, unless, of course, the average writer is cutting all sorts of corners (including plagiarizing and writing incoherent gibberish). Hmmm, maybe you are correct. ;)

Even with the average IQ there, I don't think copying, pasting and producing irrelevant rubbish wuld take more than that. It would take me 5 minutes to produce rubbish ... them, 4x as long = 20 minutes :)

Oh, and by the way: on top of everything, they resell papers. So attention students an writers as well: even if the writer works hard on the essay it can still appear as plagiarized when, hours later, it is resold on Megaessays, for instance. I was shocked to find countless papers I have written for them there. There is simply no end to their maneuvering. I personally loathe them for reselling my work more than for the fact that they haven't paid me my due. Despicable company, the worst ever.

"I'm working part-time so far on contract basis - and I enjoy it! Money is never extra, and with EssayWriters it's both, income and practice of knowledge, and opportunity to do what I really love - writing. I'm hoping to make it the source of my main income".

Candace Pike, UK

and...

"I'm an aspiring writer. I love the experience I'm getting and the more money I make the more experience I get, but I'm mostly about getting my writing better. Even though, I'm trying to make this my full time job."

Simon Breedon, USA

LOL

So what the hell is a "competitive" vs. "high end" rate? Does choosing "high end" eliminate you from consideration by the writing service?

But they earn better than daily minimum wage rates in their local currency. So the writers do not view this practice as sweatshop labor. At least not in their country. They accept the job and shabby treatment from the company owner because it helps them out financially. Who are we to judge it as sweatshop labour if they do not see it that way? We can feel compassion for them and endlessly debate this practice, but if they refuse to fix their situation by fighting for their right to higher wages, then we should be silent about it.

The truth of the matter is that they are earning even less there days. The starting rate that has been set for the Novice Writer category is between $1-$2 per page depending upon the "complexity " of a paper. They do not $3 and up unless they have stuck it out at least a year at the company. Since most 3rd rate academic writers found themselves tapped out in terms of savings over the previous years due to company closures, I can understand why these writer's would accept to work for rates not even teenage baby sitters would accept. They accept slave labor wages because they don't have an option. Yes, they are low skilled 3rd world writers. Yes, they give our industry a bad name. And yes Cite, unless they work for better treatment and wages, they deserve little pity from the mainstream industry and its writers.