Invoicing and Payment Terms
MasterWord utilizes a dedicated invoicing portal for processing Independent Contractor invoices for translation and translation related services. By accepting a project or service order from MasterWord, Independent Contractor agrees to use this dedicated portal for invoicing purposes (where applicable) and comply with MasterWord’s invoicing procedure for each specific project or service order within 7 (seven) days of receiving invoicing instructions for such project or service order as to ensure prompt payment to Independent Contractor by MasterWord.
If Independent Contractor does not provide a timely (within 7 days) verification and authorization of an invoice amount, such untimely authorized invoice will be subject to an administrative processing fee of 15% of the total amount of the invoice. Furthermore, any invoice verified and authorized by Independent Contractor after net thirty (30) days of receipt of invoicing instructions is not compensable and will not be accepted for payment.
For long term projects payments will be made in accordance with the project/milestone completion schedule.
Any invoices submitted to MasterWord based on variable/estimated quantities without a prior written quote or a prior written agreement between Independent Contractor and MasterWord on such variable quantities may be in part or in whole subject to an independent professional review (“IPR”). Independent Contractor agrees to accept IPR and their determination of the scope of work, and the allocation of time and resources reasonably required to complete this scope. In the event of considerable (over 10%) discrepancy between the invoice amount and the fair market value determined by IPR, MasterWord reserves the right to pay and Independent Contractor agrees to accept the fair market value for services rendered.
Force Majeure
If either party is prevented from performing any of its duties and obligations in a timely manner by reason of any act of God, strike, labor dispute, flood, public/natural disaster, power failures, or any other reason beyond its reasonable control, such condition shall be deemed to be a valid excuse for delay of performance or nonperformance of any such duty or obligations for the period during which such condition exists. If any scope of service as outlined is cancelled, as a result of an Event of Force Majeure, by MasterWord or any MasterWord client resulting in the inability to perform services, it will be considered non-payable to the Contractor, including pre-established minimums as outlined in the provided confirmations.
Service Quality Guidelines
Contractor agrees to observe and adhere to the professional code of ethics and professional standards prescribed by the major recognized professional associations, including, but not limited to the American Translators Association Code of Ethics and Professional Practice[i] and International Association of Professional Translators and Interpreters Code of Ethics[ii].
Based on industry and professional standards and best practices Independent Contractor’s translation and translation related product(s) shall be subject to quality assurance process. MasterWord employs a practical framework for assessing quality of translation and translation related services which includes the ATA Certification Programs Rubric for Grading[iii], ISO 9001:2015[iv], ISO 17100:2015[v] and ISO 18587:2017[vi] standards, and other applicable industry guidelines and best practices.
Professional linguists are expected to translate and perform other functions such as editing and proofreading based on industry productivity standards (250 words per hour for translation, 1000 words per hour for editing and 3000-4000 words per hour for proofreading).
Translations should be of a quality so that an editor is able to produce edited documents at the rate of 1000 words per hour and meet the Overall Document Weighted Score standard. Overall Document Weighted Score is based on the severity of errors of meaning, form and compliance defined as follows:
- “Error of Meanings” – An error of meaning occurs when the translation is not true to the meaning of the source document.
- “Error of Form” – An error of grammar, spelling, or formatting that does not otherwise affect meaning, but is not true to the source document.
- “Error of Compliance” – An error in which the form or meaning are correct, but it is not consistent with the original style and register.
Translation products that require an inordinate amount of corrections or rewriting of the translation by an editor, decrease productivity for the entire team and are not justifiable to MasterWord’s clients. Translation products that require excessive amount of editing will be considered unacceptable and may be returned to Independent Contractor for corrections unless other approach is selected by MasterWord’s Project Manager (such as using a different independent contractor).
It is the responsibility of Independent Contractor to find the resources and references required to complete assigned projects.
Glossary and Style Guide use is mandatory if provided by the Project Manager.
Acceptance and Agreement
Written acceptance by Independent Contractor of any project or service order for completion signifies a binding agreement between MasterWord and Independent Contractor as to the service requisites specific to that service order or project. Contractor agrees to provide MasterWord any documentation upon request which verifies Independent Contractor’s compliance with MasterWord client requisites such as proof of subject matter education and/or experience, where applicable.
Reporting, On Time Delivery and Certificate of Accuracy
Contractor agrees to insure the timely status updates and completion of all milestone deliverables as agreed upon by MasterWord and Independent Contractor at the initiation and/or progression of any particular project or service order; and where such timely completion is not possible, Contractor will immediately notify MasterWord.
Contractor acknowledges they must communicate with MasterWord immediately upon realizing a service request previously accepted by Contractor for completion cannot be fulfilled. MasterWord will not be held responsible for paying Contractor for services that were not rendered and Contractor may be held liable for liquidated damages as they result from Contractor’s inability to fulfill service request after acceptance of such by a Contractor.
Contractor understands and agrees that MasterWord following industry and professional standards and best practices edits and/or proofreads Contractor’s translation and translation related product(s). However, if the Contractor is asked to deliver a certificate of accuracy, no amendments or alterations may be made to translation and translation related product(s) without Contractor’s written acceptance of such amendment of alteration.
Note: Requirements are subject to change based on MasterWord’s and MasterWord’s Clients’ needs.
[i] https://www.atanet.org/about-us/code-of-ethics/ [ii] https://www.iapti.org/code-of-ethics/ [iii] https://www.atanet.org/certification/how-the-exam-is-graded/into-english-standards/ [iv] https://www.iso.org/standard/62085.html [v] https://www.iso.org/standard/59149.html [vi] https://www.iso.org/standard/62970.html