Unprofessional Agency

Hi reader.

I would like to share my experience with the company who go by the name "Horizons" who are acting on behalf of "Scaled". This is a recruitment agency, recruiting South Africans for positions based in the United States. The business headquarters are also based in various locations overseas.

The reason for my review stems from my recruitment by Scaled, who are utilizing the services of Horizons to employ and pay South Africans in ZAR.

I had been dealing with the individual "Clare van Rensburg", who i regrettably have to share has been very unprofessional in handing what I would deem an unfair dismissal. Let me explain:

I was working for a client of Scaled, essentially being employed by the company "Scaled", working for the client. I will not mention the client to protect their privacy, however my review is with regards to how Horizons and Scaled have handled me as a South African.

In September of 2022, i was enrolled for the position of "Tier 3 IT Systems Architect", and had been working happily for them until 22nd December 2023 when they had closed for the Christmas holidays. The business was closed from the 23rd until the 3rd of January 2024.

Prior to the business closing for the holiday, I had arranged with a handler at Scaled to find out the process of Paternity leave as i was expecting a daughter on the 7th of December. So, it was from the 1st of December, until the 18th that I would be away on annual leave, as the paternity was unpaid and I really needed the money for hospital fees, rent, bills, food. So I had opted to take the annual leave first, to allow a full compensation at the end of December.

During this same instance, I was explained to that I did also have 10 days of unpaid Paternity leave which was offered to me and I had accepted to take it once my annual leave had ended.

Due to the timing of the leave taken, and the time of the year it was taken, by the time i returned to work on the 19th, the client company was closing for Christmas in the same week (22nd) so essentially I had just returned from annual leave, only to be away for another week due to the client business closure for those days.

Due to this, my unpaid 10 days of paternity took effect from the 4th of January. through to the 18th of January. During this time I had been away with my family, with my new born baby, facilitating as a new father and supporting the mother as much as I could through this phase.

It is irrelevant to mention, however, through this same timeline, the mother had suffered a C-Section infection due to various unknown factors and this kept myself and my new family quite occupied with doctors visits, immunizations, etc.

While all of this was happening, I had received multiple emails from Horizons, stating that I had been absconding from work since the 26th of December and as a result, was required to attend a disciplinary hearing.

Knowing full well that between Horizons, Scaled, and the client, there had to have been miscommunications between handlers that I would be taking paternity leave once work had commenced in January, not to mention that the client was closed from the 26th till the 3rd.

They urged me on multiple accounts to return immediately, to which I responded that I was on unpaid paternity leave and was also not home and did not have any of my work devices with me even if I had comp****. I also let them know that I had not been away since the 26th of December as the client was closed that week.

Days went by, and despite my correspondence to explain my case, they completely disregarded what I had said and told me that I was ********ly away from work and must return the following day. This was all during the period of my paternity leave. Unfortunately, I was unable to obtain any device, and was not able to obey their commands. I let them know each time that I was not home, and that there was a misunderstanding between the parties involved, mainly Horizons and Scaled.

Eventually, I was asked to attend a hearing due to my behavior, not returning to work as requested and honestly, I felt wronged on many accounts, emotional and upset, so i did not attend the hearing. I dont know if this was the right way to go about it, but I knew this was likely incompetence from the agencies and the handlers involved and it was clear that there were multiple flaws and inconsistencies in their processes. Clearly.

Soon after my absense from the hearing, I was served with a dismissal letter from Horizons, stating that I absonded from work and also did not attend the hearing.

In my defense, I had every right to be away as this was planned with a Scaled handler months in advance, somewhere down the line, a handler slipped up and did not account for my absence and therefore they made best effort to get me to return under the guise that i was absconding from work.

To make matters worse, the client (not Horizons, not Scaled), the client, had purchased an iPad and MacBook for me from takealot. The client is based in Canada, so i distinctively recall the process we had followed to purchase the devices from Takealot using a foreign bank account.

Soon after the dismissal, i had been requested by Horizons to package the devices so they could collect them as it was deemed not my property the moment I was dismissed. Fair enough.

However, i had still been away and now due to me having no employment, we had been stuck in this remote location, and now needed to search for other means of income in the town we were staying for the holiday.

Eventually, I struck luck as I had obtained various clients wanting to utilize my skills. Freelance work essentially. I was supposed to return home between 15th to 20th of January however this did not happen due to the dismissal and as a result, financial concerns.

Horizons, again, who has no affiliation with the client i had been working for, demanded i return the devices. This had been back and forth obviously as myself and my family had been away the entire time and the devices were at home. Unfortunately, after letting horizons know that I would be returning on the 6th of February, this too did not happen.

For 2 reasons: The first being that I was blessed to receive freelance work and was obligated to complete this before leaving and it was unforeseen that it would take longer than what had been expected. The second reason being that the same day I was expected to return and ship the devices, my 2 month old baby was hospitalized for fatally high fever. She was admitted for 2.5 days. This further complicated finances.

Throughout this time, I had received numerous threats from Clare at Horizons, stating that they would get SAPS involved as they have lost patience with me.

I let them know of the complications, to which they further threatened legal services as well as SAPS. They did not accept the delay.

I then received an email from them stating that they would also now be consulting with any future employers of mine, of my behavior, with the intention to further threaten my future.

This was extremely unprofessional. After sharing with them that I felt they were being unprofessional, they generated AI responses to urge me that it was not the case, but they would still be seeking legal counsil and involving the SAPS.

Each of their emails had referenced to involve SAPS despite assuring them on multiple accounts that I had no interest in keeping the devices and would have them shipped the moment I returned home. At this point, we were stranded and awaiting financial relief to return home.

As i write this, it is still the case. Fortunately, I have been blessed to receive various freelance opportunities and now are saving for the trip home.

At this point, these devices have been a major burden for myself and my family and is causing a great deal of stress, and harm towards them, as well as myself. Both emotionally and financially.

I was reluctant to come and share my experience here, however, decided to do so after they sent another email stating that they obtained legal counsil and will wait until the 15th of February and if I do not meet that deadline, will be seeking legal action with SAPS.

Unfortunately for myself, and my family, we are still rounding up enough funds to return home and I dont believe we will make it before then. I did let them know that the newfound opportunities had also kept me from returning and was waiting for a paycheck from them between the 1st to the 5th of March and would then be definitely returning to which I would send the devices to them not a moment later.

This has been an extremely unpleasant experience. Moreso for my family as I have been the sole provider and now have had my hands tied due to this unfair and *********** behavior from specifically, the 2 parties involved. Scaled, and Horizons.

I am remaining positive, assuring my family that it will all work out for the better. I believe it will all work out.

Thanks for reading this far.

Best Regards Jason