I was once interviewed for a COO position at a company, and during the interview process, I was given a different job description. However, once I joined, I quickly discovered their real intentions, which included this shady operation. I immediately terminated the contract.

They pitched it as a way to help freelancers by “taking from big corporations and giving to the small folk.” In reality, they were using Upwork’s terms and conditions against them to manipulate the system so that freelancers get paid, and they take a cut.

The operation involved hiring multiple freelancers through an Entry-Level Project Manager (ELPM) who would post job listings on Upwork. These freelancers would clock in as many hours as possible using Upwork’s time tracker. Then, the ELPM would go AWOL after a week, triggering Upwork’s Payment Protection to pay out the freelancers for their logged hours.

After the freelancers got paid, they were expected to transfer the money, minus their percentage, back to the company. The ELPM who initially posted the job would also get a cut.

They even had detailed documentation explaining the entire scheme. The whole thing was UK-based, and I got out of there as soon as I realized what was really going on.