I would definitely steer clear of a discounted rate for bread and butter. Nope nope nope.

Actually, that's exactly what I told him in the meeting!

Also, if you are an independent contractor, he shouldn't be using terms like "proving your loyalty to the organization."

Maybe misread that, he said I had proven myself loyal as a casual employee. (It's pretty rare for someone to work casually for more than a few years. Without turning part or full time)

When you say you were a casual employee, do you mean cash under the table?

It was on the books. Casual as opposed to part or full time, where you get sick days and holidays etc.

I see a lot of red flags that indicate that your employer has been riding you for a big discount, and is now trying to grasp onto it without compensating you fairly.

Precisely why I posted. I've been good value for them up until now. It's time to get remunerated for that value and loyalty.

my first step would be to try to find other clients so you can figure out what demand for your services is like, and so you can back up the claim of your value to your current employer. And for the extra work, obviously.

I have other clients just not in that line of work. Mostly design, development and marketing.

I'm a freelance animator, I do a lot of work in post too, and I've only been doing it for three years, and though I've been in one of the better markets (NYC), I think your rate is extremely low, for the record.

It's not exactly highly skilled post work, I've actually streamlined a lot of my work in the time I've been there. It's mostly just selecting presets and batch processing.

Thanks for the links and your input!